Hybrid event returns to Tokyo on Jan 14-15
WiT will kick off its first event of 2022 with a “Homecoming” to Tokyo for its ninth edition of WiT Japan & North Asia. The hybrid event, on January 14-15, is expected to be attended by up to 150 on-site delegates, complemented with a virtual audience.
A stellar cast of speakers has been assembled, ranging from the top online names in Japan as well as in Asia and globally. See programme here.
“After two years away of not being able to hold a physical event, in Tokyo, we look forward to returning to one of the world’s top destinations with a new kind of hybrid experience,” said Yeoh Siew Hoon, founder, WiT.
“When we first launched WiT in Japan nine years ago, our purpose was to build a bridge between Japan and the world. Well, we’ve lived too long in a local world the last two years, it’s time to rebuild that bridge.”
She added, “We are excited to be working with our trusted partners on the ground to ensure a safe event for everyone, and to deliver a solid programme that will cover the major themes and issues driving online travel globally and locally.”
Even though Japan has closed its borders this month due to the Omricon variant – rescinding the Business Travel Pass that would have allowed business travellers in with three-day quarantine – it was felt necessary to forge ahead with the event for a couple of reasons.
The first, said Aya Aso, co-founder of WiT Japan & North Asia, is because “it has been too long a silence since the start of pandemic. We missed the opportunity to hold one during 2021 as we kept postponing due to the appearance of new variants. Although the borders are not open yet in Japan, we want to at least start and build a take-off platform for the coming year.”
The second, said fellow co-founder Kei Shibata, is that Japan is “one of the top countries in the world that has managed to keep the Covid spread to a minimum. Daily new cases are barely 100 across the entire country and life is pretty much back to normal.”
And while the government is taking a cautious approach to border controls, he added that it is planning to relaunch the domestic GoToTravel campaign – “which could arguably be the world’s largest government-led travel promotion” – in January”.
“As the world’s third largest travel market, after the US and China, Japan is setting the stage for a full recovery of its travel and tourism industry in the coming year, and this is the right time for WiT Japan to take the lead in the industry.”
Shibata, who is co-founder & CEO, Venture Republic – TRAVEL jp & Trip101, believes recovery will happen in stages – the first from recovery of domestic markets, with China and Japan, leading, and the second stage will come with the partial and gradual opening of borders to markets such as South Korea, Taiwan and China.
When asked for her outlook, Aso, CEO of SAVVY Collective, said “patience” was still necessary. But she hopes the staging of WiT Japan & North Asia at this time would spur “cross-border momentum” for full recovery.
Indeed, in Singapore, travellers are patiently waiting for a Vaccinated Travel Lane with Japan, with the reluctance reportedly to be on the Japanese side. According to the Singapore ICA website, Singapore has established Vaccinated Travel Lanes (Air) with Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Canada, Denmark, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Maldives, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Shibata said he hoped the event would enable the sharing of wisdom and knowledge across, verticals, countries and regions.
“The last two years of the pandemic have caused many of us in the region into quite a narrow and local mindset, often lacking global perspectives. It is time for us to open our eyes to the world again as we get through this global crisis.”
Register here – virtual tickets are complimentary.
