Japan unveils new tourism slogan

The Japan Tourism Agency has unveiled a new logo and catchphrase - 'Japan.EndlessDiscovery' - to help promote tourism to the country more effectively.

The country is beefing up its promotional efforts in an effort to increase international inbound visitor numbers.

"We want to spread it as a tool that can be used on any occasion to let people know how good tourism in Japan is," said Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Minister Seiji Maehara at a press conference.

The new tourism slogan implies that Japan is a destination with countless historical, traditional, and cultural attractions, thus attracting repeat visitors. 
     
The red and white logo (pictured) encompasses Japan's iconic cherry blossom against a sun background.

The new catchphrase replaces ''Yokoso! Japan'' which many believed lacked sufficient impact, as the Japanese word for welcome is not widely recognized by non-Japanese speakers.
   
Last year, 6.79 million foreign tourists visited Japan, down 18.7% from a year earlier. The government is aiming to attract 10 million visitors to Japan in 2010, having designated the year Visit Japan Year.