Outbound traffic will exceed 20 million in the early stage of the next century, but agents seeking to tap this market segment must note demographic changes in this 16 million-strong travel market, says Japan Travel Bureau (JTB) chairman Isao Matsuhashi.
At the recent Singapore International Advisory Council on Tourism (IACT) forum, Matsuhashi said attention needed to be paid to the seniors market and the family travel market. By 2015, one in four Japanese will be over 65.
The second batch of baby-boomers, born in the 1970s and accounting for six million of the country's population, will be the future family travel market.
Outbound Japanese will be more family-oriented, more study-oriented and more independent, said Matsuhashi. Japanese students, currently 150,000-strong and growing, have a keener interest in nature and culture, seek new destinations and stay in small, tidy hotels.
The seniors market will seek freedom of travel, make their own itineraries and join skeleton-type tours.
"With a more mature market, they will be more discerning and specific, preferring in depth experiences when they travel. They will also be more direct, demanding a wide variety of choices in travel products," said Matsuhashi.