Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) numbers released at the end of July showed that foreign inbound travelers for June 2016 were up a surprising 23.9% over June 2015. What is driving the renewed surge in visits?

Looking after niche markets such as custom and adventure travelers, we are experiencing steadily rising demand. Better still, currently we have very little local competition in either sector.

One of my favorite past times is creating ideas about how to help people travel Japan cheaply and yet reliably. The cheapest way to see Japan is to intern in our annual Japan Travel internship program.

If you want to capture the essence of Japanese spirit you also need arts with a dash of stoicism, nuanced values, and a direct connection to Buddhist or Shinto philosophy.