Nara prefecture statistics show the number of Vietnamese tourists traveling to the ancient capital has to date remained modest, but it is likely to increase considerably following the recovery of the Vietnamese economy.

With an initial marketing budget for tourism of JPY1.5 million, the prefecture will introduce Vietnamese organisations and travel agents to its tourism potential, aiming to attract more than 500,000 foreign visitors in 2014.

“I have heard that Vietnamese people are interested in traveling to Japan. We want to encourage them to pass other cities to visit the charming ancient capital of Nara instead”, said a Japanese official.

Last year the prefecture attracted 456,640 visitors, increasing 1.61 fold compared to 2012’s figure.