Japan to Extend Domestic Travel Campaign to Boost Economy

The Japanese government is planning to extend the "Go To Travel" domestic travel subsidy campaign through the end of June next year to help boost the economy, tourism minister Kazuyoshi Akaba said on Friday.

The "Go To Travel" campaign was launched in late July in an effort to revive domestic tourism, which was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Akaba, the government eyes to continue the campaign beyond its original end date in late January.

"We will review the system in stages and respond based on the situation of infections," Akaba told a press conference, adding that the extension plan will be mentioned in an economic stimulus package to be approved by the government next week.

Amid the recent resurgence of infections across the country, some doctors have requested the government to suspend the travel campaign.

Recently, trips to the northern city of Sapporo and Osaka in the west have been excluded and residents of the two cities are asked to refrain from taking part in the campaign, while the Tokyo local government has asked people aged 65 and older and those with underlying health conditions to refrain from making trips to or from the capital by using the campaign.