Efforts made by Saga
Prefecture to attract tourists
from Thailand

Saga Prefecture

Background and motivation for commencing theSince the production itself must be a hit in order toprojectincrease awareness and attract tourists, theIn 2005, the Saga Prefecture Film Commission wasCommission researched on producers, award-established as a targeted measure with incentives towinning directors and popular actors with a provenattract visitors from South Korea and China in thetrack record in Thai film and drama production. They

beginning, but as many regional governments weremade an appointment with Thai cinema's renowned

also taking a similar approach, the project wasdirector, Nimibutr, and based on the information

unsuccessful. Under these unfavourable

obtained from their research, Saga Prefecture

circumstances, from July 2013, visa requirementsemphasised on creating a support system that would

for tourists visiting Japan from Thailand were eased.

present locations suited to the director's needs andAdditionally, along with economic growth in recent

reduce filming costs. This led to an agreement toyears, there are direct flights from Thailand toshoot a film in Saga Prefecture.

Fukuoka Airport which is near Saga. This has made iteasier for those travelling to Japan, so Saga

Measures were implemented right from thePrefecture considered a different target group,beginning of shooting, all the way to promotion ofputting in effort to attract tourists from Thailand

the film. During filming, Saga Prefecture beganinstead.

creating a tourist guidebook featuring the leading
actress, amongst efforts made in cooperation withProject Aims

Saga Prefecture’s Tourism Division.

To attract tourists from overseas to solve theSaga Prefecture’s Tourism Division carried out aeconomic issues caused by population decline intourism promotion campaign for Saga Prefecture in

Saga Prefecture

Thailand in conjunction with the film’s release.

To raise awareness of Saga Prefecture in Thailand
Project Outline
The Saga Prefecture Film Commission collected
information on Thai movies and dramas to develop
location

tourism.

Inaddition

toconducting

interviews with coordinators and travel agencies for
Thai movies and dramas, the commission also
received information on Thai movies and dramas
from the Japan Film Commission.
Tourism pamphlet tailored to Thai Visitors

1Features and Innovations

least a day) multiplied 25 times in 6 years.

Saga Prefecture did not simply promote or pushwhat they wanted, rather they gathered information<Qualitative Result>about what the other party was seeking and sought- By preparing for tourism promotion from the timea location within in Saga Prefecture that matchedof filming, it led to successful tourism promotionthat image to make a proposal suited to the otherat a movie company-sponsored screening event inparty’s needs.

which many media participated.
- Awareness of hospitality towards Thai tourists inClassic images typical of Japan (cherry blossoms,

the prefecture has increased, i.e. through learning

shrines, snow, ninjas) can be found in Saga without

Thai greetings and adding Thai to signs at

having to go to Tokyo or Kyoto, meaning the high cost

shopping streets etc.

of hotels and filming equipment and overall high- At Yutoku Inari Shrine in Kashima City, there are as

prices of cities could be avoided.

many as 200 Thai visitors on a busy day, so that
resulted in the first Thai language omikuji (fortune

Since the production team visiting Saga wasreading slip) and ema (a wooden plaque to write

unfamiliar with filming overseas, Saga Prefecture

down your wishes) to ever be created in Japan.

scheduled various arrangements such as obtaining- Energy to welcome Thai people is increasing,filming permits and obtaining visas for filming inthrough, for example, more events are held toJapan.

introduce Thai culture within Saga Prefecture.
- The Thai archery team at the Tokyo Olympics heldWhen the film was released, the Tourism Division of

their training camp in Saga Prefecture, thanks toSaga Prefecture went all out with promoting

the connection Saga Prefecture gained withtourism, which resulted in a significant increase inThailand through film production.

visitors.
At the film’s premier, the Saga Prefecture Tourism
Division staff went on stage to promote SagaPrefecture. At a Saga Prefecture travel and tourism
event held in Thailand, they invited the movie
director as a guest, and had him speak about thegood points of Saga Prefecture, and the event wassuccessful.
Results of the Project<Quantitative Result>

Visitors from Thailand (Yutoku Inari Shrine)(2013 → 2014) Thai visitors (that stayed at least aday) in Saga quadrupled compared to the previousIssues, Problems and Responsesyear.

<Issue 1>(2014 → 2015) Thai visitors to Saga (that stayed at

Saga Prefecture is not well known, and foreign

least a day) multiplied 3 times compared to thetourists entering Japan from Fukuoka Airport tend

previous year.

to visit other better-known prefectures making it(2013 → 2019) Thai visitors to Saga (that stayed ateasy for them to travel without stopping in Saga2

Prefecture.

<Issues>
Improved transportation (access to accommodation<Issue 2>

and sightseeing spots, etc.), multilingual

Location tourism makes it relatively easy to produce

guidebooks, improved destination materials.

results in a short period of time. However, it isimportant to ensure that visitors will continue toReference URL

come even after the hype has passed.

https://www.saga-fc.jp/
https://www.asobo-saga.jp/th/<Response>
When the Saga Prefecture Film Commission started

Contact

its activities, it targeted South Korea and China,

Affiliation: Tourism Division

following the success stories of other prefectures.

Saga Prefectural Government

But with so much competition, attracting tourists

Telephone: +81-952-25-7098

from South Korea and China was difficult, hence Saga

Email: kankou@Prefecturesaga.lg.jp

Prefecture decided to switch to targeting Thailand
instead (where visa requirements to enter Japan
were being eased) as their main target, while
continuing to promote themselves to Korea andChina.
Through the cooperation of the Film Commission andthe Saga Prefecture Tourism Division, Saga Prefecture
was able to implement a successful tourism
promotion campaign..
Future Developments (expected effects and projectvision and issues)<Business Outlook>
Overseas tourists using Fukuoka Airport tend toreturn to Fukuoka Prefecture without staying
overnight in Saga Prefecture after visiting filming
locations. Moving forward, efforts will be taken toincrease the time visitors spend in Saga Prefecture.
Additionally, as the number of individual travellers isincreasing, it is necessary to create an environmentthat makes travel easier for those travelling on theirown.

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