Tourism Miyajima ferry fees to rise in October

[thomas]

Initially announced in February 2020, when Miyajima saw record numbers of visitors and Covid-19 travel restrictions had not yet been imposed, the town of Hatsukaichi, located on the island, decided to raise ferry fees by 100 JPY. The additional annual revenue of 200 million yen will be used for tourist-related projects, such as refurbishing the wharf, maintaining restrooms, replacing utility poles with underground cables and improving the townscape.

Plans also call for installing digitized displays at the Miyajima History and Folklore Museum and reducing plastic bottle consumption by urging visitors to bring reusable bottles. Annual visitors to Miyajima reached a staggering 4.66 million in 2019. But the following year the number dropped by half, to 2.21 million, due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The figure fell further to 1.88 million last year. The city of Hatsukaichi plans to promote eco-friendly tourism, organize events off season and make use of digital technology under its "Miyajima renaissance" program announced in May. The new tax will help finance those objectives.

Miyajima island ferry fees to rise with new visitor tax of 100 yen | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis