Kobe Tourism Bureau and Awaji Island Tourism Association Sign Comprehensive Partnership to Promote Wider Setouchi Area Tourism, Capitalizing on Kobe Airport's Internationalization

The Kobe Tourism Bureau and the Awaji Island Tourism Association signed a comprehensive partnership agreement on June 16. This move, prompted by developments including the internationalization of Kobe Airport, the development of a superyacht marina, and the opening of the Onaruto Bridge bicycle path, aims to promote integrated tourism and enhance the regional value of both areas.

Through this agreement, by promoting wide-area tourism spurred by Kobe Airport's internationalization, the partners aim to increase the number of foreign overnight guests in the Kobe-Awaji region from approximately 980,000 in 2024 to a scale of 2.75 million by 2030.

## 1. Background: Changing Tourism Flows with Kobe Airport's Internationalization

Kobe and Awaji Island have historically developed mutually through exchange and collaboration in various fields such as culture, tourism, and industry. In 2019, Kobe City and the three cities of Awaji Island (Sumoto, Awaji, and Minamiawaji) signed an agreement to promote integrated regional initiatives. In recent years, improved access from overseas due to the internationalization of Kobe Airport, along with the planned superyacht marina and the opening of the Onaruto Bridge bicycle path, has further increased the potential for wide-area sightseeing tours.

By combining Kobe's urban cultural, artistic, and culinary attractions with Awaji Island's rich nature, food culture, wellness, and cultural resources, they aim to form a 'stay-and-experience tourism area where city and nature can be enjoyed together.' This will help attract more domestic and international visitors, promote tours throughout the Setouchi area starting from Kobe and Awaji Island, and establish the new wide-area tourism brand 'KOBE × AWAJI.'

## 2. Key Initiatives of the Partnership

(1) Creation and Joint Promotion of High-Value Tourism Content
The partnership will promote the development of high-value tourism content and joint promotions by leveraging the diverse resources of both regions, including nature, art, culture, and food. In particular, they will develop gastronomy tourism that combines Awaji Island's food culture (known as 'Miketsukuni') with Kobe's urban gastronomy to create travel demand centered on food.

Leveraging the development of facilities for superyachts in Kobe Port, they will collaborate with Awaji Island's ports and tourist resources to create high-value content for affluent travelers, combining food, accommodation, hot springs, and wellness. Strategic promotion of these initiatives aims to stimulate a wide range of tourism demand from both home and abroad.

Specifically, they will plan tour packages that include stays at attractive tourist spots, restaurants, and hotels/ryokans in Kobe and Awaji Island. They will also conduct familiarization trips, inviting overseas travel agencies and media to experience the tours firsthand, leading to concrete tour development.

The completed tours and attractions of both regions will be promoted to domestic and international travelers through official tourism websites for Kobe and Awaji Island.

(2) Improvement of Tourist Reception Environment
They will improve the environment for receiving tourists by training inbound-ready guides, enhancing hands-on programs, and supporting the creation of travel products. Information sharing and collaboration will also be pursued to improve transport convenience and tour-around accessibility.

(3) Integrated Promotion of 'KOBE × AWAJI' Brand
'KOBE × AWAJI' is a new wide-area tourism concept that connects Kobe's urban culture with Awaji Island's nature and food culture. It proposes a new style of tourism where one can enjoy both city and nature, port town culture and 'Miketsukuni' culture in a single trip, such as 'staying in Kobe and visiting Awaji Island' or vice versa. The brand will also promote travel to the entire Setouchi area, enhancing the appeal of wide-area tourism and expanding exchange.

## 3. Agreement Overview

- Name: Partnership Agreement between Kobe Tourism Bureau and Awaji Island Tourism Association
- Purpose: To mutually utilize the strengths of their tourism resources to promote tourism to Kobe and Awaji Island from both domestic and international markets.
- Areas of Cooperation:
(1) Creation of tourism content and products utilizing diverse resources.
(2) Joint promotions and information dissemination for attracting tourists.
(3) Improvement of the tourist reception environment, including transport convenience.
(4) Other matters deemed necessary by both parties.
- Date of Signing: June 16, 2026

## 4. Comments

- Manabu Kinoshita, Chairman, Awaji Island Tourism Association:
"At this major turning point of Kobe Airport's internationalization, I believe that by working together, our two regions can create new tourism value for the world. We will fuse Awaji Island's 'Miketsukuni' food culture with Kobe's charm as an international city to promote ourselves as a region worth traveling to for its food."

- Motoi Oyama, Chairman, Kobe Tourism Bureau:
"By combining Kobe's urban attractions with Awaji Island's rich nature and food culture, we can create new tourism value. As Kobe Airport's role as a new gateway to the Kansai region grows, it is important to connect scattered tourist resources and promote wide-area travel."