Japan's 10,000 Free Airfare Plan, More Details

Above, the garden at Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

News of the proposed 10,000 free airfares plan to foreigners by the Japan Tourism Agency hit the news by storm.

Gaijinpot.com has posted more details:

TOKYO — Japan will offer 10,000 foreigners free airfares to visit the country next year, in an attempt to boost the tourism industry which has been hit by the ongoing nuclear disaster, a report said Monday.

The Japan Tourism Agency plans to ask would-be travelers to submit online applications for the free flights, detailing which areas of the country they would like to visit, the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper said.

The agency will select the successful entrants and ask them to write a report about their trip which will be published on the Internet.

Tourism authorities hope that positive reports from travelers about their experiences in Japan will help ease international worries about visiting the country, the newspaper said.

Above, Tokyo Tower. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

While the public relations behind this plan is a good one, it still doesn't fix the chronic problem (of the past three years) of the poor rate of exchange between the U.S. dollar and Japanese yen. The exchange rate is currently hovering around the 76-77 yen per dollar exchanged. Unless the amount of yen obtainable by the dollar improves, travel to Japan by Americans will remain down.

The only silver lining in this is that if Japan travelers don't spend all of their money in Japan, they actually can buy more dollars when they exchange their yen before heading home. I was able to obtain $115 for every ¥10,000 I exchanged last year at Narita Airport. Right now, a tourist can buy more dollars than I did in Japan. This is something to consider.


If a tourist plans wisely (including finding hotel and airfare bargains), and manages to not spend all of their vacation money, they can actually still have a great Japan vacation and make money.

The Japan Tourism Agency's airfare plan is one kaiju fans should try to jump on board.

To see Gajinpot.com's full article, go here.



Left, Ginza, Tokyo. Photo by Armand Vaquer.