为了吸引更多游客并为其提供更好的服务，日本观光厅将邀请一百名母语为英语、汉语和韩语的游客游览日本几个主要城市，并请他们就如何在使用公共交通、入住当地酒店以及在当地餐馆就餐等方面为游客提供更多便利贡献建议。在过去几年间，日本一直努力在主要城市提供多语种服务，但服务目的并不明确，而且英语仍为主导语种。据日本国家旅游局预测，赴日旅游的中国游客今年有望达到150万，而且很多都是打算在日本购买电子产品及其他商品的高购买力游客。此次邀请外国游客游览日本，就是想要从游客的角度了解各个主要城市旅游接待的状况，并做出相应改善。据悉，此次受邀的游客有可能从网络上招募，也有可能会邀请在日本学习的留学生的家人赴日旅游；在日本游览的所有费用全部由观光厅承担，赴日的部分机票也可能在报销之列。

Japan is planning to recruit dozens of foreigners to visit the country and give advice on how to make things more travel-friendly for non-Japanese speaking visitors.

Japan is planning to recruit dozens of foreigners to visit the country and give advice on how to make things more travel-friendly for non-Japanese speaking visitors even as it aims for higher tourist numbers.

The government will pay travel allowances to about 100 native English, Chinese and Korean speakers to visit key cities and come up with ideas on how to make it easier for travelers to use public transport, stay at local hotels and eat at local restaurants, said an official at the Japan Tourism Agency.

Although Japan has made an effort to provide information in other languages in recent years, especially in major cities, these remain hit-or-miss and English still dominates.

But Japan's National Tourism Organization projects that the number of visitors from China will reach a record 1.5 million this year, many of them high-spending tourists eager to shop for Japanese electronics and other goods.

"What we hear is that there really isn't enough information on things like how to buy train tickets, or how to use the baths in traditional Japanese inns," said the official.

"It's hard for us Japanese to judge how prepared different parts of the country are -- we need people to use as monitors who really don't know Japan at all."

The official said one way to recruit these travelers could be over the Internet but that they would look at other methods such as asking the relatives of foreign students studying in Japan.

All expenses within Japan will be paid by branch offices of the Transport Ministry, which oversees the Tourism Agency. Part of plane fares to Japan may also be covered.

The information will be compiled by the government as part of a survey of tourism preparedness by late March next year.

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(Agencies)

Vocabulary:

hit-or-miss: dependent upon or characterized by chance, 无计划的，无目地的

（中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑）