PRIME Travel, a specialist in Japan-bound tours in Singapore for the past 32 years, will send off its first group today since March, when natural disasters struck Tohoku region’s coastline.
The disaster and resulting nuclear threat in Fukushima led to massive cancellations by some 3,000 passengers. Four charter flights with Singapore Airlines planned for April, May and July had to be written off.
Prime Travel’s group of 21 leisure travellers is headed for Tokyo and will return on May 3.
The agency’s managing director, Ven Nishimura, told TTG Asia e-Daily that Japan bookings this year would be a washout because of consumers’ unrelenting fear of radiation.
“But I will still try to sell twice-weekly departures to Japan, to destinations such as Tokyo, Hokkaido and the Chubu region. Promotions will start after Singapore’s polling day (on May 7), when Singaporeans are ready to think about their holidays,” he said.
However, he acknowledged that Tokyo would be harder to sell, as Singaporeans were still fearful of radiation exposure from the nearby Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. He believes that hope rests in farther destinations such as Hokkaido and the prefectures in the Chubu region.
