Tourism Honda travel service for wealthy tourists

[thomas]

Not sure if this will really take off, but Honda Motor plans to ferry foreign tourists with deep pockets to less-travelled parts of Japan on their HondaJet business aircraft.

The service will launch in partnership with Japanticket, a Tokyo-based firm that plans itineraries for foreign tourists. The companies will propose tours that include experiences with local nature, food and culture. The cost of the tours will depend on the level of service, with midrange prices expected to span 1 million yen to 3 million JPY (USD 6,900 to 20,700) per person. Japan aims to raise per-capita spending by foreign visitors to 200,000 JPY by 2025, from 159,000 in 2019. Honda's planned service would create opportunities to redirect that spending from large cities, where wealthy tourists frequently visit, to rural areas. The service will start with one aircraft, which will travel to as many as 70 airports nationwide with runways at least 1,500 meters long. The companies will continue to work on details including travel schedules and plane operations. The plan is to have cars waiting at airports to take travelers after arrival. For connections to locations far from an airport, the subsidiary Honda Airways will provide helicopters to transport passengers. Honda's car-sharing service will be another option. Honda has been promoting its mobility-as-a-service business model, a next-generation concept that combines multiple modes of transportation.

This May, Honda took Chinese tourists from Haneda Airport to Toyama Prefecture. The visitors were driven from the airport to a local restaurant, museum, and hotel. Among tourists from the U.S., only 1.8% spent 1 million JPY or more in Japan, data released by the Japan Tourism Agency in 2020 shows. The share is lower than the 6.2% of travellers from Canada, 3.8% from Italy and 3.2% from Thailand.

Paywall alert:

HondaJet to fly wealthy tourists to less-traveled Japan

Honda's service with travel company can redirect foreigners' spending to rural areas

asia.nikkei.com

HondaJet | Honda公式サイト

HondaJetの公式情報ページです。創業以来の夢と情熱の力で生まれたHondaJet。最新ニュースはもちろん、ギャラリー、先進技術、スペック、まめ知識、開発ヒストリーなど、盛りだくさんのコンテンツをご覧いただけます。

www.honda.co.jp

 

[mdchachi]

I'm sure they'll find enough wealthy tourists to keep one plane busy.

Mr. Beast recently took a $250,000 vacation in Japan. But if you divide by the number of people in his crew it was probably only $25,000 per person.

 

[Lothor]

Private jet use should be being discouraged, especially for something as frivolous as tourism, because of its stratospheric greenhouse gas emissions per person. If Honda was even a little bit as concerned about sustainability as they claim in their glossy ESG reports, they wouldn't be doing this.

 

[johnnyG]

I would agree, but my first thought was, "Is there space for bikes?"

 

[Petaris]

I would agree, but my first thought was, "Is there space for bikes?"

Just strap them to the top or back like you do with cars.

 

[mdchachi]

Private jet use should be being discouraged, especially for something as frivolous as tourism, because of its stratospheric greenhouse gas emissions per person. If Honda was even a little bit as concerned about sustainability as they claim in their glossy ESG reports, they wouldn't be doing this.

According to the web search results, the HondaJet business aircraft emissions are significantly lower than the rest of the industry. The HondaJet Elite II, for example, saves nearly 8,000 gallons of fuel and reduces approximately 172,000 pounds of CO2 emissions yearly1, making it one of the most environmentally responsible aircraft in its class. The HondaJet also uses innovative technologies such as the Over-The-Wing Engine Mount (OTWEM) configuration, Natural Laminar Flow (NLF) nose and wing, and composite fuselage to achieve exceptional fuel efficiency1. Honda Aircraft Company is dedicated to reducing carbon emissions as an integral aspect of its mission to enhance people's lives through the advancement of mobility1.
So sayeth Bing AI

 

[Lothor]

With flying, at the end of the day, you have to lift people and heavy equipment several thousand meters against gravity, which requires a lot of energy. I cannot understand how the airline industry can talk about going carbon zero because of this.

 

[mdchachi]

With flying, at the end of the day, you have to lift people and heavy equipment several thousand meters against gravity, which requires a lot of energy. I cannot understand how the airline industry can talk about going carbon zero because of this.

It's a shell game. They will buy carbon offsets.

 

[Petaris]

With flying, at the end of the day, you have to lift people and heavy equipment several thousand meters against gravity, which requires a lot of energy. I cannot understand how the airline industry can talk about going carbon zero because of this.

I agree. Bring back the dirigibles!

 

[Lothor]

I agree. Bring back the dirigibles!

Dirigible - that's a word I haven't seen for a while!