Fostering New Forms of Travel in Setouchi Where People Continuously Connect: "BLUE LOOP"
Inner Japan Co., Ltd. proposes "BLUE LOOP," a new form of travel in the Setouchi region. It aims to promote Community Tourism, where inbound tourists and local residents connect over the medium to long term, circulating value back into the region, thereby creating a "relation population."
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 1, 2026 at 19:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 1, 2026 at 10:15
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 21, 2026 at 11:15 (480h 59m after Collected)
Inner Japan Co., Ltd., under its vision of "Transforming local norms into global specials," designs brands, creates experiential programs, and disseminates information for inbound tourism.
Japan's rural areas boast numerous landscapes and cultures that are globally renowned. However, many have been overlooked, often dismissed as having "nothing."
We are committed not to "creating new content" for regions aiming to attract inbound tourists, but rather to focusing on "how to deliver the existing value." "Local norms" can, from a different perspective, become "special experiences for travelers from around the world."
By redefining such new local values and designing relationships between the people and places that live there, we have been re-designing "reasons to deliberately visit" those places.
Our dream is to foster a "relation population" in Setouchi involving inbound tourists.
**The "Relationship Gap" Between Inbound Tourists and Local Businesses**
Among those interested in visiting Japan, an increasing number choose non-touristy rural areas as their destinations. However, there is still a "gap" where insufficient relationships are formed between inbound travelers visiting rural areas and local businesses. Rural areas are vibrant with charming daily life. Among inbound tourists, there are those who wish to engage more deeply with the people living there. Nevertheless, opportunities for both sides to develop medium to long-term relationships are limited.
Visiting as a tourist, consuming, and leaving. Or, a very small number of people choose to relocate. A mechanism for travelers and regions to "continue to be involved" that should exist in between is not yet sufficiently designed.
**The Concept of Community Tourism**
To address this challenge, we are tackling it by producing "Community Tourism." "Community Tourism" is a form of travel born from building relationships with the people, lifestyles, and culture living in that region. It's a new way of traveling where the relationship with the visited place continues, and value circulates, rather than merely visiting a destination and leaving.
Japan's rural areas boast numerous landscapes and cultures that are globally renowned. However, many have been overlooked, often dismissed as having "nothing."
We are committed not to "creating new content" for regions aiming to attract inbound tourists, but rather to focusing on "how to deliver the existing value." "Local norms" can, from a different perspective, become "special experiences for travelers from around the world."
By redefining such new local values and designing relationships between the people and places that live there, we have been re-designing "reasons to deliberately visit" those places.
Our dream is to foster a "relation population" in Setouchi involving inbound tourists.
**The "Relationship Gap" Between Inbound Tourists and Local Businesses**
Among those interested in visiting Japan, an increasing number choose non-touristy rural areas as their destinations. However, there is still a "gap" where insufficient relationships are formed between inbound travelers visiting rural areas and local businesses. Rural areas are vibrant with charming daily life. Among inbound tourists, there are those who wish to engage more deeply with the people living there. Nevertheless, opportunities for both sides to develop medium to long-term relationships are limited.
Visiting as a tourist, consuming, and leaving. Or, a very small number of people choose to relocate. A mechanism for travelers and regions to "continue to be involved" that should exist in between is not yet sufficiently designed.
**The Concept of Community Tourism**
To address this challenge, we are tackling it by producing "Community Tourism." "Community Tourism" is a form of travel born from building relationships with the people, lifestyles, and culture living in that region. It's a new way of traveling where the relationship with the visited place continues, and value circulates, rather than merely visiting a destination and leaving.