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Report About Our VJTM 2026

Writer: miit, inc.
miit, inc.
Oct 17
2 min read

From 24 to 26 September 2026, miit,inc. took part in VISIT JAPAN Travel & MICE Mart (VJTM) 2026, organised by JNTO at Tokyo Big Sight. We met 26 travel companies from Italy, Spain, South Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, the UK, Singapore, Israel, the UAE and other markets.

Many of these companies already know Japan’s famous sights well. What we wanted to share was something harder to put in an itinerary: time with the people who live and work inside Japan. So rather than destinations, we brought introductions.

Meeting with buyers

3 ways inside Japan

Our meetings centred on 3 types of programmes, each built with local hosts.


Customised cultural experiences with local masters

Private time with people whose work carries generations of knowledge:

  • Swordsmith in his forge

  • Family that has made tea-ceremony kettles for four generations

  • Nishikigoi (koi) breeder at his ponds

  • Monk at a local temple in Kyoto

  • Sumo wrestlers at their training ground

Each experience is shaped around the guests’ interests.


Community-Based Tourism

In our Community-Based Tourism programmes, the host decides how their work and their place are shared. Groups stay small, hosts are paid fairly, and what guests spend stays in the community.


Business Tourism and Study Tours

Our Business & Educational Tourism programmes connect corporate groups, investors, universities and business schools with entrepreneurs, family-run traditional businesses and regional communities across Kansai.

Meeting with Buyers

Alongside our local partners

Two partners joined our meetings: Miyama DMO and the travel agency Single Support Co., Ltd. Miyama, a thatched-roof village north of Kyoto, was named a UN Tourism Best Tourism Village in 2021. Having its DMO with us let buyers hear about community-based tourism directly from the people who practise it.


After VJTM

We are continuing conversations online, including with companies we could not meet at the event. Follow-up meetings have been held with partners from the United States, the Philippines and Israel. More are being arranged with partners in South Korea, the US, Canada, Spain, Italy, Singapore and elsewhere.


Contact

Under our theme, Access to the Inside of Japan, we will keep working with new partners abroad and with craftspeople, local businesses and communities at home. We look forward to future collaborations with travel companies and universities.


If you would like to know more, feel free to contact us.


To learn more, please reach out directly:




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