Our organisation was first established in 1912 (the 45th year of the Meiji era) as the ‘Japan Tourist Bureau’ and was renamed ‘Japan Travel Bureau’ in 1945 (the 20th year of the Showa era). In 1963, our sales division became a separate company called the ‘Japan Travel Bureau Corporation’ (JTB Corp.) while we continued as a research institute.

The tourism sector also reached a major turning point that same year with the promulgation of the Tourism Basic Law, the removal of restrictions on overseas travel, the launch of Tokaido Shinkansen and the opening of Tokyo Olympic Games. Since then, we have undertaken projects that address the needs of the country, which has seen great changes in the social environment brought on by events such as the popularisation of travel, the oil shock, the resort boom, the burst of a bubble economy, a low birth-rate and ageing society and population decline. Tourism has garnered more attention in recent years as an important pillar of national and regional strategy, and our foundation has stepped up contributions to national and regional development through tourism.

In 2012 (the 24th year of the Heisei era), we became a public-interest incorporated foundation, and then in 2016 (28th year of Heisei era), we also became an academic research institute designated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in compliance with the scientific research fund subsidy regulations.

History

1912 ‘Japan Tourist Bureau’ established
1945 Changed name to ‘Japan Travel Bureau Foundation’
1963 Parted with the sales division, which became the Japan Travel Bureau Corporation (JTB Corp.)
1976 Issued the first edition of our official magazine ‘Tourism Culture’
1978 Opened the ‘Library of Tourism Culture’
2012Became a public-interest incorporated foundation
2014 Issued ‘The 50-year History of Japan Travel Bureau Foundation’
Issued ‘Excellent Japan – A Scenic Portfolio’
2016 Changed over research departments into a three-division system comprising
the ‘Tourism Policy Research Division’, the ‘Tourism Region Research Division’
and the ‘Tourism Economy Research Division’
Became an academic research institute designated by the MEXT in compliance with the scientific research fund subsidy regulations.