Japan Aims At 18 Million Tourists By 2016

Above, the Landmark Tower in Yokohama. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Jiji Press reported that a new basic Japan tourism plan was adopted:

Tokyo, March 30 (Jiji Press)--Japan adopted a basic plan for national tourism promotion on Friday at a cabinet meeting that set a goal of boosting the annual number of foreign tourists to 18 million in 2016.

Under the five-year plan through 2016, Japan aims to rebuild from the March 2011 disaster and boost tourism consumption to 30 trillion yen.

To read the full article, go here.

Dollar Rises Above 80 Yen, Finally

Things are looking more promising as the U.S. dollar broke the 80 yen threshold for the first time since July this past week.

Jiji Press reported:

At 5 p.m. [Friday], the dollar stood at 80.56-57 yen, a level unseen since mid-July 2011, compared with 80.11-12 yen at the same time Thursday.

While this is still a far cry from the 2007 rate of exchange I received (116 yen per dollar), at least the rate is headed in the right direction. A more favorable exchange rate will make travel to Japan more attractive to U.S. tourists.

To read the full story go here.

Dollar May Retake 80 Yen Soon

Above, Harajuku Station in Tokyo. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Jiji Press is reporting that the U.S. dollar may rise to 80 yen soon.

In an article posted today:

Tokyo, Feb. 18 (Jiji Press)--Following a sharp rally in the last two weeks, the dollar may soon rise above the 80 yen threshold for the first time since last August.

The greenback has been weakening versus the yen since mid-2011 on the back of sovereign debt problems in Europe and the United States, with the Japanese unit sought as a safe-haven currency.

If so, this would make travel to Japan and Japanese imports more affordable to Americans.

To read the full story, go here.

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