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▼ Gov't To Exclude Sapporo, Osaka From Go To Travel Campaign For 3 Weeks
- Category:Tourism
The Japanese government will exclude the popular tourist destinations of Sapporo and Osaka from its domestic travel subsidy campaign for three weeks following a recent resurgence in coronavirus cases in the two cities, senior government officials said Tuesday.
Yasutoshi Nishimura, minister in charge of Japan's virus response, said at a news conference that the government will shoulder cancellation fees for pre-booked trips to the two cities under the Go To Travel campaign and compensate businesses affected by the suspension, which will be introduced due to recent record numbers of infections.
Trips by residents of Sapporo and Osaka to other areas will continue to be covered by the scheme, which effectively shoulders about half of domestic travelers' expenses to help the tourism industry weather the impact of the pandemic.
The minister said the suspension will only target areas where the health care system is hard-pressed due to a surge in coronavirus infections.
Tourism minister Kazuyoshi Akaba said the suspension was "a painful decision as it will greatly impact both travelers and the tourism industry."
The central government decision follows policies announced Monday by both Hokkaido Gov Naomichi Suzuki and Osaka Gov Hirofumi Yoshimura to temporarily withdraw their capital cities from the travel promotion program.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga had announced the halt of the initiative on Saturday without elaborating on destinations affected, timeframes or other details, a day after a government panel of medical experts proposed reviewing the campaign.
Suga is scheduled to meet with Tokyo Gov Yuriko Koike later on Tuesday to discuss how to treat the nation's capital, which has reported the most coronavirus cases among the 47 prefectures, under the program.
The Go To Travel campaign was launched in late July, but trips to and from Tokyo were initially excluded due to a high number of infections in the capital. Such trips were added on Oct 1.
On Monday, the National Governors' Association urged the central government to be area-specific in suspending the travel initiative, as the infection situation is not the same for all areas within a prefecture.
Japan reported more than 2,000 new cases of the virus for a fifth straight day on Sunday and 1,519 infections on Monday.
© KYODO
Yasutoshi Nishimura, minister in charge of Japan's virus response, said at a news conference that the government will shoulder cancellation fees for pre-booked trips to the two cities under the Go To Travel campaign and compensate businesses affected by the suspension, which will be introduced due to recent record numbers of infections.
Trips by residents of Sapporo and Osaka to other areas will continue to be covered by the scheme, which effectively shoulders about half of domestic travelers' expenses to help the tourism industry weather the impact of the pandemic.
The minister said the suspension will only target areas where the health care system is hard-pressed due to a surge in coronavirus infections.
Tourism minister Kazuyoshi Akaba said the suspension was "a painful decision as it will greatly impact both travelers and the tourism industry."
The central government decision follows policies announced Monday by both Hokkaido Gov Naomichi Suzuki and Osaka Gov Hirofumi Yoshimura to temporarily withdraw their capital cities from the travel promotion program.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga had announced the halt of the initiative on Saturday without elaborating on destinations affected, timeframes or other details, a day after a government panel of medical experts proposed reviewing the campaign.
Suga is scheduled to meet with Tokyo Gov Yuriko Koike later on Tuesday to discuss how to treat the nation's capital, which has reported the most coronavirus cases among the 47 prefectures, under the program.
The Go To Travel campaign was launched in late July, but trips to and from Tokyo were initially excluded due to a high number of infections in the capital. Such trips were added on Oct 1.
On Monday, the National Governors' Association urged the central government to be area-specific in suspending the travel initiative, as the infection situation is not the same for all areas within a prefecture.
Japan reported more than 2,000 new cases of the virus for a fifth straight day on Sunday and 1,519 infections on Monday.
© KYODO
- November 24, 2020
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