A slew of large-size corporate incentives booked into the main cities of Japan leading up to the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as Japan’s brisk leisure travel business and tendency among quality merchants to operate small outfits, have made it increasingly challenging for the destination to confirm current enquiries.
Susan Maria Ong, MICE director, Asia Pacific with Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), told TTGmice: “We have many large corporate incentives led by insurance, banking finance and pharmaceutical companies coming in the main cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto for 2018 and 2019, and with the Games happening in 2020, the next three years have become quite difficult for companies now planning to take their events to Japan.”
Tokyo
The situation has led to enquiries being waitlisted, according to Ong, who believes it will ease once the Games are over.
Hiroshi Iizuka, director of sales and marketing, MICE, international travel division of Nippon Travel Agency, shared the same observations.
He said: “Japan’s main cities are always popular and crowded, and it is getting even more so as we head closer to the Games in 2020. Our cities aren’t just for business events, they also welcome (leisure) tourists and support local residents.”
Ryoichi Yamada, director of marketing & sales, MICE Division of JTB Global Marketing & Travel, added that as most incentive groups preferred to visit Japan during peak travel season – such as when the cherry blossoms are in bloom – clients are faced with both capacity issues and high rates.
Adding to the capacity challenge are “traditional businesses that serve small groups, preferring to focus on high quality, personalised service instead of volume”, opined Akihito Saito, general manager, international travel division of Nippon Travel Agency Hokkaido.
He said: “This presents a problem when our clients need a special restaurant for dining events.”
Planners who are determined enough to confirm a large-sized corporate group in Japan in the coming years, will have to split delegates up across different accommodation and hunt down venues large enough for group dinners, according to Iizuka.
“It is a relief that the Japanese government has started to permit private hire of ancient castles and parks which have capacity for larger groups,” said Iizuka.
While Ong said the capacity issue is a “good problem” that demonstrates Japan’s strong demand, she admitted that it is still a problem that needs resolution.
“This is why we are doing more to introduce overseas event planners to tier-two destinations across Japan. Destinations like Kanazawa and Tottori are ready for business events. They can help alleviate the jam in the big cities and take on the overflow,” she said.
JNTO’s intensifying promotions of tier-two destinations are also targeted at encouraging more repeat groups.
However, the capacity challenge does not go away with programmes done in the less crowded, smaller cities.
“In such areas, local hotels tend to be afraid of accepting large groups due to language and cultural differences. Also, Japanese business owners believe that they need to prioritise regular clients over one-off large volume bookings,” commented Mika Tanaka, assistant general manager of Japana Planning.
Yamada said a group of 30 to 40 delegates is a “comfortable size” for corporate events in the smaller cities or towns, and anything more than 100 will be too big.
