Workation: 'Bleisure' faces hurdles in Japan despite popularity and official push

Mr Hiraku Ono, who works for Fujitsu, said he could focus on remote tasks during his work. PHOTO: COURTESY OF HIRAKU ONO
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TOKYO - The idea of combining work with vacation had existed in Japan even before the remote work boom spurred by Covid-19, though the pandemic has led Tokyo to promote workations as a way to prop up the battered tourism industry.

Workations, also known in Japan as "bleisure" or a portmanteau of "business" and "leisure", have been offered by progressive firms like Unilever Japan since 2016 and Japan Airlines since 2017.

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