Proposing a new style of travel Aiming to offer accessible tours that can be enjoyed by everyone together

Mitsukoshi Isetan Nikko Travel, Ltd. is a travel agency that was created through the merger of Nikko Travel, whose strength was in overseas travel for seniors, and Mitsukoshi-Isetan Travel, whose strength was in domestic travel for affluent travelers, in 2019. Their corporate philosophy is “delivering high-quality, relaxing, and safe journeys” and “continuing to be a lifelong travel partner by creating enriching experiences.” The company proposes new styles of travel focused on the value of authenticity, such as rare and unique tour experiences. So far, the company has proposed tours that allow tour participants to choose from three levels of leisure to suit their physical condition, as well as tours that provide a relaxing travel space. Some unique services they have been providing include, for example, tours in Japan using the “Premium Cruiser,” a bus with a spacious 10-seat arrangement (as opposed to the 45-seat arrangement of regular large buses), and tours in Europe on the Serenade 2, the company’s own river cruise ship.

This time, they are proposing a new style of travel using mobility scooters that make it easy for everyone to participate. The tours that they have planned and organized allow participants to use mobility scooters during the itinerary so that those who have difficulty walking long distances can explore the sightseeing spots comfortably. We talked to Tomokazu Sakaguchi, a New Development Manager in charge of Tourism Strategy in Mitsukoshi Isetan Nikko Travel, Ltd.’s Travel Sales Department, about their specific efforts.

The idea for travel that is accessible to everyone started with setting three “leisure levels”

Even before the merger, Nikko Travel had a very high rate of repeat clients. Over time, our clients who had been not so old initially grew older. The issue we had was that tour participants varied not only in their walking speed, but also in the time they needed for packing and other activities. We realized that we had not considered factors such as our participants’ ages and fitness levels in our past tours. Therefore, since many of our clients always requested leisurely tours, we defined three levels of leisure by prioritizing “physical leisure,” “time-based leisure,” and “mental leisure” to create and emphasize more relaxed tours catered to their needs. We are working to ensure that individual participants are able to choose a tour that is suited to their level of physical fitness by offering tours with different sightseeing, transportation, and other movement speeds.

For example, in the case of the Europe Tour, which was the starting point of our efforts, we designed the “Leisure Level 1” tour to allow participants to enjoy the highlights of the tour to the maximum extent possible, even on foot, with an approximate continuous walking time of 1 to 1.5 hours. In the “Leisure Level 2” tour, the continuous walking time is approximately 30 to 40 minutes; we avoid long walks, stairs, and slopes as much as possible, and have participants enjoy city tours on mini train rides or horse-drawn carriages, or art exhibits, with breaks in between. For the “Leisure Level 3” tour, the continuous walking time is approximately 10 to 15 minutes; we kept the walking time to a minimum so that even those who have given up on traveling overseas due to physical limitations can enjoy traveling stress-free. Participants also share taxis that can flexibly take them around narrow streets which are inaccessible by large buses, and have occasional breaks at cafés.

Challenges identified in setting the three leisure levels

While setting these three leisure levels, we also identified several challenges. In particular, we struggled with differentiating the “Leisure Level 2” tour from the levels above and below it, and encountered operational difficulties during the “Leisure Level 3” tour. For example, taxis were sometimes unavailable in the numbers we needed, and there was little information on hotels and restaurants that could be used in the “Leisure Level 3” category, so it took more time than usual to arrange the tours. We managed to overcome these challenges mainly by receiving feedback with information about local conditions from our own tour guides. Another challenge we encountered was the difficulty of differentiating the three leisure levels in domestic travel. Our domestic tours have always been leisurely, so clear differentiation was difficult. On the other hand, we have received requests from clients to create more “Leisure Level 2” and “Leisure Level 3” tours, so we are continuing to review our plans on a daily basis while incorporating the know-how we have gained through our experience with overseas tours into our domestic tours.

The challenge of creating accessible tours that can be enjoyed by everyone together

The question also arose as to whether dividing our tours into three levels would create another sort of barrier. We had significant doubts about telling clients who want a “Leisure Level 1” tour that the tour may be too difficult for them because it is physically demanding. Originally, what inspired us to take on this challenge was the desire to create tours that everyone could enjoy at the same pace and in the same way, regardless of the tour’s “leisure level.” Our idea was that there should be tours which even the elderly could participate in and enjoy while matching the walking speed of their grandchildren.
While trying to figure out through trial and error how to create a tour that everyone could easily participate in, we received a hint from the group department store’s out-of-store sales department that some of our clients were considering purchasing mobility scooters. Couldn’t these scooters be used during our tours as well?

We immediately ordered information on mobility scooters and discussed incorporating them into our tours. Initially, we were reluctant to consider using them due to concerns about the dangers involved. However, when we actually tried riding the scooters, we found that they were foldable, compact, and easy to operate. We were convinced that even those who have trouble walking long distances could enjoy sightseeing at the same pace as everyone else if they used these scooters, and that participants would be pleased. After our first tour with scooters in April 2023, even those who were initially hesitant to use the scooters began to use them more and more, as they found them to be comfortable and convenient when they tried them.

We want everyone to continue to experience the joy of traveling together

We do not want anyone to give up traveling, so we are working on tours that are tailored to each individual’s fitness level based on our “leisure level” categories. The mobility scooter tours were born from a desire to have everyone continue to experience the joy of traveling together, even with different physical conditions. As the average age of our clients is now 73 years old, we are constantly considering ways to continue to provide high-quality, relaxing, and safe journeys for our clients to enjoy no matter their age.