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Home , Akita Prefecture, Akita Station, Aomori Station, Morioka Station

October 31, 2018 East Railway Company

Off to Tohoku! A Special Winter Trip campaign Campaign to promote the various attractions of Tohoku in the winter, this year with an additional “Activities” category.

The Off to Tohoku! A Special Winter Trip campaign, hosted by an “all-Tohoku” team—JR East together with local organizations such as various municipalities (in the six Tohoku prefectures), the Tohoku Tourism rd Promotion Organization, travel agencies, and tourism -related businesses is back for the 3 time this winter, with even better deals, to drive demand for tourism in the Tohoku region during the winter season.

○ This year, there is an additional “Activities” category to showcase the various activity-related attractions that the Tohoku region has to offer, including snow festivals, extraordinary scenery, hot springs, food,

alcohol, and other “rewards” in the form of various travel packages offered by the travel agencies.

○ There is also a new (Oga) Course for the Regular Sightseeing Bus, an intermodal passenger transport program that goes around the best winter attractions of the Tohoku region, and refined existing courses.

○ TV commercials and posters featuring Mayu Matsuoka, the face of the Off to Tohoku! campaign, as well as Instagram photo books that compile all of our Instagram posts so far, will be used to promote the campaign.

○ There will also be a promotion in which famous public figures from a variety of areas post their experience traveling in the Tohoku region in the winter through social media.

1. Campaign Information Name : Off to Tohoku! A Special Winter Trip Duration : Saturday, December 1, 2018 – Sunday, March 31, 2019 Objective : Offer a campaign together with the six Tohoku prefectures in order to promote the attractions of the Tohoku region as “rewards” and create demand for winter trips Campaign Logo to the region. Partners : Prefecture, , , , , Prefecture, Tohoku Tourism Promotion Organization 2. Sale of Travel Packages In addition to their existing travel packages, the major travel agencies will sell appealing travel packages that promote snow festivals and extraordinary scenery, hot springs, food, alcohol, and activities, as “rewards” for the winter season.

Main travel agency pamphlets (For illustrative purposes only)

[Main Tour Planning and Operating Agencies] JTB Corp., JTB Media Retailing Corp., Nippon Travel Agency Co., Ltd., KNT Shutoken Co., Ltd., Club Tourism International Inc., Tobu Top Tours Co., Ltd., JR EAST VIEW Travel Service Co., Ltd., Nokyo Tourist Corporation, Yomiuri Travel Service Co., Ltd., Hankyu Travel International Co., Ltd., Bigholiday Co. Ltd., Tabix Japan, Inc. * Contact travel agencies directly for details on travel packages and sales periods. * Pamphlets for travel packages will be available at travel agency storefronts, websites, etc. 1) Offerings by View Travel Service (Planned and Operated by JR EAST VIEW Travel Service Co., Ltd.) (1) JR Tickets + Lodging Individual Travel Packages for Off to Tohoku! A Special Winter Trip Travel packages offered in five winter “rewards” categories, introducing you to the joys of winter in the Tohoku region: “Limited-Time Events and Extraordinary Scenery!” “Relax at Hot Springs in Tohoku!” “Enjoy Local Specialties and !,” and “Experience Something New in Tohoku!” There are 88 courses (106 facilities) in total. Campaign Period : Saturday, December 1, 2018 – Tuesday, March 19, 2019 * December 27 – January 6 are blackout dates, with additional blackout dates depending on facility. * Available at Travel Service Center storefronts in the metropolitan area, websites that sell JR East domestic tours, and major travel agencies in the Tokyo metropolitan area. [Examples of Travel Packages] ■ Pond Smelt Fishing Experience () Experience Something New in Tohoku! Pond smelt fishing experience that comes with fishing goods (so no need to bring your own) and an instructional lecture by an instructor, making it perfect for beginners as well. Lodging at Active Resorts Urabandai. Relax at a hot spring as well. ■ Dropwort Hot Pot (Miyagi Prefecture) Enjoy Local Specialties and Sake! Dropwort hot pot, a local specialty in Miyagi Prefecture. Enjoy every part of the vegetable, from the roots to the leaves, stems, and roots—each with different flavors and textures. Lodging at the Kagaribi no Yu Ryokusuitei. For dinner, there will be dropwort hot pot and original beer. ■ Hanamaki Hoshimeguri no Yoru Festival (Iwate Prefecture) Limited-Time Events and Extraordinary Scenery! The Hanamaki Hoshimeguri-no-Yoru Festival, held in February, features the mystical sight of lanterns—with wishes written on them—floating out into the night sky. For lodging, you can choose between the Grand Resort Hanamaki and Hotel Shidotaira. * Participation in the Hanamaki Hoshimeguri-no-Yoru Festival will be required to register separately and pay an additional fee on-site.

Photograph: Urabandai Tourism Pond Smelt Fishing Experience

Dropwort Hot Pot Hanamaki Hoshimeguri-no-Yoru Festival * Photographs are for illustrative purposes only.

(2) Tohoku Travel Packages with Tour Guides Approximately 70 Tohoku travel packages (tentative) that take you around the captivating sites of winter in Tohoku, complete with tour guides—from courses on the luxury train Nagomi during the 2018 Sendai Pageant of Starlight, to courses that include events/festivals like the Hachinohe Enburi and Kuromori Kabuki, courses that make use of the Joyful Trains program, such as the Toreiyu , courses of the southern Tohoku region on GranClass trains, and courses that introduce you to both little-known and famous hot springs. * Campaign periods and dates of sale differ by course. [Examples of Travel Packages] ■ Joyful Trains Courses include the special “Sakezanmai! Southern Tohoku Local Sake Rewards Trip on Special Train” on the Toreiyu Tsubasa, which starts on December 1 and allows you to enjoy local sakes from Miyagi, Fukushima, and Yamagata Prefectures onboard the train, as well as a course on the dining train TOHOKU EMOTION, complete with meals and extraordinary views of the Pacific Ocean. ■ Winter Festivals in the Tohoku Region Course that take you to Tohoku winter festivals and events, starting with the Sedo Festival, the Hachinohe Enburi, and Kuromori Kabuki. ■ Little-Known and Famous Hot Springs in the Tohoku Region Course that takes you to both the little-known and famous hot springs of the Tohoku region, from the Aoni , a secluded, free-standing hot spring facility located along the valley, to Sukayu Onsen, known for the Hiba Sennin-Buro (Large Communal Bath), and the Zao Onsen, where you can see Juhyo (Snow Monsters) of Zao, a famous Tohoku winter sight.

Toreiyu Tsubasa Namahage Sedo Festival

Aoni Onsen Sukayu Onsen * Photographs are for illustrative purposes only.

2) Offerings by JR East Dynamic Rail Pack (Planned and Operated by JR EAST VIEW Travel Service Co., Ltd. ) Get 5% off the listed price if you use the JR East Dynamic Rail Pack and make a reservation and/or stay at a participating lodging facility (approximately 340 facilities total) in one of the six Tohoku prefectures during the designated lodging period. Reservation Period : Friday, February 1 – Thursday, February 14, 2019

Lodging Period : Saturday, February 2 – Sunday, March 31, 2019 Reservation Website : http://www.eki-net.com/travel/drp/ 3. More Courses on the Regular Sightseeing Bus There will be four Regular Sightseeing Bus courses that leave from , Station, , and bus terminals, aimed towards foreign tourists, etc. looking to access the amazing winter sceneries of the Tohoku region. Tickets are purchasable on-site. This fiscal year, there is an additional course that goes around the Oga Peninsula in Akita Prefecture. Existing courses have also been improved with things such as additional stop-by sites, as well as discounts on participating facilities and other special offers for customers on the courses. * Operated by JR Bus Tohoku Co., Ltd., license application under review as of October 31 . * See the JR Bus Tohoku Co., Ltd. Website, etc. for more details on the courses. [Regular Sightseeing Bus Courses] (1) From Akita Station: A winter experience at Cape Nyudozaki and ogre-like Namahage deities (2) From Sendai Station: The Superb View of Zao’s Snow Monsters (3) From : The Snowfield of Ipponzakura and Koiwai (4) From Aomori Station: The Silver-White Snow Monsters of Hakkoda

Oga Shinzan Folklore Museum Zao’s Snow Monsters

Photograph: Koiwai Farm Ipponzakura (Single Winter Hakkoda’s Snow Monsters * Photographs are for Cherry Blossom) in Koiwai illustrative purposes only.

4. Special Winter Tohoku Campaign for Eki-Net and Mobile Customers Special campaign in which customers who use Eki-Net or purchase a Mobile Suica Limited Express Ticket during the campaign period will be entered into a lottery to win amazing prizes. Eki-Net and Mobile Suica customers who purchase GranClass tickets during the campaign period will also be entered into a lottery to win Eki-Net points and e-money on their Mobile Suica.

Entry Period : Wednesday, November 7, 2018 – Sunday, March 31, 2019 Applicable Period : Tickets for use in Friday, December 7, 2018 – Sunday, March 31, 2019

Entry Requirements : Customers who use designated seats on a that leaves from or arrives at a Shinkansen station in one of the six Tohoku prefectures (Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, or Fukushima Prefecture) Prizes : Hotel (Illustrative ・ Stay for two at the Tokyo Station Hotel (with dinner) 10 pairs / 20 people purposes only) ・ Joyful Trains Tour Experience 25 pairs / 50 people, etc. Application Method : Enter through the entry form on the campaign website URL: https://www.jreast.co.jp/eki-mob-cp/tohoku2018/ (Available starting 14:00, November 7) * See campaign website for details on application requirements, prizes, etc. 5. Campaign Promotion Campaign promotion will feature the winter attractions of Tohoku with icons and photos representing three of the five winter “rewards”—hot springs, food/alcohol, activities—together with Mayu Matsuoka, the face of the Off to Tohoku! campaign.

Poster (For illustrative purposes only)

1) Promote Through an Official Website, Instagram Photo Book, and Instagram Instagram Photo Book Videos (For illustrative purposes only) Information on events, such as snow festivals and extraordinary scenery, hot springs, food, alcohol, and activities in the six Tohoku prefectures will be promoted through the official website and an Instagram photo book. * Instagram photo book will be distributed at major train stations and Travel Service Centers in the East Japan area from November 7 onwards. Famous public figures from a variety of areas will also post videos of their travels in the six Tohoku prefectures on the official website and on social media, etc. Official Website : http://ikuze-tohoku.jp/ikuze2018-gohoubi/ (Available starting 14:00, November 6)

2) International Promotion The campaign will be promoted to foreign tourists through information on the official website, as well as further promotion of Tohoku winter attractions and Tohoku-related products in the Asian market especially, in collaboration with the Tohoku Tourism Promotion Organization, international airlines, etc. Official Website : http://ikuze-tohoku.jp/go-tohoku/ (Available starting 14:00, November 6)