Japanese student influx

JAPANESE schoolchildren will boost tourism numbers to north Queensland with more than 14,000 expected to visit Cairns on school trips.

Those numbers are projected during the next three years.The deal breaks a 10-year stronghold on this business by New Zealand.

Melbourne and Singapore had also lobbied for the contract, which will see 12 charter flights from the Japanese city of Fukuoka to Cairns in November each year until 2011.

Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive Rob Giason said the students would spend two nights in farmstays around the Atherton Tablelands and Innisfail during their trips.

Japanese visits to Queensland have slumped in recent years, but Mr Giason said there had been some slowing in the decline.

In the year to September, more than 362,000 Japanese visitors came to Queensland and 211,000 of them visited the Cairns region.

It was a drop of 11 per cent on the previous year.

But despite the protracted decline in numbers, Japan is still Queensland's second largest source of tourists.

Tourism Minister Desley Boyle said securing the charter flights was an example of the innovative methods needed to bring more Japanese visitors to the north.

"Not only do these flights help promote Queensland as a school excursion destination, they also provide thousands of Japanese students with a lifetime of memories," Ms Boyle said.

"Young people very often have a favourite place that they visit and they may return with family and friends at a later date."

As part of its bid to get more Japanese tourists holidaying in Queensland, Tropical Tourism North Queensland recently hosted travel agents from Osaka and Nagoya, the two ports that connect directly to Cairns on Jetstar flights.

A new website, based around the colours of Queensland, has been created to appeal to the Japanese market.

It is hoped they will be enticed by the colourful images.

A competition will be held encouraging Japanese viewers to select three of their favourite colours on the site, with a trip to Queensland as the prize.

Ms Boyle said tourism authorities would work with major airlines to make Queensland more affordable for Japanese visitors.
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