Australia’s Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, the Hon. Dan Tehan MP, visited Japan last week and held a roundtable meeting with seven key distribution partners in Japan, including major travel agencies and airlines, at the Australian Embassy in Tokyo.

The purpose of the meeting was to understand the current situation of Japan's travel industry in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and discuss the marketing and relaunch of travel between Australia and Japan when borders reopen.

In addition, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed to maximise in-market activities to support the Australian tourism market from Japan.

The Memorandum of Understanding will further strengthen Tourism Australia’s relationships with industry stakeholders and reinforce the strong ties between the two countries.

Japan is one of the most important tourism markets for Australia, with almost 500,000 visitors from Japan in 2019, contributing A$2.1 billion to the Australian economy.