“Okinawan tourism will definitely recover in two or three years. It is hard to find a reason against it,” said Kenji Sugimoto, president of JTB Okinawa Corp.
However, if many lose their jobs due to the impact of COVID-19, the local industry will face labor shortages when the economy recovers. Sugimoto is therefore proposing an emergency system through which workers are temporarily seconded to companies so that they can return to their jobs once the economy is back on its feet.
The prefecture and the Cabinet Office’s Okinawa General Bureau have devised a support system that transfers workers at companies facing hardships to firms with more financial leeway. But so far the new system has matched only four cases with 11 workers. The system remains unpopular, as users are excluded from the employment subsidies.
JTB Okinawa also seconded its workers for a month in 2020. Despite the need for regular check-ins and support, Sugimoto is certain that the experience will benefit workers as well as firms. In order to protect the employment of major industries, he is calling for the entire economy to adopt a transfer system. – Japan Times
A rapidly developing low-pressure system is bringing stormy conditions to a wide area of the Sea of Japan coast, from Hokkaido to Hokuriku. (NHK)
Guntu is a cross between a traditional ryokan and luxury yacht, offering guests the chance to unwind amid the ever-changing landscape of the Seto Inland Sea, as this video (filmed before the pandemic) shows. With only 19 cabins and suites, and a maximum capacity of 38 guests, it’s a luxurious getaway that’s sweet respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. (CNA)
The European Union is set to reimpose an entry ban on travelers from Japan following a surge of coronavirus cases in the country. (NHK)
The major Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways says it will suspend services on 16 international routes from late March, as demand falls amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (NHK)
The season’s first ice floes have reached the Okhotsk Sea coast of Japan’s northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido. (NHK)
Take a trip back in time and trace the paths of past travelers in the post towns and sacred spaces found in the majestic mountains of the Japanese countryside. (NHK)
Airlines that were hoping to turn the corner this year after a rough 2020 may be in for a rude awakening. Major Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways is planning to slash international flights during the summer by 50 percent. (NHK)
At least 15,058 people were on waiting lists for a hospital or a designated accommodations after testing positive for the novel coronavirus earlier this month in the 11 prefectures covered by a state of emergency, a Kyodo News survey found, as public health centers have been swamped with a surge in cases cases. (Japan Times)
The snow this winter on Japan’s ski runs and the powder on the off-piste is probably the best it has been in a decade. (South China Morning Post)
If you plan to fly into Tokyo, Haneda Airport is where you want to land. Sure, rival Narita Airport sometime gets called “Tokyo International Airport,” but it’s actually all the way out in Chiba Prefecture, while Haneda is the one truly located within Tokyo. (Japan Today)
Weather officials are warning of more snow in the areas surrounding Tokyo, mainly in mountainous regions. But they say it is unlikely to accumulate in central Tokyo as the temperatures at high altitude did not dip as much as expected. (NHK)
Traveling the waterways of Tokyo, Japan. (CNN)
Kyushu is said to be the wellspring of Japanese civilization. Yet few tourists visit the southernmost of Japan’s main islands. This documentary contrasts modern Japanese cities with traditional customs in the countryside. (DW Documentary)
The coronavirus is having a crushing effect on Japan’s tourism industry. The number of foreign visitors in 2020 fell nearly 90 percent from the previous year. (NHK)
Scoop up the rich tapestry of traditional culture and natural beauty of Ojiya, a small city in Niigata Prefecture’s snowy mountains that’s had to scale back as it steers through a global pandemic. (NHK)
Train services in greater Tokyo are scheduled to end earlier at night starting from Wednesday, due to a state of emergency declared in the region over the spread of the coronavirus. (NHK)
Japan’s health ministry plans to establish a system to effectively track foreign nationals who tested positive for coronavirus after entering the country. (NHK)
To celebrate the new year, we’re taking to the skies to check out Tokyo with an unobstructed view! (JapanPro)
The Tokyo Disney Resort is one of the best Disney Resorts in the entire world which is rather ironic as… it’s not Disney. (ReviewTyme)
