Amami Oshima Island, Kagoshima Prefecture, is expected to develop new types of tourism in the future because of increasing momentum toward its selection as a natural UNESCO World Heritage site and the introduction of low-cost carrier (LCC) flights to its airport. Accordingly, a further increase in the number of tourists and the expansion of its customer base are forecast. This study considers the transition of the relationship between tourism and accommodations in Amami to form a basis for establishing sustainable tourism in the future.
First, we divided the research periods into four categories in terms of the transition to the types of tourism in Amami, and then clarified the characteristics of each and named them as follows:
Period of Southern Island Tourism (Period I: 1970–1984): Amami was expected to function as a marine recreation base, and it conveyed the image of being the “Southern Island” prior to the recognition of its unique culture.
Period of Envisaging a Tropical Resort (Period II: 1985–1994): Despite the image of having a tropical culture, Amami leadership were aware of the resort development happening in Okinawa and therefore focused on golf courses and resort development.
Period of Diversification in Tourism (Period III: 1995–2010): Against a background the diversification of consumer needs, there was a successive promotion of experience-based tourism utilizing resources such as forests, culture, marine leisure, and the improvement of tourism facilities.
Period of Promotion for Inscription on the Natural World Heritage Site List (Period IV: 2011–2018): The leadership of Amami wanted their island to become a natural World Heritage site and a unique tourist destination. Therefore, they expanded the island’s customer segments and tourist areas through the introduction of LCC flights.
It can also be said that this change might be taken as a multilayered approach regarding the image and the activity of the island’s tourism offerings or as a diversification of the style of the stay.
Next, the following content regarding the transition of accommodations in Amami were clarified, focusing on the number, type, and location.
(1) The change in the number of accommodations has certain characteristics in each area.
(2) Focusing on the types of accommodations, the ratio of “guesthouses and resort inns” accounted for more than 50% of the total from around 2000.
(3) Regarding the location of the accommodations, from 1970 to 2000, the number of accommodations decreased; they had been concentrated in central cities such as Naze and Koniya. After 2000, guesthouses and resort inns began to appear in northern Tatsugo, Uke Island, and Yoro Island.
(4) Among the recent accommodations, the small-sized ones account for about 80% of the total. We have noted some unique facilities, such as those offering tourists a simulated experience of living on the island.
As mentioned above, this research concerned the introduction of diversified tourism activities, such as nature experiences, cultural experiences, and the expansion of the area where the accommodations locate by considering the relationship between the tourism trends and accommodations in Amami from 1970 to 2018.
