JR East, JAL, and JTB announced that the three companies will develop a travel product in cooperation to promote three-dimensional tourism in Tohoku and other eastern Japan areas.
Three-dimensional tourism is a new travel style that combines multiple modes of mobility (railroads, such as Shinkansen and limited express trains, and airplanes) to create an itinerary.
JR East and JAL have already signed an agreement in February regarding “strengthening cooperation for regional development in East Japan area”. The three strategies for creating the future of the region are “creation of a wide-area tourism model,” “creation of a related and settled population,” and “creation of a new market.” Since late March, digital advertisements at Haneda, Itami, and Kansai International Airports have been used to promote a three-dimensional tourism travel style.
In order to realize the “creation of a wide-area tourism model,” the two companies have joined forces with JTB, which has strengths in the creation of exchanges and the ability to send and create customers on a nationwide scale. The two companies will contribute to the development of travel products that seamlessly link land, air, and local experiences, and to the creation of attractive destinations in collaboration with local communities.
Currently, the basic principle is to take a round-trip rail or air trip from the point of origin to the destination. Even when combining the two, separate arrangements must be made. However, with the three companies’ three-dimensional sightseeing products, multiple destinations and modes of transportation can be combined according to needs, and arrangements can be made together as a single product at a JTB store.
As a first step, “Rail + Air” tours departing from the Tokyo metropolitan area and arriving at Hakodate in Tohoku will be sold at general partner stores in the Tokyo metropolitan area (Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama) from April to September.
For example, Hanami tours in connection with the JR Group’s “Fukushima Destination Campaign” and the JTB Group’s domestic travel campaign “Japanese Season Tohoku,” educational tours and corporate training tours using the Michinoku Shiokaze Trail as a hook, and “spiritual tourism” for inbound visitors to study religious culture including mountain worship in the three mountains of Dewa. Spiritual tourism” for inbound visitors to learn about religious culture, including mountain worship in the three mountains of Dewa.
Both options are available by rail or air on the outbound and inbound routes, and coupons are also available to save on product reservations. For details, please refer to the information leaflet available at JTB stores.
© Source travel watch