Japan National Tourism Organization opens regional office in Dubai

Japan aims to attract 60 million GCC visitors by 2030

The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) has opened an office in Dubai, its first overseas office in the Middle East, at the Shangri-La Hotel in Dubai.

The Middle East region is a priority market for the organisation and a key focus in achieving its goal to attract 60 million visitors by 2030 with an annual consumption of JPY 15 trillion.

In 2019, Japan saw a high number of visitors from the GCC countries with 28,222 making the journey, a 28% increase on the previous year and the figure doubling in the past five years. 

According to a 2021 survey of GCC residents by the JNTO, approximately 30% of respondents said that they would like to go to Japan in the future

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Almost 40% of the respondents said that they didn’t know much about Japan, presenting an opportunity for the JNTO Dubai office to broaden awareness of the destination and increase interest in travel to Japan from the GCC.

JNTO Dubai office executive director Tomoko Kikuchi said: “2022 is an important year for us, being the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and the UAE. By opening the JNTO Dubai office now, we aim to contribute to the further development of tourism exchange between Japan, the UAE, and the wider GCC.”

For more information, visit www.jnto.go.jp