[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] Bloomberg reported on the 12th (local time) that a Japanese travel agency will resume Hawaii tours after two years.
The agency HIS reported that it will resume package tours to Hawaii, Japan's most preferred travel destination, after tourism was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Japan decided earlier this month to increase the daily limit of foreign arrivals to 10,000 people. Although tourist entry was practically banned, restrictions have been gradually eased, allowing entry for work and study purposes.
HIS, which was unable to operate due to the impact of COVID-19, struggled with eight consecutive quarters of net losses. The Tokyo-based company announced that it will provide customer care including nucleic acid testing for 24 hours from departure during the tour resumption process.
Japanese tourists are one of the largest customer groups in Hawaii. Before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, more than 1.5 million Japanese entered Hawaii by air, about three times the next largest market, Canada.
According to data from the Hawaii Tourism Authority, the number of Japanese arrivals sharply dropped to 290,000 in 2020. HIS's stock price fell 33% since January 2020.
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