Is Japan Open to Tourists?
Is Japan open for international individual travelers? Are borders open as normal in 2024? What are testing, face mask, and vaccine requirements for visitors? These are questions among those planning trips to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and this covers the answers.
The good news is that we now have an answer to questions we’ve been asking for nearly two years! First, after reopening to guided tour groups, Japan reopened to individual tourists on October 11, 2022. In the year-plus since, additional changes have occurred to the extent that it’s basically business as usual for visiting Japan in 2024.
We’ve already returned to Japan, spending about a month in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and elsewhere. In various updates here, we’ve been sharing our experiences and what it’s like as a foreign visitor, what has changed, crowd conditions, expenses of visiting Japan with the weaker yen, and much more. The big one for most of you is likely going to be Japan Face Mask Rules v. Reality in 2024.
Those two posts cover essentially everything you need to know about visiting Japan as of 2024. The short version is that it is possible to enter, regardless of whether you’re vaccinated or unvaccinated, albeit with a testing requirement for the latter. There are no quarantine requirements, and travel is visa-free for the vast majority of people reading this.
Please subscribe to our FREE email newsletter and stay tuned if you are curious about how things are on-the-ground for tourists in Japan post-reopening.
In terms of the latest news, the current vaccine and testing policies ended on May 8, 2023. This is because Japan has formally decided to downgrade the legal status of the novel coronavirus on May 8, 2023 to the same category as common infectious diseases, such as seasonal influenza, thereby easing COVID-19 prevention rules.
This is a major policy shift and will relax–if not eliminate entirely–Japan’s intensive COVID-19 countermeasures, including limiting the movements of infected people and their close contacts. Japan’s reclassification of COVID-19 to Class 5 came after a panel of experts under the health ministry agreed on the plan earlier in the day.
The downgrade would pave the way for a normalization of social and economic activities in Japan, and should mean that non-residents are able to enter the country without PCR tests or additional paperwork. Essentially, there will be no (legal) basis for the current border protocol effective May 8, 2023. Of course, things could change between now and then, but it’s likely the border will revert to late 2019 status as of that date.
We typically spend a couple of months in Japan each year, and are ecstatic to be returning after nearly 3 years away. We are eager to revisit our favorite places, see friends in Japan for the first time in over two years, and continue creating this site’s wealth of free planning resources. We’re excited about this great (but overdue) news, but also go in knowing that things will be different, in ways both good and bad.
For these two-plus years, we’ve been closely monitoring the situation in Japan, watching several hours of NHK each day and reading multiple Japanese news sources. All of this in the hope for some clarity as to when the country will fully reopen and Japan will begin allowing international tourists to enter once again.
What follows is based on that research and fixation with the on-the-ground situation in Japan. We’re preserving this for posterity, but everything that follows is now (thankfully!) obsolete information.
Japan is now allowing foreign nationals to enter Japan for purposes other than tourism so long as they have a sponsor in the country. This includes business travelers on short stays, students in study abroad programs, participants in technical internships, both guided & unguided tour groups, spouses or children (and other relatives) of a Japanese national/permanent resident, others with special exceptional circumstances, and those who would provide a “public benefit” to Japan.
With that in mind, let’s cover how we got here, why Japan maintains the strictest among the Group of Seven developed nations, and what could cause that to change…
Again and again, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said that Japan “will continue to consider how the measures should be by taking into account the infection situations at home and abroad, border control measures taken by other nations, and progress in the rollout of vaccine boosters.”
Kishida has also acknowledged that Japan’s border control measures are the strictest among Group of Seven nations, and expressed a desire/need to bring Japan in line with its counterparts. “This is the first step in our gradual easing of the [border] restrictions,” Kishida has said.
As for why Japan’s border is still closed over a year after most democracies reopened, that can largely be explained by the country’s apprehensiveness of outsiders.
For better or worse, Japan is an insular and culturally conservative country–a characteristic that is often valued by visitors. Not so much in the last couple of years, as this has been reflected in policy-making. Japan has vilified and scapegoated foreigners and had an overly aggressive approach to its borders.
Due to this and other policies, Japan has lagged behind economically, seeing slower recovery than the United States and other counterparts that have more aggressively reopened. Economic benefits of international tourists is one big reason why Japan is expected to reopen its border.
Boosting tourism was core to the late former Prime Minister Abe’s economic revitalization, and both subsequent prime ministers have indicated their intentions to maintain continuity with those plans. However, the number of foreign visitors to Japan dropped to 245,900 last year, the lowest since 1964, as the country enforced tighter border controls. Compared with the pre-pandemic level in 2019, it dropped 99.2 percent. That’s the sharpest fall on record according to the Japan Tourism Agency.
Economists fear a “double dip” recession in Japan due to the prolonged closures and restrictions. Decreased tourism plus falling exports, an increased consumption tax, reduced consumer spending, weak yen, and growing national debt. Japan’s economy has serious issues and inbound tourism was previously a bright spot.
In other words, reopening to international visitors will be important to the health of Japan’s consumption-driven economy at some point in the not too distant future. This becomes increasingly true as the yen weakens due to the Bank of Japan continuing to pursue its loose monetary policy while the United States Federal Reserve, European, and other central banks raise interest rates. Quite simply, Japan is inflicting pain on itself by remaining closed.
There are also signs that stringent travel measures, including the border closure, are having a greater impact on Japan’s economy than previously believed. This is despite Japan’s “Go to Travel” campaign that subsidized domestic travel, which was offered at various times during the last two years.
According to data from the Japan Tourism Agency, stays at hotels and other accommodation facilities hit another record low in Japan last year–breaking the previous record set in 2020. The total of guests at hotels and inns was 315.75 million, down 4.8% from 2020 and 47% from 2019. (This number includes hotels used as government quarantine facilities, not just leisure stays.)
The ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party recognizes these problems and realizes it needs to rebuild Japan’s economy. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated that his top priority was formulating new economic measures and implementing these goals. The government will also take measures to stimulate and jump-start the economy.
Despite the aforementioned numbers, Japan is maintaining its goal of attracting 60 million foreign visitors by 2030. Additionally, the Japan National Tourism Organization has set 2024 as its goal for recovering to 2019 international travel levels. Both of these statements are reassuring given the current border closures, and indicate that Japan will unwind its travel ban in months, not years.
Against that economic backdrop, let’s take a look at the latest changes to Japan’s reopening plans…
We have more good news! Multiple media outlets, including NHK, Kyodo, Nikkei, and Fuji TV are all reporting that Japan’s government is planning to further relax restrictions and border measures with an eye to implementing the revisions by the start of October.
The specifics are not consistent among outlets, so let’s start with where they’re in agreeance.
First, there is consensus that the daily arrival cap, which is currently set at 50,000, will be eliminated entirely.
This is a necessary prerequisite for further reopening and the resumption of more inbound international flights, but this alone was not an obstacle dissuading most international visitors. While the daily number of arrivals was higher pre-closure, we assumed that 50,000 is the level at which this cap becomes immaterial with China still sidelined. Regardless, it’s good to have this removed as it eliminates an element of uncertainty and could have been an issue during peak travel times for the Japanese.
Another possibility is that Japan will allow individual foreign tourists to enter the country and exempt them from visas if they have been vaccinated three times or submit a pre-arrival test result.
This is where there is disagreement among the major outlets. Kyodo, Nikkei, and NHK are reporting that this is to be determined, with government officials still deciding whether to proceed with this plan or start with lifting the daily arrival cap. By contrast, Fuji TV is treating this as a done deal, using less ambiguous language.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly plans to make a decision as early as the end of this week, according to the news outlets’ sources.
These “leaks” came after Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara spoke on Fuji TV over the weekend and stated that Japan will consider easing all three restrictions–the daily arrival cap, ban on individual tourists, and visa requirements. “We will review all three restrictions together. We have to carry it out in the not-so-distant future,” he said.
“Japan has seasonal attractions in fall and winter. We know there are a lot of people overseas who want to come to Japan,” Kihara added. “Amid the weakening yen, inbound travelers will have greatest economic effect…There are many foreign visitors who want to come visit Japan.” Kihara added that eliminating the arrival cap alone was not enough.
Kihara isn’t the only one who has been vocal about fully reopening to tourists recently. During the Bloomberg New Voices panel, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said she would open the country’s doors “tomorrow” if it were her decision. “Tourism is a big industry in Tokyo, as well as in all Japan, so this is the time to greet more foreign tourists by using this advantage of the depreciation of the yen,” she said.
Koike said that Japan’s borders would fully reopen soon. “The national border is under the management of central government,” Koike said. “As governor of Tokyo, that would be tomorrow.”
The yen has fallen to a 24-year low of ¥144 to the dollar, likely contributing to the sense of urgency in the aforementioned interviews.
Japan eased its border restrictions last week, raising the daily arrival cap from 20,000 to 50,000 and dropping the requirement for pre-arrival PCR testing for vaccinated travelers.
Japan also began allowing unguided tours, meaning ones not accompanied by tour conductors. This is specifically for “unguided tour groups” or “non-escorted visitors on package tours” and not individual tourists.
In Unguided Tours in Japan – Reopening Phase Rules, we cover what this entails and the recently-released guidelines and FAQ for these tours. Prior to those guidelines being released, we speculated on how this would work given basic logic and past precedent with prior groups who had been allowed to enter Japan. We were wrong–the unguided tours offered two steps forward but one step backwards.
We mention this in part to own past mistakes, but also as a cautionary tale. While it certainly sounds like the end is near for the Japan travel ban, it’s premature to have a high degree of confidence.
Kishida’s government has been trying to take advantage of the weak yen and accelerate growth by attracting more foreign visitors. It thus stands to reason that opening to individual tourists necessarily needs to occur–that raising the entry cap will do nothing in furtherance of their stated goal. However, as we have seen time and time again, the patently obvious conclusion often is not the outcome reached by Japan.
Moreover, how this played out with Japan’s last announcement is also instructive.
On August 23, specifics of the September relaxation measures were leaked to the same media outlets. At that time, it was unclear whether unguided tourists would be allowed to enter. On August 31, Kishida made an official announcement encompassing all of the rumored changes, including unguided tourists. (It took a few more days for the guidelines to be released, and the clarifying FAQ is still being updated.)
While presenting the above as a cautionary tale against optimism or over reliance on logic when assessing Japan’s decisions, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. (I’m sorry, I can’t help myself. Like a moth to a flame.)
First, there’s already the realization that unguided tours–like guided tours before them–will not move the needle on inbound tourism in any meaningful way. It’s another symbolic measure, and coming at a time when an increasing number of international visitors have already moved on to other destinations and pent-up demand has begun fizzling out. The number of people anxiously awaiting Japan’s reopening is shrinking, not growing.
Second, there’s awareness within the Kishida administration that the window of opportunity to reopen the border is closing. This is something we’ve pointed out in our best and worst case scenarios in prior updates, but there’s only a limited amount of time between waves.
Over two years into this, the seasonality of COVID transmission is well-established. Cases are currently in freefall and will continue decreasing next month before bottoming out sometime between late October and early November. There will be a winter resurgence. It could start as soon as late November, but is more likely in December.
Reopening to individual tourists in October presents minimal (political) risk and maximum (economic) upside. Public opinion polls show that most voters have already moved on from COVID to assorted scandals; the minority who still care will see no immediate increase in cases correlating with the border reopening.
Frankly, the miscalculation here by the Kishida administration is thinking that this will have an immediate impact on inbound travel. Those reading regular updates on Japan’s reopening are not representative of international travelers at large. Most people need months of time between booking and traveling; very few plan and take last-minute trips–especially international ones.
Obviously, the easing has to occur at some point and this lag will always play out, but the notion that this moves the needle for fall is misguided. Autumn is already a lost cause. At best, this helps with winter. More likely, the impact won’t be fully felt until next year’s cherry blossom season.
One wildcard is the downgrade of COVID’s legal status. Several recent updates have centered around Japan’s internal debate over whether to strip COVID-19 of its special status and downgrade it to the same level as the flu in Japan’s infectious disease categories.
It’s been our perspective that this was a necessary prerequisite to welcoming individual tourists as there would no longer be a need for a responsible receiving party to monitor travelers and act as a liaison for infected individuals. Given that none of the recent reports have even mentioned COVID’s status in regard to reopening, it’s possible our perspective was wrong. Or, that this barrier does still exist and Japan will have to create a “solution” for it (travel insurance?) for individual tourists. Either way, that’s something to continue keeping in mind.
Also as previously mentioned, recent poll data also shows the public is now far less concerned with COVID than the economy, Unification Church scandal, Abe’s state funeral, and other issues. It’s entirely possible that Kishida sees this polling and his sagging approval numbers and realizes that it’s time to move forward. That there’s more upside than downside risk in reopening and encouraging more economic activity.
As we’ve stressed repeatedly, Japan’s populace has been among the most cautious in the world with regard to COVID-19. Human behavior and sentiment don’t change overnight, even if it’s economically advantageous and objectively safer to do so. Statements by politicians and medical advisors, gradual border relaxation measures, and other changes could be interpreted as Japan laying the groundwork for a resumption of normalcy and the country’s eventual reopening. It now appears that the time is here–or coming very soon.
With all of this said, I’ll present my revised best, worst, and base-case scenarios for Japan’s reopening to individual tourists…
Let’s start with the best-case scenario. This assumes that Japan downgrades COVID-19 from its special status to Category 5 literally any day now or that this is not a necessary prerequisite to an individual tourist reopening. (With the possible workaround of travel insurance or some other awkward “fix.”)
Critically, this would eliminate the legal requirement of a responsible receiving party for visitors to Japan. In such a scenario, the borders could almost immediately return to their normal pre-closure status in early October. With this, the visa exemption would be reinstated, making that a non-issue. The arrivals cap would also be eliminated in this scenario.
Then there’s the middle ground or base case. This is now the same as the best-case scenario. In short, the early October reopening is not just our most optimistic view–it’s now what we expect to happen.
To differentiate the two, I’ll also allow for a middle ground possibility of a bifurcated decision with the individual tourist reopening a few weeks after the entry cap elimination. Let’s say that happens in early November.
This is would allow a bit of wiggle room for Japan’s slow and belabored decision-making process that involves a lot of “careful consideration” and “evaluating the situation.” If anything has been well-established during the last two-plus years, it’s that inaction is Japan’s baseline, and anything that does happen occurs gradually and in stages.
Finally, the worst-case scenario is that Japan instead opts to revive its “Go to Travel” campaign just in time for fall colors season, and uses that to buoy the tourism sector through December. It’s possible the country views this as sufficient for tourism businesses to stave off bankruptcy or other financial hardship for another few months.
If/when there’s another winter resurgence in cases, the reopening can would effectively be kicked down the road for a few more months. That would mean individual tourists would not be welcomed back to Japan until sometime in the first half of 2023. I’m inclined to say Spring 2023, but it’s easy to envision a worst-case that isn’t until summer.
Our view is that the worst-case scenario is now highly unlikely. Japan relaxed its border measures earlier in September while still being #1 in the world for new cases. This indicates that Japan is finally ready to move forward and sets the precedent for future changes during waves. Who knows–it still may take until early 2023 to fully downgrade the legal status of COVID. But whatever winter wave occurs (and one will happen), that’s unlikely to be an obstacle to reopening progress, as was the case last year.
With all of that in mind, we remain cautiously optimistic that individual tourists will be allowed to enter Japan sooner rather than later. The political and economic appetite for fully relaxation now clearly exists, and there’s a vocal chorus of politicians in Japan–including those who were previously in favor of closed borders–championing reopening. It’s now the popular position being advanced publicly by politicians, not just being advocated by Keidanren or Japan’s business lobby.
Japan fully reopening in full is all but inevitable at this point. It will happen soon. The end is near.
It’s thus our view that Japan reopening in some capacity to individual tourists in October is a very realistic scenario. As improbable as it might’ve seemed even a week ago, Japan welcoming back international visitors who are not part of tours (guided or unguided) sometime before November is likely. It’s pretty clear the government is focused on moving forward. As frustrating as this whole process has been, Japan is not still (completely) stuck in March 2020.
As always, Japan is cautious and conservative, with a slow and belabored decision-making process that often embodies “analysis paralysis” and usually defies logic. That’s a wild card that could further extend any timeline. However, Japan is now joining the rest of the world as people are ready to move on with life.
We’ll keep watching the news and keep you posted if/when there are further developments about Japan reopening and allowing entry to travelers from the United States, Canada, Europe, and beyond. Again, if you’d like to be notified as soon as more details are released or rumored, subscribe to our free email newsletter for ongoing updates and alerts:
If you’re planning a visit to Japan, our recommendation at this point is to target sometime in November at the earliest. In our view, koyo (autumn leaves) season is a good bet, and that takes place from mid-November through December. That’s simply a good time to visit Japan and, hopefully, the country will be open to individual tourists by then.
Speaking of which, check out our Japan Fall Colors Forecast & Autumn Foliage Viewing Guide to get started on planning your trip to visit Japan’s popular fall foliage cities, including Kyoto, Tokyo, Mount Fuji, Miyajima, Hiroshima, Himeji, and Nara. That also offers tips for avoiding crowds and strategy for visiting the best temples, shrines, and evening illuminations.
If you’re planning a trip to the Japan, check out our other posts about Japan for ideas on other things to do! We also recommend consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto and Ultimate Guide to Tokyo to plan.
Your Thoughts
Would you consider visiting Japan later this year, or is international travel out of the question for you anytime soon? How do you view the news about guided tours? Think those will stick around for several months, or are simply theater to shift public opinion? Think the need to adapt and live with the endemic virus will outweigh fear when it comes to Japan’s reopening plans? Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? If you’re planning your trip to Japan, what do you think about these itineraries? Any questions? Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments!
I guess some will complain no matter what happens, and that’s to be expected. Me, it’s going to be some time before I can afford to return to my beloved Japan, anyway, so I’m not nearly as fussed as some people are. I remember there were one or two guys on here a ways back ranting and trash talking about “seikoku” and “they hate us don’t give them your money,” and they were laughable at best. My opinion is, patience is a virtue and good things come to those who wait. Nothing against those of you who have family over there you’ve not seen in a long time, that’s well worth being upset about. For the rest of us who just want to go visit? We need patience more than ever, now, given Japan’s well documented agonizingly slow decision making process. Let’s not allow frustration to get in the way of being rational, folks.
Can you imagine this situation anywhere else ? Japan would be the first to scream racism if other G7 countries were closed for this long.
I haven’t read all comment but economically speaking there is no line telling about olympic games cancellation which made it even worse after heavy investing and new structure for it.
Japan doesn’t help itsef at all remaining enclosed that long.
Very antipode as usual.
https://t.co/HI9RQKhu5S
‘The government is also set to open Japan to more foreign tourists by allowing unguided tours — ones not accompanied by tour conductors’
Not entirely sure what that means, currently. At worst, entering with a group tour and allowing trips unaccompanied, potentially? I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.
My fear is that this means self guided tours will be allowed, i.e tours booked with a Japanese tour agency, with the tour agents taking liability for any positive covid cases, but let’s wait and see. It would be ridiculous if that ends up being true.
Perhaps I’m missing something, but I just can’t see “unguided tours” meaning anything other than “individual tourists”, to be honest with you…after all, “tourists” go on “tours”, don’t they? Surely if there were some convoluted system involved, they’d’ve made at least a passing mention…
No one wants to jump the gun and start celebrating early, myself included, but goddamn it, it’s never felt as tempting to do so as it does right now.
Everybody getting my hopes up too much for a February trip here! When I will only be disappointed when it’s some crazy non guided tour rule.
^Agreed, even in the Japanese original (添乗員なしのツアー) it just reads incredibly odd. How would a tour without a guide even work unless it’s organized by the individual traveler?
I find it unlikely to happen but this government has created such crazy constructs (the guided tours themselves) I wouldn’t be suprised.
I’m in the “low-term free visa” interpretation camp though.
引き続き、個人旅行は認めず、旅行会社などがスケジュールを管理し、感染者が出た場合の対応などについても、ガイドラインを守るよう求めるようしています。政府はこうした緩和を来月にも実施する方向です。
NHKニュース7
We will continue not to allow individual travel, and we will ask travel agencies to manage their schedules and follow the guidelines for dealing with infected people. The government intends to implement such easing as early as next month.
NHK News 7
I guess we’ll have to wait tomorrow, if it were the case, it’s a step in the right direction but not enough. People don’t want to be monitored 24/7. Especially when the same government is changing the case count.
Also, how a non-guided tour agency can be sure people are following the guidelines (the same guidelines, I recall, that none of the Japanese nationals are going to follow)? Wouldn’t be easier to ask for mandatory travel insurance?
At least they’re finally doing *something* though.
As I mentioned weeks (months?) ago, Japan is seeking to have a system installed for someone competent who is based in Japan to be responsible in case a foreign tourists contracts Covid while in Japan.
This is not concept of responsible as in “blame”, but to be responsible as in someone to manage any translation interaction, any medical treatment management, all quarantine arrangements, and any special transport involved.
This presumable next step for allowing such semi-independent tourists under the wing of a tour agency should be neither beyond comprehension nor unexpected… had anyone listened to me.
It also doesn’t make it any less ridiculous, and that was the point most people were trying to make.
Perhaps if it is only the tour agency submitting the ERFS, and you’re allowed to do what you like whilst in Japan, then people will take this up (if affordable), otherwise, it will end up being completely pointless.
AndyO, what a “coincidence” you come out now.
Sorry, but at times it looks like you *don’t want* anyone to get in, no matter how knowledgeable – and full of biases, I may add – you are.
Again, you said it has little to do with blame, but you’re dead wrong. Highly bureaucratic societies *need* complex system to shift the blame (examples: Japan, China, Italy). As long as all the boxes are ticked, everything is fine.
Also, explain to me, how the “unguided” is going to work. It’s not. And by that I mean the government will not have someone to shift the blame on and at the same time it won’t be able to track everyone.
Mandatory insurance would have been more useful. But I guess the weak PM doesn’t want to his sky high popularity to tank..oh wait.
Awe-inspiring. Looking forward to their tourism numbers after this second phase of their “grand reopening”. I’m sure that all of the newly-added flights will be packed to the gills with foreigners eagerly awaiting their 24/7 surveillance treatment. I know the ferries in Fukuoka go to Busan, but maybe they can add a long-distance route to Pyongyang as well?
^It is also economically completely senseless. I can’t imagine a lot of people are willing to pay a travel agency much money to arrange them a tour without a guide. Individual travelers have no interest in getting their schedule set by somebody else, while people who want to travel in a tour do not get the benefit of having a guide accompany and help them in their travel (so they will just stick to a guided tour).
In the end, I just can’t imagine that a lot of travel agencies would be willing to use their resources to put up such a scheme.
AndyO, you said it has little to do with blame, but you’re dead wrong. Highly bureaucratic societies *need* complex systems in order to shift the blame (examples: Japan, China, Italy). As long as all the boxes are ticked, everything is fine.
Also, explain to me, how the “unguided” is going to work. It’s not. And by that I mean the government will not have someone to shift the blame on and at the same time it won’t be able to track everyone.
Mandatory insurance would have been more useful. But I guess the weak PM doesn’t want to his sky high popularity to tank..oh wait.
K-Rin, there are many companies in Japan that have been doing exactly that for years, well before Covid. Its grown beyond a cottage industry in Japan to have most or even all of your time in Japan pre-arranged through a non-guided agency.
Arranging things in Japan is either time consuming to many people (especially if only coming for a week or two), or just plain impossible to do independently, especially if wanting something more than the over-trodden “Golden Route”. The language barrier, the lack of many inns or activities having even an e-mail contact, the complexity of trains and buses, and the utter lack of smooth manageability in most everything in the countryside for non-Japanese speakers…
There are several existing companies, with not that much of a mark-up, who’s whole business plan is to arrange an entire trip and save not just time, but probably allow people to go, see and do things unavailable if flying solo, especially if a first or second time visitor. But now they will just need to also be responsible for tending any Covid-related situations (mainly through the phone), so there will probably be a bit higher fee. But it all makes sense in the interim if only looking to give the still wary J-gov and health authorities and hotel owners some peace of mind so that they don’t have another Diamond Princess cruise incident.
Despite what the “experts” in bureaucracy say, it’s first and foremost a system made to blame someone (typical of high bureaucracy societies like Italy, Japan, and China).
Aside that, I can see it as easily exploitable, especially since it’s completely unclear what the “unguided” part means. So even the original objective may not be achieved.
I would argue that those types of tours are only popular with an older clientele. Now add in the increased costs, and that potentially checks will only be made over the phone.
How many people will just not test if they have mild symptoms, especially in the face of losing a ridiculously expensive trip?
Yes, I know this more about the appearance of checks and logistics being in place only, but to me, that makes it more indefensible.
I agree with AndyO. This is so befitting Japan so they will shift responsibility/blame to someone else COVID-wise and get to tell the world they are open for tourism. Despite all the online outrages and disbelief at the end of the Japan did whatever it wanted and got away with it 😊
Do a search for “Japan self-guided tours”. Lots and lots of options, with most being US$100-200 per day. And with many having focus on hiking, cycling, or “family”, they are not merely for the retired generation.
We’ve all heard the “Japan’s economy doesn’t rely THAT much on foreign tourism” line countless times before, so let’s not go down that rabbit hole this time, but whether they’ve “””gotten away with it””” or not, the fact of the matter is that their paltry efforts at a reopening are not bringing, and will not bring back the tourism numbers that once made for a rare bright spot in Japan’s dismal economic forecasts. Online detractors like us aside, Keidanren and the battered tourism industry will continue to pressure the government to actually stage a reopening that produces *results* — and awkward, paperwork-heavy and frankly demeaning “surveillance tours” are never going to accomplish that.
“or just plain impossible to do independently, especially if wanting something more than the over-trodden “Golden Route”. The language barrier, the lack of many inns or activities having even an e-mail contact, the complexity of trains and buses, and the utter lack of smooth manageability in most everything in the countryside for non-Japanese speakers…”
I don’t think that’s true really. If anyone finds that to be the case, they’re not putting in much effort. Japan has many excellent online resources, many of them in English too (eg HyperDia for public transport). As a non-Japanese speaker, I find Japan easier than some of the less developed countries in Europe to plan and navigate. It’s certainly one of the easiest Asian countries for an independent tourist. Car rental and driving is easy and always a smooth process so far. Convenient facilities can be found everywhere. Google translate is useful! And Google is widely used in Japan, so is useful for local place reviews etc.
Hey Gav,
FYI, Hyperdia downgraded their site a few months ago and no longer give timetables, just routes (with no train times).
I understand not knowing this if you haven’t been able to visit for a while, but case in point.
I agree with Gav that is easy to travel in Japan (I did it in 2008 knowing 0 Japanese), the “difficult” part is either a myth, or an excuse.
p.S: whoops, looks like I posted the same comment twice. I wrote and rewrote it and I thought it was simply lost…
AndyO, do you have any other “cases in point” other than Hyperdia shutting down? Because that was one weak response.
Google maps does a decent enough job to get by, mostly.
I know enough Japanese to get by nowadays, but I knew none of my first trip and got by fine. This was before I had a smart phone. As others have said, I’ve found other countries much harder to navigate than Japan.
I hate to say it, but I do wonder whether this PARTLY a scheme to earn some extra income for Japanese tourist agencies before a true reopening. It will backfire, regardless, as most western travellers will still be put off.
., I’d apply Hanlon’s razor, honestly:”Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.”
And maybe that is all they can do for now, without a change in the law or downgrade to Class 5 ?
I’m guessing this means we can finally write individual travel this year off? Seems like they are easing things slightly every three months but we could still be about 3/4 stages away from individual travel being allowed.
Jake, only one example was given by Gav, and it was specifically what I meant. There were no other cases to point out. Sorry to be so weak.
Yes, Japan may be indeed “easy” if looking to do the same thing as others, eat at the same spots, and stay at the same places. But I can assure you, if not knowing the Japanese language, then you are massively missing out on a lot. Not just accommodations and restaurants and transport options, but probably 75% of the countryside if not more.
Getting a car is perhaps the best (and easiest) way to experience Japan and I very much recommended it. But many people fear driving (in both Japan or abroad anywhere) or just simply don’t know how to drive. And for first time visitors, Japan is absolutely overwhelming, despite any claim of being “easy”. So having someone there to help arrange things and give support on a self-tour removes a major burden for many intimidated yet curious people (except, of course, for the apparently uber-savvy people who comment here).
Its also worth mentioning, for most Western visitors, Japan is a one-and-done country. So they want their trip to be as smooth, stress-free, and enjoyable as possible while also taking in and experiencing as much uniqueness as possible. This is why hiring a self-tour fixer has become popular.
Is it really a surprise the die hards commenting here find it easy?
You’re right, learning enough of the language has helped me with the niche things I do whilst in Japan immensely, but first timers generally all stick to doing the same touristy things, which have all been made massively easier to do over the past 10 or so years.
I mostly go to places I want to visit, regardless of their popularity (for example Ganryujima isn’t exactly a top destination among foreigners, as far as I know). And it isn’t – that – hard.
My father went in Japan in 1985 – at the peak of the bubble but when Japan wasn’t really a top tourist destination – and he managed to do what he wanted using gestures and limited English.
I still belive it’s a myth.
Andy all of this tour guide guided or not guided stuff means absolutely nothing to most people here as most here are people whom are wanting to visit people they are in a relationship with or friends. Which I’m guessing won’t be permitted on the guided or unguided tours.
I’m one myself who have big fear of driving so what makes a country easy or not to navigate is how public transport work in said country.
And Japan excels on that. It’s extremely easy to go wherever you want by all the thousand different rail systems existent across the country.
To me Japan is as easy to travel as most European countries and ofc much easier without a car than big countries like US, Australia…
入帰国時の陰性証明を不要にするとともに、1日の入国者制限2万人の緩和・撤廃、短期観光ビザの免除を検討する。
https://t.co/YEnJDyB2Wl
Obviously, don’t get your hopes up, but there are reports in the Japanese media of visa exemptions returning for short term tourists.
It’s definitely encouraging news especially when similar news / rumours are coming out all in one day, finger crossed!
https://www.bloomberg.co.jp/news/articles/2022-08-23/RH1R13T1UM0X01
As some of us were anticipating, cap will be raised.
One could be optimistic and say this is in preparation of something else but Taiwan, which is even more strict, announced almost at the same time (1 hour difference) the increase in cap to 50000 as well.
Too much of a coincidence, seems like they just followed each other in this one.
Hopefully they can explain how increasing the daily arrival cap will improve the current situation. As far as I can see, it just means more inbound flights for Japanese people to return on.
Foreign tourists won’t be able to take advantage of this change given the other border restrictions dissuading them from coming.
They might have a challenge explaining why the package tour requirement is the last border restriction in place after this.
the increase in cap as commented would only mean more Japanese returning, but as far as I know even the current daily 20,000 cap is not even fully utilized (by a big margin) at all, so hopefully they are looking at increasing cap PLUS other easing otherwise no point at all.
It’s also worth noting that this is coming in the midst of — and, critically, in *spite* of — the protracted peak of Japan’s most dramatic surge of coronavirus infections to date. The fact that they’re taking these actions at all at a time like this, in my opinion, speaks volumes as to the direction they’re going to take this once cases fall back down.
I would personally see this as a good sign for what to expect in the coming weeks and months.
If they don’t further relax rules for tourism this cap raising is meaningless. In July they had total arrivals of 144’500, which is less than 5’000 per day. So let’s see if this is just another senseless individual step in Japan’s path to reopening or indeed a sign of larger changes to come.
As other have pointed out, despite the details lacking, “leaking” this news at the time of the peak of the infections speaks volumes. I believe some (not all) in the government have given up in their mythical quest to “contain infections”.
It may not be very useful now, but the removal of the PCR test upon entry is important too. I’m pretty sure people like Tom can confirm how much of a problem it was for US until CDC dropped the requirement.
Agreed, zazza.
I went to Hawai’i in early 2021, and then Italy that summer — mandatory PCR tests were indeed a source of tremendous headache (Hawai’i required it upon arrival, and the USA required me to get a test to return home from Europe). The anxiety of testing positive, even when you’re completely asymptomatic, constitutes a huge uncertainty for any trip that will not be alleviated until the very last minute. And the more travellers in the party, the more chances for a wrench to be thrown into your plans.
I also had a friend almost not be able to head to Korea, just two months ago, because his CVS Pharmacy PCR test was unexpectedly delayed by two full days…he ended up needing to get a ludicrously expensive test at the airport as a last-second fallback, and needless to say, he wasn’t happy about it at all.
The elimination of this requirement feels like a major preparatory step to usher in a sense of border normalcy…I’m suddenly feeling a strange, wildly unfamiliar feeling today that I haven’t felt in years. Is this that thing they call “hope”? ROFL
In addition to more flights resuming next month and in October, travel stocks are up today across the board in early trading in Japan.
Analysts believe that more changes are going to be announced soon, beyond just the dropping of inbound testing and lifting of the cap, which are also rumored.
All per Bloomberg TV. I haven’t seen this covered online yet, but I’m looking around and will update the post if there’s anything more to this than just wishful thinking or irrational exuberance.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Japan-weighs-ending-pre-arrival-COVID-test-requirement
Here’s a similar story from Nikkei Asia.
I’m just glad they’re planning to make some changes given the last real change was the Jun 10 opening for group tourism
I was hoping to travel in March 2023 with my partner, for a 3 week tour around Japan. Flights, & hotels are available to book now, prices seem reasonable. Is it a high risk to book before the Government announce introduction of individual tourism.
If everything is refundable then yes, you should definitely book now. Prices will explode as soon as the country opens up.
Maybe short term there will be some price increase but actually they should fall and normalize quickly as more flights are added and things get back to normal. Keep FOMO in check.
There are a lot of people waiting to travel that have held out on booking, flights aren’t gonna be the issue but accomodation will definitely increase in price. We’ve seen that people are willing to pay significant markups no questions asked due to being unable to travel through COVID. I believe that price increases after a reopening will be significant, but I’m more then happy to be proven wrong.
Now I feel better for making hotel reservations so in advance (all refundable). My biggest issue is plane tickets because due to low budget I can’t pay the more expensive refundable ones so here’s hoping you’re right and flights don’t raise their prices once the country opens
https://t.co/E8aEzz7R80
Not sure I believe he can do anything promptly, but let’s wait and see. The next stage could just be something as simple as increasing the daily cap and getting rid of pre-departure testing, so I wouldn’t get your hopes up too much yet.
He did say ‘accelerate’ the rolling out of changes. So here is hoping changes come bigger and quicker than before. It could be his Covid fever talk though.
Let’s all not forget the “immediately” from the government advisory panel.
It took them 3 weeks to start proceeding with the immediately.
Thank you for the information. Very helpful. I plan to visit Japan end of April for two weeks. Hopefully Japan will ease its restriction by then.
Kishida tested positive today.
Another proof nothing of what was done up to now helped in any way.
OMG I hope he recovers asap. Please join me in prayer.
Let’s hope his case is mild. Would help the public see that COVID won’t necessarily kill you…
It’s likely. AFAIK, he’s not in the at risk category.
Two elements to this that could be used by Japan’s government send a message to the public that it’s time to move on and learn to live with COVID:
1) Kishida was infected despite having his fourth booster ~10 days ago and supposedly taking all precautionary measures.
2) Kishida already going back to working despite being infected.
Unfortunately, too many people are so entrenched in their beliefs that they’ll simply react to this information as confirming their prior viewpoints. (E.g. “It would’ve been so much worse if Kishida weren’t just boosted and masked–that’s what enabled him to return to work so quickly.”)
In and of itself this isn’t proof of anything, but if public support is down because cases remain high that doesn’t look good for further reopening.
I think at this point the number of covid cases is the last reason of Kishida support being so low.
If anything, the government refusing to reclassify as class 5 is a bigger issue.
There are a lot of stuff going on in Japan while Kishida keeps considering, like the Unification Church issue, the vast economic issues, the controversial Abe funeral, the thing about ppl doing multiple PCR tests to win stuff and so on
From what I could see from the polls etc, the Unification Church issue seems the biggest issue, not the virus. The reshuffle was supposed to help even for that point, but apparently it backfired.
The Unification Church “scandal” and Abe’s state funeral are definitely overshadowing COVID numbers at this point and are far bigger drivers. (According to a survey by the Mainichi Shimbun, Kishida’s approval fell to 36% from 52% a month ago, with 87% saying that LDP ties to the church were at least something of a problem.)
Who knows what, if anything, that means for the border. I could see Kishida wanting to juice the economy and seeing this as one way to do that with minimal downside…or fear further losing support and not doing anything at all.
From TV Asahi today;
https://twitter.com/hst_tvasahi/status/1560980828330414080
“The government plans to carefully consider further easing after proceeding with discussions on “knowing the total number” of infected people.”
Not really news, but it seems as if the next stage of easing may not rely on a full reduction of classification.
I believe the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare said they were “promptly” going look at doing this yesterday. Seems like there’s still hope for a reopening this year, in my opinion.
Let’s dare to dream. I think I read that you have a November flight booked as well, “.” — I hope we’re both able to head to the country as presently planned.
The next step of their slow af consideration will prob be the removal of PCR test for foreigners as well, maybe the removal of the color system?
I still think the reopening to individual tourists is linked to the reclassification but let’s see.
There isn’t really much else they can “ease”. Visa exemption would automatically mean return of individual tourists. Keeping visa mandatory but dropping group tours requirement would also mean return of individual tourists.
I can’t think about what other possible stage we can get besides removal of PCR. Close contact rules? lol
Leo, You never knows what Japanese can do on grey areas, they are doing great on these kind of things. if they want to, the further ease will be from September, government won’t need to keep eyes on group tours anymore, means people can travel within Japan “freely”. and I’m not surprise Japanese and their goverment can make it happen this way. This is in their genes.
Removing the pcr test requirement won’t improve tourism numbers if that is the next restriction removed. Remove the package tour requirement and leave everything as is would be a good next step
Hi, I’m getting married in march 2023, my wife and I are planning on visiting Japan for our honey moon around mid march 23′. I’ve been keeping a close look to this blog’s updates as I’m hesitant wether to wait for Japan’s reopening or change our plans completely. I’m setting October as our limit to decide as I will need to start buying plane tickets and booking hotels. Any opinions on this dilema? Thanks!!!
Nobody knows anything, even the most educated guess is still a guess at the end, i think waiting until the end of october to make a choice would be very reasonable as i cant imagine a reopening happen in the winter and in the midst of another wave. But still im guessing
Agree with person (Tom also thinks this)
If no move towards reopening to individual tourists is made until the end of October then I think we can all agree that no move will be made until the end of February, putting your honey moon plans at very high risk.
But wait until October ends.
Japanese media recently is surprising changing their tone regarding the border measures, critizicing them, putting emphasis on how strict they are and how the tourists are just not returning, and even setting possible dates like early October for the mass return of tourists “to enjoy the autumn leaves in Kyoto”.
I’m getting optimistic again after such media coverage because we saw what happened with students once the media started touching the issue.
Ofc we don’t know how the further easing will look like but it seems unlikely at the moment we will get through September without some very important changes.
I’d add that this media coverage is occurring as cases are hitting new daily record numbers. Yet, there’s just as much emphasis on economic consequences as the case numbers. We saw a similar shift in the US last year–when the media moves on, so too do people. (Heck, I’ve seen as much coverage of the Olympics and Unification Church scandals recently as COVID.)
With regard to your honeymoon, Humberto, another thing to consider is what kind or quality of trip you want to have. I will eagerly return to Japan as a long-term visitor knowing that some degree of health safety theater and passive-aggressive xenophobia are going to be facts of life for the next couple years. I’m not sure I’d feel the same way if it were my honeymoon. To each their own, though!
This news quotes Delta saying it is having more flights to Japan due to “anticipation of relaxed travel restriction”. Maybe they know something? Or they are just hoping and want to sell tix first?
https://japantoday.com/category/features/travel/delta-adding-more-flights-between-japan-and-u.s.-in-anticipation-of-relaxed-travel-restrictions
I also saw news about New Zealand airline and others announcing adding or restarting flights to Japan between Oct to Dec.. Good sign?
I received a similar email from ANA this morning with more routes and daily service starting up from LAX next month.
We’ve been down this road before and have been burned, but it still gives me optimism. Just need the daily case numbers to start falling so the government feels like it can make a move…
Funny timing, Just received a ANA survey today, asking questions like, How likely would you come to Japan if restrictions changed to match other countries you recently visited.
Maybe just my and airlines’ wishful thinking.. but I have a Nov booking (re-re-rebooking) and hope it eventuates this time..
British airways also confirmed their November schedule this month.
Currently, the Heathrow to Haneda route is scheduled to be completely back to normal in November. 2 JAL flights, 1 BA flight, and 1 ANA daily. Can’t see them needing either the BA or 2nd JAL flight unless something major changes.
When is the next regular Diet session scheduled to begin ? Because it won’t open before that.
@”.”, that’s not completely back to normal for the Heathrow routes. Before the pandemic there were two BA flights departing Heathrow daily to Tokyo Haneda (BA5 and BA7). BA5 used to be NRT but switched to HND not long before the pandemic. Both BA flights appear daily on the schedule as normal from 26th March 2023 – subject to change of course!
I was booked onto BA5 in January, but my flight was cancelled recently.
My bad, didn’t realise the Narita one got changed to Haneda. I usually go for the early JAL flight. My BA5 flight for November is still currently scheduled, they actually recently rescheduled the flight time by two hours, but I can’t imagine it going ahead if something isn’t changed. Whenever I’ve flown with BA there is a lot less Japanese passengers compared to the Japanese airline flights, and they aren’t filling a plane with only business and group tourism passengers!
https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/national/20220816-OYT1T50190/
Looks like the Governors are asking modification to some rules (counting, if I read it correctly) before the wave ends.
A bit unusual pressure for this, I’d say.
Looks like today it’s being reported that they’ve confirmed they will review the counting of cases before the wave ends.
There was a rumour presented on Japanese TV today that border measures will be abolished sometime in September if cases are low enough. It wasn’t very specific but I assume this will be for Japanese residents and visa holders only, so maybe it relates to testing and the daily caps, but perhaps if it does happen, the next stage for tourists isn’t too far off.
https://twitter.com/nyukoku_news/status/1559460103035559936?t=IYc8gKbm1Clcm4R-_l99LA&s=19
Oh, apparently they did talk about foreign tourists. Late September/October rumour.
I wouldn’t give this much thought if it was a twitter only rumour, but being on TV gives it a little more weight.
That actually sounds quite promising, considering very little has been said at all. Fingers crossed for my 18th October flights
It looks like they are at least a bit anxious to get these new measures in place before the next wave.
Yeah, I’ve read that too, it was reported along the removal of PCR tests for Japanese nationals (done with 0 fanfare).
That also fits perfectly with that JATA schedule from way back then.
Maybe that’s what they are aiming for. A little way too good to be true but let’s see.
We want to travel to Japan for our (British) son’s wedding to his Japanese fiancée in October this year. I have put together all the required documents. However we need to go in person to the Japanese Embassy in London and I am unable to make an online appointment. Apparently all the appointments are booked up 3 weeks ahead and when I went on the website at midnight as instructed I was unable to select a date. Can anyone help with this? Thank you.
Kara, I have a spare visa appointment for Thursday 18th @ 3pm, would this help? I can send via email if so. It’s not linked to my name, anyone can use it.
Kara, looks like you’ve touched lucky with reply from ‘London’. Stupid system as if you manage to get an appointment it is not linked to any name . A number , date and time appears. Must be quite a few don’t turn up , for whatever reason , but as there is no link to their name then no incentive to cancel.
When you finally hand your forms in you then have to go through the whole routine of making another appointment to collect the visa .
My wife and I will be handing in our forms next week ( having managed to get an appointment after making quite a few midnight attempts )
Now we’re keeping our fingers crossed that we avoid any train strikes .
Kara, worth joining the Japan Society North West page on Facebook .Few people on there in similar situation ( ie wanting to visit relatives in Japan) . Been a couple of posts recently .
We had the same problem, but if you ring up the Embassy (Visa Section) they will advise you of time slots due to cancellations. We found them to be quite helpful and we managed to get a reasonable a time slot.
Kara B have you had any luck?
We phoned up recently and got a same day appointment.
Please persevere as we have found the Visa team in London to be very helpful.
https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/politics/20220815-OYT1T50203/
Looks like Kishida has finally asked for the review into reduction of coronavirus categorisation to take place. No doubt it will take way longer than necessary to reach the conclusion that the majority of the rest of the world has.
We will see how long it takes for implementation, but this statement is really no different than what he said two weeks ago would happen once cases started to come down.
Definitely, it’s just nice to see him actually initiate something for a change.
I think the major changes (reclassification, border measures…) will happen only after that Fall diet.
We might get some minor ones before like what just happened (Japanese people don’t need a PCR test when returning if they get one 72 hours before departure)
It’s always that slow and painful step by step change.
It feels like they’ve already gone through several layers of consideration, reviewing and mulling on the downgrading issue. I’ve been reading articles like this for weeks/months.
@Gav It’s a very impactful change if you think about, so for someone as coward and inept as Kishida u would expect him to hold on to consideration as much as possible, and be very afraid of being the one responsible for it.
When you put together the traditional Japan slowness + Kishida cowardness, we get what we are seeing this entire pandemic. It’s like 2 layers of thought process that every single thing have to go through.
When you get through the first layer (public opinion, politics and media), you have an extra layer that’s where the reclassification sits right now, so he had the balls to finally at least say something, but we are yet to see any actions, of course.
Most of Japan agrees with a reclassification at this point.
But Kishida and LDP remain afraid.
Finally, even in Japan, are appearing articles that question the current measures regarding the impact on the younger generations.
Japan, like the rest of the world, during this pandemic hated children and young people. Late as usual, but it’s reassuring to see someone is realizing what damage has been done.
A brief question in case anybody knows before I start scouring the internet myself: When entering Japan using a visa for business purposes, is there a restriction on movement within the country (i.e. stuck to a specific business-relevant itinerary submitted in advance), or is it possible to tack on a week or a few days for private purposes after the business purpose has been concluded?
Looks at this thread for more info:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan/2083603-can-business-traveler-enjoy-some-tourist-time.html
Essentially, there’s no movement restrictions but if something happened to you while you were doing something completely non-business related (arrested, hospitalised etc), it may reflect badly on your business partner who invited you. But realistically it sounds like it’s not an issue.
That was a useful link, thanks!
you have no drip