For the second year in a row, CzechTourism has reported an unprecedented increase in the number of travelers from overseas, from Japan in particular. Tomio Okamura, general director of Prague-based Miki Travel and a member of the presidium of the Association of Czech Travel Companies and Agencies, talks with The Prague Post about the recent trends and challenges of the travel industry and explains what needs to be done to expand tourist interest in sites outside of Prague.

1. The Czech Republic has witnessed a substantial increase in the number of foreign tourists arriving. What do you think is the reason?

We experienced the main increase in the number of incoming tourists last year, when the number of tourists grew 15 percent. After three years of catastrophes, be it 9/11 or the floods in Prague, the situation returned to normal and people regained their enthusiasm for traveling. This year we expect a 10 percent increase.

2. Do foreigners generally consider the Czech Republic a safe destination?

Yes, they do consider it a safe place. Americans or Japanese tourists, for example, need to travel to Europe by air, so they are particularly sensitive to attacks related to air travel. As a result, the terrorist attacks in London had a similar impact [on the tourist industry here] as had the attacks in Madrid [in 2004] and the Sept. 11 attacks [in the United States]. Thanks to the globalization of information systems, people in Japan or the United States are well aware of the location of particular destinations so they know the Czech Republic is quite far from London. However, any attack against air travel in Europe would have a catastrophic impact on incoming tourism from overseas.

3. The Czech Republic may not be a prime terrorist target, but tourists here still face threats in this country such as being ripped off. Do you think the government pays enough attention to this issue?

I don't think it does. As a member of the Association of Czech Travel Companies and Agencies presidium, I've repeatedly voiced suggestions for solutions. However, there's virtually no response, even though some of the measures would not carry any expenses. As for the behavior of some policemen or ticket inspectors, it would be enough if their superiors emphasized that tourists are arriving here voluntarily and that they spend much more than the money collected on various fines.

Some ticket inspectors pick on people who look like foreigners and who look like they would have larger amounts of money on them. In this way, [ticket inspectors] tend to behave like pickpockets; they use the same criteria.

I don't understand why no one here has realized that the problem with taxi drivers could be fixed simply by placing taximeters and price lists in front of clients. This practice is quite common abroad.

4. Based on CzechTourism data, most foreigners who visit this country come to Prague. What should to be done to attract tourists to the country's other regions?

It can be simplified into three things: build big-capacity four-star hotels in places that are listed as UNESCO sites, improve the condition of roads so that buses can get to destinations fast and comfortably and make sure promotions are extended to include regions other than Prague.

Some of [the 12 UNESCO sites] are not accessible by first-class roads, so it's difficult for a bus with tourists to get there.

I understand that not many investors here can afford the risk of building a big hotel in a region that has not yet been visited by many tourists, which is why I suggested to the Regional Development Ministry the introduction of a system of incentives similar to those available for industrial zones.

5. What do you think is the best and the worst surprise for a first-time visitor to this country?

A positive surprise for most tourists is the large and unique medieval core of Prague's city center. From a tourist's point of view, this looks like an ideal travel destination. The Japanese [for example] like to see different things than what they've got at home, so they greatly admire stone-based architecture that is so different from their wood-based architecture, which is used as result of frequent earthquakes.

The most negative aspect tourists will run into here is the behavior of people who work in the service industry. Retailers do not greet clients or thank them for their purchases; policemen are bored and impolite; waiters and cab drivers rip people off.

6. This year the number of Japanese tourists visiting Prague is expected to rise 30 percent. What makes this country so attractive for the Japanese?

Well, it needs to be emphasized that Japanese interest is mainly focused on Prague. Prague was part of the former Eastern bloc and not very many Japanese had the opportunity to visit here in contrast to Western Europe. Another factor is the unique features of the city. There are also many Czechs who have earned recognition in Japan — Dvořák, Kafka, Lendl, Navrátilová, Čáslavská, Nedvěd and others.

This year, for the first time, four charter flights from Tokyo landed in Prague. There are otherwise no direct flights between Tokyo and Prague. Japanese interest was so high that the company had to use a giant double-decker Boeing 747, which brought 400 people over at one time.

7. What do you think the average Japanese person knows about the Czech Republic?

The average Japanese knows almost nothing about the Czech Republic apart from the name Prague, although more educated people know about Czech music and glass and the younger generation knows about the successful soccer team. Japan is a big, rich country with 130 million citizens, so it is difficult [for anyone] to earn recognition there.

8. How can an increase in the number of foreign tourists affect the travel industry here? Could local travel companies focus more on incoming rather than outgoing services?

Last year Czech tourists spent 51 billion Kč [$2.1 billion] on travel expenses abroad and only 18 billion Kč for domestic travel. Income from foreign tourists in this country amounted to 107.1 billion Kč, a 6.8 percent rise over the previous year, and it could rise an additional 3 billion Kč to some 110 billion Kč this year.

Travel agencies, which need to be insured against bankruptcy, organize trips in and out of the country and sell them to clients. They therefore focus on outgoing services. Tour operators extend travel services to other providers, including foreign travel agencies. So, they are focusing on incoming services.

9. The month of August was a black one for air travel. Has it affected travel here at all?

August's [plane] accidents did not affect the local travel industry. The reason was that no terrorist attacks were behind them and the airlines involved were not internationally recognized. In addition, the flight [from Cyprus to Prague that crashed in Greece] was a charter. It would've been much worse [in terms of the impact on tourism] if the accident had occurred on a commercial flight and if an [internationally recognized] airline had been involved.

10. Which place would you like to visit most of all and where wouldn't you like to travel?