The Japan Tourism Agency will be established Wednesday with the aim of attracting more foreign tourists to the country.
The number of travelers from abroad and their spending in Japan are on the rise, but with the economy on the verge of a recession, local businesses are depending more than ever on tourism as a source of income.
Experts say the new tourism agency will have to tackle several obstacles to bring in more travelers and boost local economies, including strict visa requirements, the lack of multilingual tourist information and what some people argue is the xenophobic mentality of the Japanese.