How to make visiting and attending the Setouchi Triennale easier for foreign visitors?

Everything is pretty much in the title: “How to make visiting and attending the Setouchi Triennale easier for foreign visitors?“

Let’s develop a little.

Last week, I had a fascinating meeting with one of the people in charge of international public relations and such at the Setouchi Triennale Executive Committee. He also takes care of online things (official site, social media and such).

We talked and brainstormed about ways to facilitate foreign visitors’ stay in Kagawa and especially their visit of the Setouchi Triennale. We tried to inventory and discuss the various issues and needs that foreign visitors – especially Westerners – may have regarding visiting the Triennale, as those are not always the same as the ones Japanese visitors or other Asian visitors have.

While the number of visitors from the “West” (roughly Europe, North America, Australia and a few more countries) is still very small (most foreign visitors obviously come from neighboring countries, namely South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong), it’s getting bigger every three years. The goal is to obviously make these numbers grow more, without changing the festival’s nature and goals (it’s out of the question to turn the area into a mass tourism destination, for example).

It is a challenge, indeed. One we discussed for a good part of the afternoon the other day.

While I do have my own ideas on the topic, as well as some experience, whether it’s my own or feedback and questions I got from people over the years, I’d like to gather more opinions and ideas about the issue.

This is where, you, regular readers, as well as people who randomly stumbled upon these lines (a piece of advice, before you go any further, you should subscribe to the blog, you won’t regret it) have a part to play.

If you have already visited the Setouchi Triennale (this year or the previous ones), or simply if you’ve already visited the Setouchi islands even if it wasn’t during the festival, your opinion and experience is of interest to me.

Or maybe you haven’t been here yet, but you are planning a trip for this summer or this fall?

In any case, what were the issues you encountered? What are the things you would have liked to find in order to help you make your stay better and your visits easier? Did you have trouble finding the information you were looking for? Is there anything that is there but you don’t find that useful? Any feedback is welcome.

If I can ask you a favor, try to be as precise as possible (concrete examples are welcome), and to keep in mind that this post is about gathering information from you.
I’m always happy to help people who have questions about the Setouchi region (it’s the reason this blog exists), but here, it’s about you helping me. 😉

Ok, if you arrived here looking for answers, I would advise you to first check out this page and the official site, and if you still haven’t found what you’re looking for, do not hesitate to ask. 🙂

Also, keep in mind that this is about what the Festival Executive Committee can do to improve foreign visitors experience, so let’s stay realistic. No, they can’t change the train schedules or force owners of local minshukus to suddenly become bilingual.

So, with all that being said, it’s your turn to speak and tell me about your experiences, issues and wishes in the comments.

Thanks in advance.