Arab News Japan

TOKYO: Despite high costs and a weak yen, tours for Japanese to watch the Olympic Games in Paris are selling out well, according to data and the Sankei newspaper.

Twelve years ago, at the time of the London Olympic Games, the yen was around 78 to the dollar, so traveling abroad was cheap for Japanese people.

However, the yen recently plummeted to 161.94 to the dollar – its lowest level in nearly 38 years – making travel very expensive from Japan.

Many tours to the Paris Olympics now include food and drink services at the venue and admission tickets. Despite costs doubling since London in 2012, tour sales have been surprisingly brisk.

However, travel agency officials have criticized tour changes to watch the Paris Olympics. They say they have been forced to sell expensive packages for groups, forcing some individual customers to go it alone and secure their tickets, hotels, and flights.

The International Olympic Committee changed the ticket sales system this time to simplify the operation of the Games. While individual customers can now purchase tickets on a dedicated website, the US company On Location was granted worldwide sales rights for tours through agencies.

Agencies must purchase tickets from OnLocation, and they say the prices are high due to the addition of “hospitality” fees for food and drink at the venues.

According to Tobu Top Tours, the average price of an Olympic tour (four nights on site and viewing of three events) for the 2012 London Olympics was 700,000 yen, but it has ballooned to 1.4 million yen (around $9,000) for the Paris Olympics.

Despite this, the company says its allocation of tours has sold out, with track and field events proving very popular. Even the high-end tours offered by some Japanese companies have sold out.

The Japan Travel Bureau was selling a seven-day, six-night tour that included accommodation and tickets to watch the opening ceremony and five other sports, including gymnastics and judo. The five-star hotel plan costs about 4.1 million yen ($26,000) per person and doesn’t even include airfare. If the customer stays in a four-star hotel, the price is about 2.4 million yen ($15,000). Despite these costs, the tours sold out.

“We quickly exceeded the allocated number,” a spokesman said. “There is a high level of interest in the Olympics.”