With their business revenues at the mercy of the current coronavirus scare and the dwindling volume of foreign visitors to Kyoto, a small group of local shopkeepers has decided to take matters into its own hands, launching its own marketing campaign to in hopes of attracting back more tourists.
Merchants from five key retail streets in Kyoto's Arashiyama district have launched a joint advertising campaign that turns the coronavirus scare's street-emptying influence into a potential boon for would-be tourists.
Home to seventeen UNESCO World Heritage component sites, the historic former Japanese capital city is typically teeming with international visitors daily, and in recent years, even during the winter season. But, residents report that fears of contracting the coronavirus in Asian destinations are keeping tourists away.
Located on the western outskirts of Kyoto, Arashiyama is distinguished by its numerous Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, Zen gardens, authentic restaurants and vibrant shops, and such singular attractions as its vast, majestic, natural bamboo forest and iconic Togetsukyo Bridge, under which flows the Hozu River.
CNN Travel spotlighted the local coalition's new "Empty Arashiyama" campaign, which presents the relative vacancy of its popular attractions as an appealing prospect for those who would love to experience the area without jam-packed crowds or hoards of Instagrammers looking to get the perfect selfie.
Posters were created to support the proposition, featuring photos of four of the area's popular attractions devoid of their usual crowds, along with the campaign's slogan and some cheeky captions that imbue the whole lack-of-tourism situation with some levity.
One poster features a Japanese macaque at the Arashiyama Monkey Park, which reads: "It's been a while since there were more monkeys than humans." Another sports with an image of Togetsukyo Bridge, devoid of the photo-snapping crowds that would normally be present. A peaceful view of an undisturbed path through Arashiyama's prized Sagano Bamboo Forest adorns another poster, emblazoned with the hashtags "#nopeople" and "#nowisthetime".
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