This year, Japanese businessman Katsuo Inoue chose Italy as a destination for his summer vacation. The restrictions due to the coronavirus have not allowed him to be there, although that has not been an impediment to know some of the main tourist attractions of Rome. Inoue, 56, traveled on Wednesday on one of the virtual "flights" of the Japanese company First Airlines. Customers of this company receive treatment similar to what an airline would offer them in first class: food, drinks and even safety instructions. With the help of augmented reality devices, passengers can disembark at some of the most popular destinations on the planet. Paris, Rome, Hawaii and New York are some of the options available.
The coronavirus crisis has dwindled most travel from Japan. In June, ANA Holdings, the country's main airline, detailed that the number of tickets sold to foreign destinations decreased by 96% during the second quarter of 2020. In addition, the International Air Transport Association predicted last month that it will be until 2024 when the global number of passengers recovers. Given this, First Airlines, which began operating in 2016, has increased its reservations by 50% since the pandemic began.
Their “flights” take off from the company's offices in the Tokyo neighborhood of Ikebukuro, a space that they have dubbed the “Ikebukuro International Airport”. The trips last two hours and cost 6,580 yen (just over 50 euros). The president of the company, Hiroaki Abe, has specified that this summer many people who have not been able to satisfy their desire to travel have opted for their virtual alternative: “There are clients who used to go to Hawaii every year, but now they cannot, so they came here to enjoy the journey they couldn't take. We are seeing a strong increase in this number of clients, ”Abe explained.