ABSTRACT
Work-group ‘comfort travel’, called ian ryokou, shaiin ryokou, shokuba ryokou or shanai ryokou, was a practice of corporate Japan most popularly undertaken by white collar employees in the 1950s and 1960s, but it continues to the present day. It involves company workers travelling together to hot springs resorts in places like Atami near Tokyo. Infrastructure supporting the activity was developed in the 1920s, and Takayanagi describes Atami becoming a popular hot springs resort after 1925 when a road was constructed into the area. Its popularity escalated after 1934 when a new tunnel made the road even more easily travelled. The practice of ian ryokou became so popular in the high growth era that, in March 1966, the Asahi Shimbun felt moved to offer its readers tips on how to stay safe during the travel. This advice was offered because there had been a fire at a hot springs resort earlier that month that had left thirty men dead.
