Japan cuts red tape for private jets, superyachts for smooth-sailing luxury travel
- Japan wants to simplify landing regulations at airports for foreign-registered jets as part of its broader drive to attract big-spending tourists
- Wealthy tourists made up only 0.9 per cent of all foreign arrivals to Japan in 2019, but they accounted for 11.5 per cent of total tourist spending
More than 10 per cent of Japan’s tourist earnings come from a tiny number of ultra-rich visitors, and the government wants to encourage more of them to visit – and more frequently.
Travel operators say the initiative could lure multimillionaires zipping across the Asia-Pacific region who have the sudden urge to stop by a temple in Kyoto, or have an afternoon on the ski slopes of Niseko.
And Japan’s high-end travel sector is booming, from the new Bvlgari Hotel in Tokyo to the luxurious Sowaka hotel in Kyoto, and dinner at Aragawa, in the Nishi-Shimbashi district of the capital, where the meal will set you back well over 100,000 yen (US$700) a head.
But they warn Japan still lacks the infrastructure expected by the globe-trotting rich, such as departure lounges, concierge and limousine services they are used to in Monaco, Dubai or Aspen, Colorado.