Desperate to make up for the dramatic fall in numbers of overseas tourists visiting during the pandemic, Japanese inns in a city in Hiroshima Prefecture are getting creative in their appeals to a broader clientele, tapping into demand for “workations” and casual day trips.
Small hotels in the city of Hatsukaichi have been hit hard by the sharp decline in tourists, which were their main customer base in the pre-pandemic era. Among them is Miyajima Guest House Mikuniya, which has been banking on demand for workations — a term coined from “work” and “vacation,” in which employees telework from wherever they are traveling for enjoyment — since spring last year.
The inn has now registered itself with a website specializing in such travel, opening itself up to attention from the site’s subscribers who can stay at as many member hotels as they like during a certain period of time for a fixed monthly fee.