Michaela here - posting for the first time about an article that’s now a month old but I only just saw it today. Apparently in an effort to attract wealthy international tourists to travel to remote/untapped regions (untapped by most international visitors I guess), Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) has selected 11 areas across Japan, dubbing them “Model Tourism Spots”, including the Aso and Unzen regions (bundled together with Kagoshima). It seems like these 11 “Model Tourism Spots” look to receive some funding to support this, including promotion, speciality personnel and training for guides ‘aimed at foreigners’.
According to JTA, the majority of international tourists travelling prior to Covid shutdowns, who spent more than 1,000,000 yen during their time in Japan, spent their time in Tokyo, Osaka or other major cities, so are looking to encourage these high-rollers to visit other regions. Not sure when this will kick off or what it will look like for Kumamoto. Link to article below.
