New Tourism during the “COVID era”

The Corona Virus caught the world off guard and spread across Japan instantly. Since the first confirmation in January of cases in Japan, the cumulative number of confirmed cases reached 60,000 within 7 months (as of August 21). And the numbers are still increasing, mainly in urban areas. In our area, Kyoto by the Sea (in the Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto City region) the number of cases remains relatively low. By this point everyone knows that as a basic precaution against the spread of the virus, it is recommended to distance yourself from others, wear a mask, and wash your hands. Even in our area, daily life has been affected by the "new normal," incorporating both telecommuting and staggered commuting (which also helps reduce exposure to crowds), being in close proximity to others, and potential to be in areas that lack ventilation. The future is still very much uncertain, but this new way of living is making itself standard in peoples lives as well as in the tourism industry. What tourists want, first and foremost, is safety and security. At Kyoto by the Sea DMO, we believe that it is important to take measures against new corona virus infections, and are working hard to promote various initiatives to ensure this happens.

• Kyoto by the Sea disease prevention measures

At the Kyoto by the Sea DMO Tour Center we sell travel products. You can experience nature with activities such as sea fishing and sea kayaking, culture with our Authentic Tango Chirimen Silk Kimono Experience and pottery experience. We handle more than one hundred unique options.

In June, we established Corona Virus Prevention guidelines and distributed them to experience program operators so tourists would be able to take our experiences worry free.

The first thing we did was to develop guidelines for businesses based on the different sectors within the industry, such as accommodation facilities, restaurants, and transportation business. However the unique experiences being offered by independent providers often have very unique service contents so applying a single guideline across the providers in such a large area proved difficult. Because of this, the businesses offering experiences were confused about how to proceed with operations as they related to countermeasures for disease prevention.

In addition to the guidelines, we provided businesses with a poster that explains prevention measure, operations, all with easy-to-understand pictograms which would quickly show customers what measures were being taken at the establishments.

As a result of these efforts, the sales for experience programs sold in July was 130% of the previous year. This was up in both in sales numbers and visitors, as a large number of people took part in these experiences.

• the cooperation and understanding of our visitors is essential

The understanding and cooperation of tourists is indispensable for the implementation of prevention measures. We hear from several accommodations in the area that many guests remove their masks after they are checked in. They aren’t sure whether or not to confront them about it. Since there are few cases in the area and the accommodations facilities are taking precautions and are open to tourism, people may assume that there is no need for continued precautions, but this poses a big problem for accommodation facilities.

Beginning in July, Kyoto by the Sea DMO launched the “Summer Vacation Campaign,” which issues discount coupons that can be used at accommodations and restaurants in the area. While listened to the opinions of accommodation facilities during the roll-out of the campaign and we formulated prevention measure guidelines for accommodation operators and restaurants, and count on tourists who come to cooperate. For this we created a pictogram poster that calls on customers to "wears masks", "sanitize their hands" and "social distance" at each facility, we are hoping to appeal to peoples sense of responsibility and cooperation in order to prevent the spread of the virus. The feedback we received from tourists on just the poster alone was extremely positive. People feel we are working on disease prevention throughout the region and, as a result, people are more than willing to cooperate to maintain a safe and secure Kyoto by the Sea.

• a new outlook on tourism during the age of corona

The spread of COVID has certainly taken its toll on the tourism industry, but I think that there are things that we can do. Even with this series of articles in our new “Kyoto by the Sea Times” section of our website, we can share people’s stories and love for the area. In the "Kyoto by the Sea Times", different writers are introducing areas they have been to and moments they would like to share. We ensure all the information is accurate before publishing, but the hope is to give readers a deep look into certain aspects of the area. This is a good time to generate interest in the area and share some little-known-areas and interests with people who already know the area well. For that matter, there isn’t anywhere else on the website (or in promotional materials) that interposes the history, cultural background, tourism, and the relationship to daily life in Kyoto by the Sea.

These articles are detailed and insightful, and I think it will attract more people to the area, as it adds a new layer of appeal. The content is not specific to the writing of this article. It is a cutout of everyday scenery, things, and lifestyles that have always existed in this area. The first article is themed after the "sea," which is an indispensable part of Kyoto by the Sea. The second article on the topic of "silk," explains the industry as an iconic practice in the region for 1300 years. The third theme is "fruit," chronicling one family’s journey through the area’s delicious “fruit trail.” All of the articles shared have detailed information, include interviews, and convey the thoughts of the writer. In the next two weeks, we will publish a new article. Follow along by checking out our other Kyoto by the Sea Times articles for a slice of daily life. Those new to the area are sure to find it charming, and those who know about it might just discover something new. We are living in the “new normal,” and we want to share what that means for people here.

Kyoto DMO President Matsuyoshi Moriya

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