With the Hokuriku Shinkansen line between Tokyo and Fukui set to come online in spring 2024, promising better accessibility, Fukui Prefecture is intensifying its efforts to attract corporate meetings and incentive groups from Singapore and beyond.
In line with this, Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation is highlighting its generous event subsidies.
“We offer one of the highest subsidies in the country, but many are unaware. This was only set up three years ago, which was when (we placed more focus) on attracting international MICE groups,” Daisuke Yamazaki, director, convention division, Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation, told TTGmice at the recent JNTO (Japan National Tourism Organization) Incentive Travel Business Meetings in Singapore on August 31, 2023.
Currently, Fukui Prefecture is offering up to US$120,000 in subsidies for academic conferences, corporate meetings, or incentive events. The event must be held for two or more consecutive days, include overnight stays, and participants must be from at least two countries including Japan. More than 10 overseas participants are also required to stay at least a night in Fukui Prefecture.
When asked what would be a good group size for international conferences or incentive events, Yamazaki shared that it would be a maximum of 1,000 and 100 people respectively.
“We currently only host three to five international conferences a year, which means there is a lot of potential for growth. It helps that the new Shinkansen line will reduce travelling time from Tokyo,” Nonoka Sato, assistant manager convention division, Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation, added.
The tourism office is planning to reach out to Asia-Pacific markets like Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore – a key market in South-east Asia, as well as Europe for conferences.
Yamazaki opined that as Singaporeans are generally repeat visitors to Japan, they will be “looking for new destinations aside from the popular Kansai region and Tokyo”, and Fukui Prefecture is ready to welcome them.
Corporate activities in the destination include a Mega Zipline, knife-making or chopstick-making classes, and an overnight, meditative stay at Eiheiji Temple. This is in addition to sightseeing opportunities such as Echizen Ono Castle, Tojinbo Cliffs, and Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum.
Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation acknowledges that the small prefecture has a limited marketing budget, so it is “working closely with other nearby major cities”, such as the Tokyo Convention Bureau, to encourage corporates to extend their stay from big cities to Fukui.
Australia-headquartered The Arinex Group has officially unveiled Arinex Live, which specialises in event management software, technical event direction, on-site production and experience, and post-event engagement.
At the heart of Arinex Live’s technology is the Arinex One platform. Designed by event managers for event managers, the Arinex One platform provides a range of functionalities that save organisers time and improve the delegate experience throughout the event life cycle.
In July, The Arinex Group – comprising Arinex event management services and Arinex Live technology services – delivered three in-person, multi-day conferences across three states and industry sectors in one week.
Arinex One efficiently streamlined the programme design for 45th International Conference of the IEEE Engineering and Medicine and Biology Society, resulting in significant time savings. The platform allowed for seamless session allocation for the four-day programme, easily managing over 700 speakers across 18 concurrent rooms, ensuring zero scheduling clashes.
All three events were also enhanced by the Arinex One event app, customised to meet the unique requirements of each conference.
For example, during the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists Science Week 2023, attendees harnessed the app’s capabilities to navigate through the event’s programme. They also enjoyed the convenience of accessing a dynamic newsfeed that provided real-time notifications. Furthermore, delegates actively engaged in interactive Q&A sessions, constructed personalised schedules, and seamlessly exchanged contact information with fellow delegates using scannable QR codes. This process also proved beneficial for exhibitors, facilitating efficient lead capture.
Beyond receiving lead information via email, exhibitors could instantly download comprehensive lead reports. This innovative feature extends to fostering engagement by introducing point-based incentives and leaderboards. This gamification approach encourages interaction and engagement between attendees and exhibitors.
Similarly, at the Dieticians Australia 2023 Conference, Arinex Live provided comprehensive support to speakers, offering technical direction and on-site production assistance to ensure they had all the necessary resources for their presentations.
In addition to speaker support, The Arinex Group’s team ensured the overall success of the conferences with a physical presence at all stages. The dedicated on-site teams also played a crucial role in managing self-service registration kiosks and streamlining the registration process for thousands of attendees.