KUMAMOTO – Kumamoto Prefecture will launch a travel discount campaign on Tuesday to stimulate tourism demand following a powerful earthquake that struck the prefecture in July, Kumamoto Gov. Takashi Kimura said Friday.
The discounts will apply to overnight stays in Kumamoto between Oct. 1 and Dec. 25.
“We want many people to visit Kumamoto,” Kimura said at a news conference, adding, “That will strongly support the recovery and reconstruction of the affected areas.”
The program will provide discounts of up to 60% on eligible travel packages.
For packages that include transportation fees, the maximum discount is ?20,000 ($130) for one-night stays and ?30,000 for stays of two nights or more.
For accommodation-only products, the maximum discount is ?20,000, regardless of the length of stay. Tours that include both Kumamoto and other prefectures in the Kyushu region are eligible for discounts of up to ?35,000.
About 190,000 people had canceled accommodation bookings in Kumamoto as of Aug. 21 due to the earthquake, resulting in losses of about ?2.7 billion, according to the prefectural government.
Kimura expressed hope that the discount campaign will help generate 300,000 overnight stays.
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