ANA, Others Mulling Luxury Tours to Lure Super-Rich to Japan

Tokyo, Aug. 17 (Jiji Press)--Major airline group ANA Holdings Inc. <9202> and others in Japan are thinking of offering luxury tours to attract to the country super-rich foreigners, who spend huge amounts when traveling. Aiming to create new businesses through the move with an eye toward the post-COVID-19-pandemic world and regional revitalization, they are currently discussing offering tours that allow participants to travel all around Japan for more than a week by private jet, with tour destinations based on themes such as history, nature and culture. Such plans are being considered by ANA Holdings-affiliated firms, Nippon Travel Agency Co., outdoor gear seller Snow Peak Inc. <7816>, the city of Tajimi in the central prefecture of Gifu and the Regional Revitalization and Inbound Tourism Council, which studies businesses targeting the wealthy. Trial tours were launched in April, also in cooperation with publishing firms and universities. The parties involved plan to pick around 10 destinations from across the country for the luxury trips by the end of the year, and to offer the tours from as early as next year. The main target of the tours are people known as ultra-high-net-worth individuals, or UHNWIs, each with at least 50 million dollars in financial assets. There are estimated some 210,000 UHNWIs in the world. The council believes that such super-rich people, not satisfied with existing guided tours, are looking for special treatment, such as being accompanied by well-known tour guides throughout whole trips and exclusive use of facilities. One key to the success of the envisaged luxury tours will be whether the organizers can offer special features that stimulate participants intellectually. As part of the trial tours, the companies and organizations are now considering offering a trip in which participants will be given a lecture about Japan's traditional armor and weapons in Tokyo and then visit related destinations around Japan aboard a private jet. The luxury tours are each expected to cost around 5 million yen per person. If wealthy people from around the world visit locations across Japan, it may help regional economies recover from the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. "We'd like to present a tour that surprises and impresses (tour participants)," Kenji Inaoka, head of the council, said. END