TokyoTomo Travel Guide

While slow-life has been seen in a new light, travelers are starting to be attracted to those trips on retro trains. As one of those, “Isaburo/Shinpei” is a local line with a nostalgic atmosphere that runs down JR Hisatsu Line in Kyushu area. The scenery of the fields from the window brings back the memories of the past. The single-track train is admirable, being just like a child who is gives its best for the run.

JR Hisatsu Line――One who knows would give a grin hearing this name; the one and only local single-line in Japan filled with all the excitement of a railway trip. For railway fans, Hisatsu Line is a very special line. The train runs 124 km from north to south, from JR Yatsushiro Station in Kumamoto to Hayato Station in Kagoshima Prefecture. Running along the downstream to the upstream of Kumagawa River, the route between Yatsushiro to Hitoyoshi is called “Kawa-sen (River Line),” and the route from Hitoyoshi to Yoshimatsu, passing over the mountain pass to Kagoshima, is called “Yama-sen (Mountain Line).” Railway fans are enthralled by Yama-sen, as this is a line where the special diesel tourist train “Isaburo/Shinpei” runs. Between Hitoyoshi to Yoshimatsu, 35 km in distance and 430 m difference in height, visitors can enjoy an interesting mountain ride with tunnels, the switch-back station in the middle of the loop line, and the stunning view of Kirishima Mountain Range which is designated as one of the “three most beautiful scenery from the train window.”

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Finnair (AY) started a large-scale promotional campaign on March 8 using actor Koji Yakusho in connection with its daily flight operations from Narita to Helsinki effective from March 28. The airline considers commercially Japan as the most important market in the Asian region. Its flight frequency from Chubu International Airport Centrair will also be increased to five flights per week on the same day the daily flight operation will start from Narita International Airport. The promotional campaign extols Finnair’s “Shortest and Fastest” service to 32 destinations in Europe from Narita, Osaka’s Kansai International Airport and Chubu International Airport with a total of 19 weekly flights. At the press briefing held on March 8, Sakari Rom, Sales Director Japan at Finnair, said that the airline’s burning issue is to enhance its market recognition in the Japanese market, showing enthusiasm that it endeavors to achieve (even after its increased frequency) the average seat load factor of 90 to 95 percent during the peak traffic season and 80 to 85 percent throughout the year on the respective Japan routes, stimulating the travel demand by taking advantage of Yakusho’s high profile as an actor.

Finnair told the press briefing that the Japan’s sales turnover accounts for more than 10 percent of the system-wide turnover which led the airline to decide on a significant increase of its Japan/Helsinki service. “We see our business chance when our rival airlines show reluctance in the market expansion,” quoting Hiroaki Nagahara, the airline’s Sales Manager Japan as saying. In fact, during the summer timetable period last year, Finnair operated a daily service on the Narita/Helsinki route by adding three weekly scheduled charter flights, thereby the aggregate number of passenger loads by the end of September surged by 25 percent year-on-year, registering the average seat load factor exceeding 80 percent, continued Nagahara.

During the press briefing, Finnair also revealed that it is eager to inaugurate a new service from Tokyo’s Haneda airport as part of its future business strategy. Commenting on the strategy, Nagahara said that the airline endeavors to realize to double its daily flight operation from Tokyo after 2011 as soon as possible with an eye on a service also from Haneda. However, as long as serving destinations beyond Helsinki continues to be a pillar of the airline’s business strategy, it would not operate from Haneda airport, even if the slots at Haneda are granted after the aviation talks between Japan and Finland, unless the slots are secured for take-off and landing during the morning. Should it not be the case, Finnair would prefer to double its daily flight frequency from Narita International Airport when the departure and arrival slots are expanded there.

Meanwhile, the promotion will feature Koji Yakusho acting “Mr. Europe” who flies frequently back and forth between Japan and Europe, extolling Finnair’s “shortest and fastest” flight. The airline will launch the promotion mainly in newspapers, magazines, advertisements in the terminals and also on the website. The promotion is scheduled to be launched over the next two years, but the airline may consider continuing the promotion even thereafter. From the way the promotional campaign features a businessman as Finnair’s brand promoter with actor Yakusho’s sophisticated character as well as his popularity, the airline apparently aims to boost business traffic, capitalizing on its daily operations from Narita.

Source: Travel Vision

Travel Vision Inc. provides information on the travel industry in Japan via "Daily Travel Vision", a Japanese-language e-mail newsletter, and the "Travel Vision" website. There are nearly 110,000 people working in the Japanese travel industry, and Travel Vision is proud to be bringing travel news to more than 30,000 people through Daily Travel Vision.

Travel revenue for January at Kinki Nippon Tourist (KNT) dropped 9.3 percent from last year to 21,107 million yen, of which overseas travel was 8,169 million yen, down 10.2 percent, and domestic travel was 12,301 million yen, down 10.3 percent. In overseas travel, group tours dipped 13.2 percent to 1,143 million yen as ordinary groups were down 26.2 percent to 792 million yen while student groups were up 44.3 percent to 350 million yen. The extraordinary growth in student groups is partly due to reinstatement of the school excursions once postponed on account of the H1N1 flu epidemic. Package tours plunged 20.2 percent to 4,005 million yen as Holiday went down by 19.9 percent to 4,005 million yen. Overseas individual travel rose 9.2 percent to 3,020 million yen because international air ticket sales were upbeat.

Domestic group tours showed a growth of 6.1 percent with sales of 3,786 million yen as student groups climbed 12.6 percent to 2,684 million yen although ordinary groups sank 7.0 percent to 1,102 million yen. Domestic package tours fell 17.2 percent to 5,285 million yen with Mate down 17.1 percent to 5,283 million yen and other package tours down 68.7 percent to 2.4 million yen. Individual travel lost 14.0 percent to 3,229 million yen. Inbound travel surged 33.8 percent to 266 million yen.

KNT spun off, as of January 1, the business of Hokkaido and Kyushu districts to be succeeded by the new companies of Kinki Nippon Tourist Hokkaido Co. and Kinki Nippon Tourist Kyushu Co. respectively, but it will consolidate the business results of these two to KNT itself until the end of this year just for the sake of statistical reference.

Source: Travel Vision

Travel Vision Inc. provides information on the travel industry in Japan via "Daily Travel Vision", a Japanese-language e-mail newsletter, and the "Travel Vision" website. There are nearly 110,000 people working in the Japanese travel industry, and Travel Vision is proud to be bringing travel news to more than 30,000 people through Daily Travel Vision.