Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe suggested Monday that local airports will increase their flight schedules to meet increasing demand from tourists visiting Japan as the government aims to see some 30 million visitors arriving yearly by 2030.
At a meeting of government officials and tourism representatives, centered around the theme of making Japan a country that is "tourism-oriented" the prime minister said it was essential to speed up immigration processes at airports here and that the 20 million visitors target by 2020 was just the short-term goal that the government hopes to surpass.
Abe was quoted as saying at the meeting that by "tying up world needs with the allure of regional Japan," tourists could be persuaded to visit hotspots that are currently off travelers' major radars and go beyond the usual trips to major cities like Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto.
Means of accommodating the expected influx of overseas travelers are likely to be solidified by the end of this fiscal year, officials at the meeting said Monday.
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