Discussions with Tsugaru Railway and Goshogawara City on attracting foreign tourists

Table of Contents

1: Discussions on attracting foreign tourists

2: Attractiveness of Tsugaru Railway

3: Nationalities of foreign tourists around Tsugaru Railway

1: Discussions on attracting foreign tourists

The other day, we discussed with Tsugaru Railways and the Urban Transport Division of the Goshogawara City Construction Department at the Goshogawara City Hall (Goshogawara City, Aomori Prefecture) about attracting foreign tourists.

Tsugaru Railways is the railway company connecting Tsugaru-Goshogawara Station and Tsugaru-Nakasato Station (operating distance of 20.7 km). Tsugaru Goshogawara Station is connected to JR East's Goshogawara Station.

Like other regional railways, Tsugaru Railways is also loss-making. In pre-COVID-19, the operating result of the railway track business was a loss of 25.35 million. This number is a significant deficit, representing 21.6% of the turnover of the railway track business. Like other regional railways, Tsugaru Railways has been affected by the decline in population and motorization of the people living along its lines. It is, therefore, necessary to attract tourists in the future.

We made a proposal using various data to see if we could help Tsugaru Railway as a company that provides clothing rental and pre-trip concierge services for foreign tourists.

Our proposals were almost identical to those we made to Noiwa Railways, which we visited the other day. Accessibility is necessary because there is a very high correlation (correlation coefficient of 72%) between the percentage of steps eliminated at stations ('Accessibility rate') and the occupancy rate of accommodation facilities, which indicates the trend of overnight visitors and travelers. However, as Tsugaru Railways is loss-making, it has no investment capacity, making it difficult to make a higher accessibility rate. Therefore, increasing the number of travelers who can overcome 'steps,' raising the investment capacity, and improving the 'Accessibility rate' is necessary.

Note: Data for 46 prefectures, excluding Okinawa Prefecture, which has no railway network.
Sources: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, "End of FY2021: Status of measures to eliminate steps by prefecture", "Accommodation Statistics (2019)"

Travelers who can overcome 'steps' are travelers with less luggage. Reducing luggage and increasing the number of travelers who can overcome 'bumps' through the clothing rentals we promote is possible. We believe that by lightening the luggage load for seniors and people with disabilities, we can maintain the number of tourists even in an aging society.

Apart from 'steps,' around half of the foreign tourists have problems with public transport in rural areas, with 92% finding it inconvenient. Furthermore, they also have issues communicating with staff at facilities and with multilingual displays.

Therefore, as well as increasing the number of 'light travelers,' the Company believes that the number of foreign travelers using Tsugaru Railways will increase by improving convenience through providing information in foreign languages and transferring information.

2: Attractiveness of Tsugaru Railway

The charm of the Tsugaru Railway is its stove train during the winter season. This nationally renowned train has operated since the Tsugaru Railway's inception in 1930. Each passenger car is heated with a traditional Daruma stove, attracting numerous tourists to Goshogawara in pursuit of the nostalgic experience this stove train offers. Additionally, visitors can grill dried squid, sold onboard, over the Daruma stove and savor it alongside Japanese sake. The train operates from December 1st until March 31st of the following year. During the summer, there's the 'Wind Chime Train,' and in the fall, the 'Cricket Train,' showcasing the railway's creative adaptations for each season.

As Kanagi Station along the Tsugaru Railway line was the birthplace of Osamu Dazai, a 'library' has been set up on the train and at the station with books mainly by Dazai Osamu, and the 'Tsugaru Peninsula Tourist Attendant' provides sightseeing information and reads books in the Tsugaru dialect.

The Tsugaru Railway line is surrounded by nature, and the scenery from the train windows is healing to the soul. You can also glimpse Mount Iwaki from the train, often referred to as 'Tsugaru Fuji.'

3: Nationalities of foreign tourists around Tsugaru Railway

The majority of foreign tourists in Aomori Prefecture, where the Tsugaru Railway runs, are from Taiwan. There are also many Hong Kong nationals whose script is the same as Taiwanese Traditional Chinese, accounting for about half of the total. Therefore, transmitting information and post notices in traditional Chinese is essential.

Overnight Foreign Tourist by Nationality in Aomori Prefecture (2019)

Source: Aomori Prefecture