Sanjuroichi, Cat Lord of Bitchū Matsuyama Castle, in Takahashi, Okayama Prefecture, surveying the ticket office (Photo: Johan R. Edelheim).

The Hokkaido Summer Institute (HSI) 2021 course "Feline Tourism: The wonders of travelling to cats, travelling for cats, cats that are travelling, and cat hospitality" was held between June 28, 2021, and July 9, 2021, as part of the Hokkaido Summer Institute (HSI). This is the first time that a course on this topic was organized at the HSI. The course was conceived as part of the field of Tourism Studies. Tourism Studies is an interdisciplinary field that is crucial to understanding how tourism shapes diverse facets of culture, society and economics; its significance has become all the more apparent in this era of the pandemic, which has adversely affected tourism.

The course was meticulously planned and organised. 20 students enrolled in the course, and every one of them was sent a print version of a detailed study guide for the course. The course was conducted over eight 90-minute sessions, including the introductory session and the final student presentations. Student engagement was aligned with regular visual assignments which were incorporated into the sessions. [MORE]