Archive for 'Hokkaido' Category
The First JAPAN Incentive Travel Awards
JNTO (http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/) lauchned a new prize system to promote inbound tourism, called “JAPAN Incentive Travel Awards” on Dec.21st. And three travel agents have been conferred the first awards and ceremony was held at the International Meeting Expo 2016 on Dec.7th(http://expo.nikkeibp.co.jp/ime/2016/eng/index.html) .
The grand prix was given to a tour of 6500 participants visiting Hokkaido hosted by LionTravel in Taiwan(http://www.liontravel.com/). The planning award was given to “Chaumet – Hurry up for sales” hosted by teamtravel premium GmbH in Germany. That tour included 55 participants visiting spots related to jewelry using ipad services in Tokyo in style of a rally competition. And the Contribution award was given to “Millennium Achievers Tour” hosted by JTB Australia Pty Ltd. including 25 participants visiting Tokyo,Okayama,Kagawa, enjoying cultural activities of each local areas.
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Loading...Hokkaido Shinkansen(Bullet Train) launched
JR Hokakido and East Japan launched the Hokkaido Shinkansen(/Hokkaido Bullet Trains) services on this Mar.26. And with this, Alll the four main lands of Japan are now directly connected by the Bullet Train services. (http://hokkaido-shinkansen.com/)(http://www2.jrhokkaido.co.jp/global/index.html)
The bullet train services between Tokyo and Shin-aomori(/new Aomorri, in Aomori prefecture in Tohoku region in the mainland) launced in 2010, and now the new services between Shin-aomori and Shin-hakodatehokuto started, which finally connected the mainland and Hokkaido island. With this completeion, Tokyo to Shin-hakodatehokuto takes now 4 hours and 2 minutes at fastest (used to take about 5 hours and 30 minutes), and Shin-aomori to Shin-hakodatehokuto one hour and one minute at fastest(used to take about one hour and 50 minutes) . 10 round travels are provided between Tokyo and Shin-hakodatehokuto and one round travel between Sendai and Shin-hakodatehokuto by “Hayabusa”( a nickname of a type of the new trains) a day and one round travel between Morioka and Shin-hakodatehokuto, and one round travel between Shin-aomori and Shin-hakodatehokuto by “Hayate” a day as well.
(まだ評価されていません)Loading...Hokkaido Shinkansen’s grand opening next March
JR Hokkaido and JR East Japan jointly announced on Sep. 16 that they were going to launch the remarkable new services of the Hokkaido Shinkansen (The Bullet Train services in Hokkaido ) on March 26th 2016.
The hisotorically new services of the Hokkaido Shinkansen will provide totaly 13 round-trips of “Hayabusa”and “Hayate” cars between Tokyo and Shin-hakodatehokuto (about 146km) on a daily basis. 10 out of them will be for the full distance and one for Sendai station-Shin-hakodatehokuto station, one for Morioka station- Shin-hakodatehokuto, and one for Shin-aomori station- Shin-hakodatehokuto station. The “E5 series” of JR East and the “H5 series” of JR Hokkaido will be used as the cars of the new lines. The will include economy classes , Green Cars’ and the Grand-Place seats.
(まだ評価されていません)Loading...The last BlueTrain finishing its operation in March
The “Blue Trains” are popular express trains with sleeping berths that launched operation in 1958. Most of the Blue Train series have terminated services due to decrepitude or old systems. The only remaining in service is “Hokutosei”(/The Polar Star) that runs between Ueno station in Tokyo and Sapporo station in Hokkaido. And Hokutosei, the Last Blue Train, is terminating its service in this March 14th because of aging and the need for JR to rearrange its railroad tables and systems for the plans of the upcoming bullet train services in Hokkaido.
A lot of railroad fans take travels using Hokutosei or take its photos sparing the short and precious remaining days of the Blue Trains.
(まだ評価されていません)Loading...Visit Japan Travel Mart and JATA Toursim EXPO Japan 2014
Two huge international travel marts were held at Tokyo Bigsight in Tokyo. One was “Visit Japan Travel Mart 2014″(Sep.24-26)(http://www.vjtm.jp/) and the other was “JATA Toursim EXPO Japan2014″(Sep.25-28)(http://t-expo.jp/en/index.html). 
More than 310 foriegn buyers and about 390 Japanese sellers joined VJTM2014 and had passionate exchanges of information and ideas and hosted busines seccions. Buyers from Asian countries were especially a lot and about the half of the Japanese sellers were municipalities or relating associations of such local governments.
On the other hand, a lot of domestic and foreign sellers and buysers joined JATA Tourism EXPO Japan 2014. Such participants were embassies, tourism bureaus, travel agents, food companies, municipalities, railroads, airlines, hotels. universities, guide associations and so forth. The main targets were end users of travel services and a lot of lay Japanese people visited there and the total number was 157,589. Upon the opening of the event, an ward ceremony of good services and efforts of related promotions was hosted and the Best Tourism Award was given to The Tourism Authority of Thailand and Embassy awards were for Thailand and Mexico, the best transporatation award was for Japan Railways East, the domestic inbound award was for the tourism department of Tokyo Metropolis, the publicity award was for a TV show of CXTV, and the chairperson special award was for Okinawa Convention Bureau. (http://t-expo.jp/en/program/cms.html) I personally visited the two big events and collected a lot of interesting information and exchanged ideas with the participants, some of whom were my friends or those I sometimes work with. I enjoyed the delicious food provided by tourism- related restaurants and local specialities and impressed by the greatly enthusiastic atmosphere of energies of the expos as well.
(まだ評価されていません)Loading...SIAF 2014 being held
“Sapporo International Art festival 2014” started on Jul. 19 in Sapporo, the capital of Hokkaido, the northen part of Japan and will have been held for 72 days. (http://www.sapporo-internationalartfestival.jp/)
This time the festival has a theme of “Cities and nature”, and contemporary artists’ works are shown with events visitors can take part in. This time Ryuichi Sakamoto, a world famous Japanese composer is a guest artist and his works are provided.
(まだ評価されていません)Loading...Atsuko Maeda “one-day only” comeback to AKB48
Atsuko Maeda, a huge “graduate” from AKB48 made a one-day only comback to her “old home” AKB48 at its concert in Sapporo Hokkaido on Jul. 31. 
Maeda graduated from AKB on Aug,27 2012, and she made the first ” reunion” participation in AKB’s concert since her graduation over one year ago. She herself cried for big joy for being able to make a triumphant comeback visit as a “guest” and about 30,000 visitors to the concert welcomed her warmly calling her name in a passion. Though Maeda didn’t sing with incumbent AKB members, she sang three solo songs in an energetic atmosphere.
(1 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...“N-dimensional original tourism anime pilgrimage/Contents-tourism/possibilities of the sociology of tourism”
A book “N-dimensional original tourism anime pilgrimage/Contents-tourism/possibilities of the sociology of tourism” (/「ｎ次創作観光 アニメ聖地巡礼/コンテンツツーリズム/観光社会学の可能性」), an academic work written by Takeshi Okamoto, a researcher of the sociology of tourism at Kyoto Bunkyo University was issued by bouken book store(http://bouken.thebase.in/).
“N-dimensional tourism” is a new concept produced by the author who is a professional of sociology of tourism that fans of anime works create flows of tourism like the way they create their own “applied works” of the original works in “two-dimensional work” to “three-dimensional work” or others as “original developments”. fans’ visiting “the holy place” of manga or anime works’ settings(“the pilgrimage of the anime sanctuaries”) is a typical development of this kind, he explains. He states about his theory of possibilities of developments of tourism industry making much of the huge influences of such fans’ psychology , mentality,and acts tendencies.
(1 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Snow Miku Festival~♪
The official Hatsune Miku channel on YouTube presented the second part of the Snow Miku Report 2013 on Friday.
The video features various Vocaloid exhibits from the 64th annual Sapporo Snow Festival, including an art and merchandise gallery, a Hatsune Miku playground, workshops, game demos and a graffiti wall. The video also features an interview with the artist Chiho, who was featured in the art gallery.
Snow Miku’s first Festival Report included a time-lapse video of the construction of the Hatsune Miku snow sculpture. USA Animate has made Snow Miku merchandise available for fans in the United States over its online store.
(3 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Hatsune Miku snow sculpture to be rebuilt after collapse
Crypton Future Media President Hiroyuki Itoh announced on February 7 that one of the snow sculptures of its Vocaloid character Hatsune Miku will be rebuilt at Sapporo, after the sculpture collapsed earlier in the day.
Itoh anticipated that the rebuilding will be completed before daybreak this Saturday, February 11.
The collapse occurred at about 4:30 p.m. at the main area of the Sapporo Snow Festival in Odori Park. A clump of snow struck the back of a 61-year-old female sightseer, who was taken to a hospital. Itoh express his company’s regret and sympathies for the incident.
“Snow Miku” is a local character of Sapporo.
(3 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Chopper, Mario, Catbus snow sculptures displayed in Sapporo
According to the Nico Nico News website, around 200 snow and ice sculptures created for this year’s Sapporo Snow Festival.
The 63rd annual event opened in Hokkaido Prefecture on February 6 and features frozen sculptures of My Neighbor Totoro’s Catbus,
the Vocaloidvirtual idol character Hatsune Miku ,
and One Piece’s Chopper.
Sculptors also recreated Anpanman, Read the rest of this entry »
(2 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Hatsune Miku statue to debut at snow festival in Sapporo
Hokkaido’s 63rd annual Sapporo Snow Festival will host a life-size statue of the Vocaloid idol Hatsune Miku.
Life-size statue of Hatsune Miku
The statue will stand at 158 centimeters (about 62 inches) tall.
Statue of Hatsune Miku
Hatsune Miku is collaborating with Sanrio’s Hello Kitty for a Snow Miku line of characters goods that will only be available in the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. Read the rest of this entry »
(3 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Onsen is considered as one of the main attractions to promote visitors to the airport
‘Manyo-no-yu’ in New Chitose Airport
‘Manyo-no-yu’ in New Chitose Airport was considered as one of the main facilities in the airport building when the renovation was planned. It was expected to promote accessibility and attractiveness of the airport.
The function of the New Chitose Airport is expected to dramatically heighten by the renewal work of the terminal buildings and renovation of both facilities for domestic and international airlines. It also helps to increase number of arrivals and hours of staying at the airport. As the entrance to Hokkaido, the airport building must provide much refined hospitality service to visitors and variety of menus to attract them while staying.
The purpose of ‘Manyo-no-yu’ in New Chitose Airport is providing valuable period at the airport as an orthodox relaxation facility with using first natural Onsen water at the airport and as one of the main facilities not only for air travelers but also for local visitors.
(7 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Popular Onsen Chain ‘Manyo-no-yu’ opened at the New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido
‘Manyo-no-yu’ in New Chitose Airport
(5 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...Anime-like characters Little Berries in Hokkaido
The Hokkaido prefectural government has mobilized three fairy sisters to raise awareness of locally grown berries, with the IT company behind virtual idol Hatsune Miku cooperating in their creation.
The three sisters, known as the “Little Berries” — Yu, for the hasukappu berry, Eri for aronia (chokeberry) and Ram for seaberry — have been used for promotional events since they were unveiled last November, and they will be depicted as snow statues at the Sapporo Snow Festival in February, according to the Hokkaido prefectural government.
Sapporo-based IT company Crypton Future Media Inc., which developed the popular singing vocaloid character Miku, cooperated in the Hokkaido prefectural government’s public relations project in producing the berry characters.
The three berries are used mainly for processed food like jam and juice.
(1 投票, 平均値/最大値: 5.00 / 5)Loading...