JAPAN’S tourism sector is confident of a swift recovery after a series of natural disasters, including last month’s Typhoon Jebi which forced the closure of Osaka’s Kansai International Airport.
The typhoon was the worst to hit Japan in 25 years and caused extensive flooding and damage at Kansai. The airport occupies an artificial island and was cut-off from the mainland when a ship was blown into a connecting bridge, causing damage that is expected to take weeks to repair.
The area was still recovering from the impact of an earthquake that hit Osaka in June, coinciding with extensive flooding that caused devastation in Japan’s south-west. Another earthquake last month in the northern island of Hokkaido caused landslides and damage to Sapporo’s main gateway, New Chitose Airport.
Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) said there was a determined mood in the country as it recovered from the disasters. The impact on tourism is expected to be limited, especially now that both Kansai International Airport and New Chitose Airport are back up and running, and the Japanese Government had no plans to change its visitor targets in light of the events.
Regular updates are posted on www.japan.travel/en.
