Tourism Envoy Pumps Up Japan

Japan's handsome journalist-turned tourism promoter Daijiro Enami holds a Thai-language brochure he hopes will attract one million Thais to visit his country each year.

The new task of a popular Japanese journalist -- turned tourism ambassador to Thailand -- is to help his government boost the number of Thai tourists to Japan each year to reach the one million mark.

Participating in numerous "meet and greet" events, the fiercely adored Japanese television announcer has been effective in promoting tourism to Japan through the concept of the "Japan Story".

Wearing traditional Japanese attire, Daijiro Enami, an announcer for Fuji Television Network, was busy distributing tourist brochures to visitors looking for interesting tour packages to Japan at the recent International Travel Fair 2016 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center. The fair was held from Feb 17-21.

"It was quite a shock for me initially that I was popular in Thailand during my work trips here two years ago. It was something I hadn't expected. But it's the reason why I was appointed as tourism ambassador to Thailand last year," he said.

Enami gained popularity in Thailand, becoming a social media sensation when he came to cover the country's political conflict and street protests two years ago. Young and handsome, the Japanese reporter became the centre of attention wherever he went when he worked here.

The Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) acknowledged his popularity in Thailand by appointing him as a tourism ambassador to attract Thai tourists.

This is his seventh visit to Thailand to promote tourism in Japan. But working as a tourism ambassador is markedly different from being a journalist.

"It is a challenging task as I am a representative of Japan letting outsiders find out about my country and culture, as well as many of the incredible tourist sites," Enami said.

He said travelling to the same place in Japan during different seasons is worth experiencing given the unparalleled beauty. Each season presents its own unique and inspirational scenes.

He also invited his Thai fans to visit the headquarters of Fuji TV located in Odaiba in Tokyo, which is one of the most striking buildings in Japan, with a huge silver ball on the top of the building which serves as an observation deck over Tokyo Bay.

Asked about how he could promote Thailand to the Japanese people, he said delicious food, including his favourite, pad thai, is a huge draw for Japanese visitors.

The number of Thais visiting Japan has been rapidly increasing after the Japanese government agreed to waive visa requirements in 2013. Thailand ranks sixth in the number of visitors to Japan. In a visitor survey from August 2015, there were 796,000 Thai visitors to Japan, following 4.99 million from China, 4 million from South Korea, 3.67 million from Taiwan, 1.52 million from Hong Kong, and 1.03 million from the United States.

"We expect to see one million Thai visitors to Japan a year shortly. This is why we have focused our campaigns, including introducing Thai language tourism brochures," said Takuya Shiraishi, JNTO Bangkok Office director.

He said that more Thai tourists have changed their destinations from major tourist sites in Japan to more remote areas, updating their photos on Facebook, a successful way to promote unseen places in Japan and creating inspiration for self-exploration.

This is in line with the concept of Japan Story, which allows people who have visited the country to share their experiences by telling stories of who they met, what they saw, or the most memorable moments they had during their trip.