Japan considers extending Go To Travel subsidy campaign past January

So I know where my tax money is being spent, earn it spend it, .

Fantastic news for the hospitality sector that employs millions in Japan.

While this support from the government is important, it is equally crucial to highlight the importance it is for people to stay alert as moving around prefectures is of high risk during a global pandemic.

Would be great to see the government emphasising this, along with some measures in restaurants to avoid jam packed restaurants as we currently see these days, such reduce maximum capacities, even for a certain %.

Lastly, discouraging the use of the ”new” plastic masks that do not protect the ones around you, would be outstanding and would send a more credible impression to the world regarding the anti-covid, and soon anti-influenza measures!

Great news for me. But I know only rich people can use my tax money.

Despite clumsy launch and some criticism I think that GoTo program is overall successful, as it aims to fulfill or compensate demands of travellers many of whom would prefer to go overseas.

It is strange COVID 19 is not recurring badly in Japan despite the GO-TO-TRAVEL and GO-TO-EAT campaigns while it has brought serious recurrences after loosening the regulations in Europe. I guess different ethnic genes are related at the bottom. It is not necessarily because of strict mask wearing.

@Reckless: You can use is as much you want. Used it twice already. Great.

Better give cash money to people and let them decide what they want to do with it.

The "Go To" system is too complicated.

Incentives like this mean people will spend money, rather than save it.

@R.T. It was very UNcomplicated for me - The Hotel gave me the vouchers to spend on food and drinks when I checked in for my stay and deducted 35% off the bill (marked as 'go-to') when I checked out.

This short term solution will not last for long. Getting the Chinese tourists back is the only solution, and it's what Keidanren has been screaming for months.

I don't like the Chinese tourists but I can at least sympathize on how dumbfounded that both Japan INC and Japanese government got addicted to the Chinese consumerism in the first place. The CCP got Japan by the balls with this one.

We've used GoTo and it was very easy.

Just further to the comments above, tourism employs about 3.5% of the workforce in Japan and is also in the bottom five (out of sixty odd) sectors of the economy in terms of wages, comparable with jobs like hairdressing. Thousands of the jobs will be part time cleaning or restaurant staff. Throwing all the money at tourism = inaka = inaka votes may be good for Komeito and the LDP, but I don't know how good it is for the economy as a whole. Over 90% of the economy is not tourism and has better wages than tourism.

The 3.5% data is here. It's direct employment, because knock-on employment can't be measured and every sector causes it, not just tourism.

https://www.jata-net.or.jp/data/stats/2018/pdf/2018_sujryoko.pdf

I just enjoyed GoTo travel and it is a little tedious but wasn't difficult. Saved 35000 yen at the Ryokan/Onsen I stayed at and received 9000 yen in coupons for food and Omiyage. I think the program did its job.

I expect that these subsidies will be in place indefinitely, or at least until Japan’s debt mountain reality catches up with it and the government pulls its fiscal head in.

For as long as Japan shuns Canadian tourists like me - who has to be tested monthly because of my volunteer work with vulnerable people, they'd best keep the program in place. Because my annual 6-8 week visit is cancelled indefinitely.

Pity.

@kohakuebisu - they're still JOBS. And the people who have them need to eat. Don't write them off by calling them 'hairdressers'. Hairdressers need work, too. And mine, here in Canada is down to 1/3rd her usual income and required to put a lot of time into sanitizing her station. The hard-heartedness of some of you people amazes me, and makes me with it was happening to you, too.

make that 'wish' it was happening to you, too.

Big brown envelopes from the big hotel firm’s per chance?

After utilizing this once, I've found it to be easy and beneficial. Looking about New Year's now.

Used it five times already, two more booked. My family is fortunate enough to be largly unaffected (apart from a bad month in April) so I see it as my social responsibility to travel, eat out, go to events as much as possible to help in my own small way keep people in jobs.

And, if the government is subsidizing it, well even more reason to go.

More free meals for Yakuza?

Many of these people using it actually have the money to travel without it. All you have to do is say the country is open but be careful and people will travel without carelessly spending taxpayers money. Please give it to hungry families that have lost their jobs.

I mentioned hairdressers because that line of work is equally low paid in Japan as tourism. One of my favourite things about Japan is that there is no expression for "burger flippers". People get respected for whatever work they do. There are far more snobs in the UK.

Since lots of sectors of the economy are struggling. I am simply questioning why the government should be so eager to direct what little resources it has to a notoriously low paying sector. The government could spend money on lots of things, better schools, hospitals, childcare facilities, renewable energy, etc. which would satisfy other goals and pay better than tourism does.

Since it's tasty, we'll probably use Go To again ourselves. I would rather see the money spent in other ways though.

they're still JOBS. And the people who have them need to eat. Don't write them off by calling them 'hairdressers'. Hairdressers need work, too. And mine, here in Canada is down to 1/3rd her usual income and required to put a lot of time into sanitizing her station. The hard-heartedness of some of you people amazes me, and makes me with it was happening to you, too.

This is a 10/10 post.