A magnitude 7.6 earthquake occurred on January 1st in the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture along the Sea of Japan coast. This caused heavy damage in the area and the situation in Noto is not expected to recover soon, with optimistic estimations saying late spring.

EXO Foundation, the charity organization of EXO travel, is gathering information on how we can best support the area in the most helpful and sustainable way.

Kanazawa is located very close to the Noto Peninsula and was affected as well with some minor damage and power outages. Thankfully, the situation in Kanazawa is now back to normal with all the main tourist attractions and facilities re-opened. We want to emphasize that there is no need to revise any itineraries of clients visiting Kanazawa, and we invite them to boost local spirits by enjoying the city and supporting the local economy.

Check out our blog article about it.

Key Takeaways:

• Situation on the ground

Foreign visitors exceeded 20 million in 2023, with a record-setting 2.4 million in the month of November alone.

Spring 2024 is expected to be even more crowded than 2023, when long queues occurred at airports, stations, and some sightseeing spots. We are keeping up with assistance for clients on the ground, but due to the high number of arrivals we had to extend our stop-sale until May 17th, after the Golden Week.

• Guide training
  

We well know how much a great guide is important to the satisfaction of our clients. EXO Japan has a robust support system for guides, including in-person and online group training sessions and one-on-one skill building. Our goal is to raise the abilities and confidence of all of our guides so that interactions with guests can be even more smooth, educational, and memorable.