New Zealand is finally open for business. This is where there is disagreement among the major outlets. In other words, reopening to international visitors will be important to the health of Japans consumption-driven economy at some point in the not too distant future. Ive missed it so much. The good news is that we now have an answer to questionsweve been asking for nearly two years! Japan reopens: Heres what to look forward to in 2023, Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions (MICE), Destination NaJomtien BanAmphur BangSaray *NEW*, *NEW*, Affordable Luxury in Thailand by Centara Hotels, Rising Above the Oridinary by Conrad Bangkok, Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), 5 reasons why traditional travel protection is obsolete, 5 reasons why Cross Hotels & Resorts is APACs hotel operator of choice, Wake up at the magnificent Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions). We mention this in part to own past mistakes, but also as a cautionary tale. Call 81 3 3201 3331. Hi Tom and THANK YOU for everything this platform had AND still has to offer! Thanks for all the updates and helpful info during this stressful and hard time, Tom!! Japan has resumed its visa exemption scheme for short-stay tourism and business travel. 216. Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) looks forward to welcoming individual inbound travellers back to Japan with the long-awaited lifting of entry restrictions. Its now the popular position being advanced publicly by politicians, not just being advocated by Keidanren or Japans business lobby. Tour groups from 98 countries, including Australia, can now visit the country - but only if they wear masks, have . Japan House exhibition running until the end of January 2023, opening 29th Sep, focusing on woodwork in Hida, Takayama. Japan: A deep-fried pork . May 18 - Japan is Reopening for Tourism to 4 Countries on May-end On Tuesday, May 17, government officials announced that Japan will accept some tourists from the U.S., Australia, Thailand, and Singapore on a trial basis starting at the end of this month. js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly plans to make a decision as early as the end of this week, according to the news outlets sources. |. It now appears that the time is hereor coming very soon. Reopening to individual tourists in October presents minimal (political) risk and maximum (economic) upside. Its thus our view that Japan reopening in some capacity to individual tourists in October is a very realistic scenario. The ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party recognizes these problems and realizes it needs to rebuild Japans economy. Speaking of which, check out ourJapan Fall Colors Forecast & Autumn Foliage Viewing Guideto get started on planning your trip to visit Japans popular fall foliage cities, including Kyoto, Tokyo, Mount Fuji, Miyajima, Hiroshima, Himeji, and Nara. Prefer a couple of nights in a location rather than one night stays, possibly use a location as a central point for a couple of stays 3. As governor of Tokyo, that would be tomorrow.. Mon 10 Oct 2022 23.22 EDT Last modified on Tue 11 Oct 2022 07.34 EDT Japan has fully opened its doors to visitors after more than two years of pandemic isolation. 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. Ive been following since the very beginning and only started actually posting at the very end, but I want you to know how grateful I am that your blog existed as truly the gold standard for Japan-related travel blogs throughout the pandemic. The National Museum of Scotland is currently hosting an exhibition on contemporary Japanese design until 5th March 2023, and Stonehenge will host an exhibition on stone circles and the prehistoric sites of Jomon Japan from 30 Sep 2022 until August 2023. Just booked my accommodation/flights/insurance/rail pass for a 22 day trip to Hiroshima, Fukui, Kanazawa, Nagoya and Osaka! Read on to find out more! Second, theres awareness within theKishida administration that the window of opportunity to reopen the border is closing. The big one for most of you is likely going to beJapan Face Mask Rules v. Reality in 2023. May 6, 2022. This is sad fact, though. Like a moth to a flame.). In our view, koyo (autumn leaves) season is a good bet, and that takes place from mid-November through December. The infection situation has been stabilizing in Japan and the government will consult with public health experts before reviewing the country's . These are questions among those planning trips to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and this covers the answers. At that time, it was unclear whether unguided tourists would be allowed to enter. Thats simply a good time to visit Japan and, hopefully, the country will be open to individual tourists by then. In various updates here, weve been sharing our experiences and what its like as a foreign visitor, what has changed, crowd conditions, expenses of visiting Japan with the weaker yen, and much more. Thatll help you prepare for arrival, and potentially save time at the airport. As borders are reopening, Japan is finally seeing some improvements in its travel performance, according to the latest update of the Skift Travel Health Index. . 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. Despite a sharp fall in the yen, just 120,400 visitors entered Japan in June, fewer than in May and April when borders were still closed, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization. TOKYO, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Japan will maintain its tight entry restrictions to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus until the end of February, the prime minister said on. Elsewhere, the star-studded Super Mario movie (name TBC) will be opening in cinemas in April 2023, and a film adaptation of popular video game Ghost of Tsushima is in the works. Against that economic backdrop, lets take a look at the latest changes to Japans reopening plans. Beloved for its unique mix of vibrant urban culture and natural beauty, the country is lifting its tight regulations on foreign tourists, according to a tweet Thursday from Taro Kono, Japan's . Spending another night in Okinawa for the 55th stay of my ongoing 87-day adventure across Japan, I absent-mindedly typed the letter J into my web browser, only to have this article come up as the first suggestion. Here are all the details on visa-free travel, vaccination and Covid test requirements. These measures are long-awaited news for tourists around the world who have been looking forward to visiting Japan. TRAVEL NEWS, JOBS & EVENTS! WHO urges countries to keep borders open as world races to contain Covid variant. However, Japan remains one of the few major economies with significant restrictions on travel still in place, including a cap on visitor numbers. Thank you Tom for providing us a platform to discuss thing amidst all the confusing developments and giving us updates. The national border is under the management of central government, Koike said. Ill be sticking around for the future updates and travel guides. First, after reopening to guided tour groups, Japan reopened to individual tourists on October 11 of last year. so its confirmed Thanks so much Tom. On October 11, Japan will finally open its doors to independent travel following more than two years of some of the world's toughest border restrictions. Japan reopened its borders to holders of long-term visitor, business or student visas on 1 June 2022, as well as to tourists on authorised package tours. Unlike the ever-sensational, click-hungry news, it was immediately clear whether something had actually happened (and thereby I could close out of the tab without being sucked into the latest round of Corona-related doom and gloom), and unlike virtually any other Japan-centric community Id encountered so far, it was a positive and generally healthy environment with a pleasant, level-headed and responsible leader at its helm. Its entirely possible that Kishida sees this polling and his sagging approval numbers and realizes that its time to move forward. On Tuesday, the country. 2023 when Japan is scheduled to downgrade the categorization of the virus. Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile. Updated on Oct 29, 2021 01:32 PM IST While other Asian countries are inching toward reopening, Japan's borders will likely remain shut for some time to come. This is something weve pointed out in our best and worst case scenarios in prior updates, but theres only a limited amount of time between waves. Moreover, how this played out with Japans last announcement is also instructive. It could start as soon as late November, but is more likely in December. There are no quarantine requirements, and travel is visa-free for the vast majority of people reading this. Japans Ministry of Foreign Affairs has offered new guidance that were covering inJapan Reopening to Individual Tourists: FAQ, Rules & Guidelines. What are testing, face mask, and vaccine requirements for visitors? I wish you all the best with your upcoming tripsthanks again for everything. May its borders remain open forevermore. On August 31, Kishida made an official announcement encompassing all of the rumored changes, including unguided tourists. With all of this said, Ill present my revised best, worst, and base-case scenarios for Japans reopening to individual tourists, Lets start with the best-case scenario. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. 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. 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. I have been to Japan many times pre-covid, and I am now going again this year late October. In short, the early October reopening is not just our most optimistic viewits now what we expect to happen. March 2023 Japan is finally open! 23/02/2023. Some events and . Its possible the country views this as sufficient for tourism businesses to stave off bankruptcy or other financial hardship for another few months. South Korea eased its border controls on visitors from China early this month, which China welcomed. The endisnear. Essentially, there will be no (legal) basis for the current border protocol effective May 8, 2023. Kishidas government has been trying to take advantage of the weak yen and accelerate growth by attracting more foreign visitors. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon. Multiple media outlets, including NHK, Kyodo, Nikkei, and Fuji TV are all reporting thatJapansgovernment is planning to further relax restrictions and border measures with an eye to implementing the revisions by the start of October. To say it one last time cheers, Tom. Crowds not a problem. Thanks to everyone in here in the comments for that! More information can be found here . JNTO President SEINO Satoshi commented: The Japanese government has, at last, announced the resumption of individual travel for tourism purposes, visa waivers, and the elimination of the daily arrival cap. Regardless, its 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. ), While presenting the above as a cautionary tale against optimism or over reliance on logic when assessing Japans decisions, thats exactly what Im going to do. Okushibu The nickname given to Deep Shibuya, this secluded strip around Yoyogi and parallel to the new rooftop Miyashita Park, has seen an explosion in late night caf culture, unique eateries and flower shops. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Japan fully reopening in full is all but inevitable at this point. Yes, Japan's borders are now open to all international tourist travel.. Japan has completely removed the entry cap on daily foreign arrivals.. Additionally, all visa exemptions have now been reinstated.This means that citizens of around 70 countries, including the United States and all European Union nations, can once again visit Japan for 90 days without a visa . A Hong Kong women's rights group cancelled a demonstration at the last minute on Saturday after police said violent groups might want to join the protest. For better or worse, Japan is an insular and culturally conservative countrya characteristic that is often valued by visitors. Were excited about this great (but overdue) news, but also go in knowing that things will be different, in ways both good and bad. It remains unknown when independent travelers will be able to enter the. At a news conference in New York City, where he was attending the UN General Assembly meeting, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Zenbo Seinei A new meditation experience centre above the canopies of the Hyogo prefecture next to Kyoto and Osaka, designed by award-winning architect Shigeru Ban. Even just seeing the site suggestion come up, I could feel my heart reflexively sink into my chest in dread, as though it were already anticipating nothing today, either. At Juwai IQI, we believe China will maintain zero-Covid through at least the rst-quarter of 2023. Currently, citizens of 68 countries and regions will be allowed to . . Is this a here we go again moment looming? It was, indeed, a rare bright spot in such a dark, sad time. Critically, this would eliminate the legal requirement of a responsible receiving party for visitors to Japan. It was finally announced that from October 11, 2022, the borders would be reopening to visa-free tourists. In such a scenario, the borders could almost immediately return to their normal pre-closure status in early October. 2023 will also see the opening of Yokohamas first high-end Hilton property in a waterfront development that will also house the K-Arena, one of the worlds largest live music venues, as part of the new Music Terrace. Nagoya 2023 will see the opening of the remaining two areas of the Studio Ghibli Park, making the lesser celebrated city of Nagoya a key transit point for would-be visitors. Starting Tuesday October 11, Japan will drop its 50,000 entry cap and will allow independent tourists to visit Japan visa-free. As of 2022 it features a recently renovated hotel area and local market, as well as a marine leisure area and an exclusive seafood restaurant located on a long pier into the ocean, flanked by infinity pools. One wildcard is the downgrade of COVIDs legal status. This follows on from the opening of high-end luxury Onsen Ryokan Yuen Sapporo (2020) and in the run-up to the Adventure Travel World Summit due to be held here in the autumn of 2023. It is finally over. Again, if youd like to be notified as soon as more details are released or rumored, subscribe to ourfree email newsletter for ongoing updates and alerts: (function(d, s, id) { fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); We have to carry it out in the not-so-distant future, he said. This assumes thatJapan downgrades COVID-19 from its special status to Category 5 literally any day now orthat this is not a necessary prerequisite to an individual tourist reopening. Thats a wild card that could further extend any timeline. Japan has seasonal attractions in fall and winter. How do you view the news about guided tours? As COVID-19's Omicron variant surges around the world, advanced democracies are generally responding vigorously but with lower levels of restrictions on social life and travel than in 2020 and 2021. Except for everyone wearing masks, things seemed mostly back to normal. Japan has maintained some of the strictest Its been our perspective that this was a necessary prerequisite towelcoming 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. 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Along with revelling in the many ways to take in the allures across Japan, now is a time when international visitors can take advantage of shopping opportunities. PP PRITESH C PATEL 10 months ago How about Sept, Oct? -. Additionally, the Japan National Tourism Organization has set 2024 as its goal for recovering to 2019 international travel levels. 2023 - Travel Daily. Who is currently allowed to travel to Japan? In today's Face-to-Face interview, Professor Wolfgang Arlt, founder and CEO of the China Outbound . Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. We also recommend consulting ourUltimate Guide to KyotoandUltimate Guide to Tokyoto plan. Nov. Dec. Then Covid hit. It kind of fell like a little community in here, like I know from Discord groups. . We have more good news! var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; Ive started to see on JP twitter people asking for No mask in Japan too, so the sentiment is shifting even there. Economic benefits of international tourists is one big reason why Japan is expected to reopen its border. This was a great place to keep up to date on the happenings. More likely, the impact wont be fully felt until next years cherry blossom season. Are borders open as normal in 2023? Statements by politicians and medical advisors, gradual border relaxation measures, and other changes could be interpreted as Japan laying thegroundwork for a resumption of normalcy and the countrys eventual reopening. In light of the border reopening, Qantas will at last fire up its much-delayed Sydney-Tokyo Haneda service from October 27, with flights from Brisbane also resuming on December 1 and Melbourne primed to join the duo from March 2023.. Qantas International CEO Andrew David says "forward bookings are tracking well, in particular for the upcoming Australian holiday period", which shows how . Of course, things could change between now and then, but its likely the border will revert to late 2019 status as of that date. obsolete information. 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. if (d.getElementById(id)) return; . Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. 2023 GPlusMedia Inc. national Japan to increase daily border cap to 5,000 people from Nov 26. Japans economy has serious issues and inbound tourism was previously a bright spot. Not sure whether youll ever see this, but just want to let you know that I saw your comment and really appreciate you taking the time to share. These leaks came after Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara spoke on Fuji TV over the weekend and stated thatJapan will consider easing all three restrictionsthe daily arrival cap, ban on individual tourists, and visa requirements. Want to receive free updates on when Japan will reopen for travel? Would you consider visiting Japan later this year, or is international travel out of the question for you anytime soon? Felix Ng. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has confirmed "no schedule has been decided" for fully reopening the borders, though members of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party have discussed a potential. Yokohama 2023 sees the return of the Yokohama Biennale art festival, timed with the reopening of the Yokohama Museum of Art post-renovation. We are eager to revisit our favorite places, see friends in Japan for the first time in over two years, and continue creating this sites wealth of free planning resources. Im happy that I soon wont be needing to lurk this site on a daily basis as I have for the last countless months, but will always look back on this unexpected place of community fondly. Morgan Stanley Research analysts expect China to broadly reopen in the second half of 2022 and move away from the Zero-COVID policy by the end of this year. I just got back from my first post re-opening trip to Japan, and am open to answering questions. Japan is a highly attractive country not only for tourism, but also for international conferences and incentive travel. The country eased border controls . The country is also bringing back visa-free entry for visitors from more than 60 countries. To differentiate the two, Ill also allow for a middle ground possibility of a bifurcated decision with the individual tourist reopening a few weeks after the entry cap elimination. Japan's borders finally reopened to independent travelers in October 2022, and visiting Japan now is virtually as easy as it was before the pandemic. If youre planning a trip to the Japan, check outour other posts about Japanfor ideas on other things to do! It takes the shape of a long wooden sky deck on various levels encompassing an open-air deck for meditation, wooden rooms with tatami made for overnight stays, study/contemplation rooms and a restaurant serving fresh seasonal cuisine. For these two-plus years, weve been closely monitoring the situation in Japan, watching several hours of NHK each day and reading multiple Japanese news sources. This . Updated 7 June 2022. This is would allow a bit of wiggle room for Japans 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, its that inaction is Japans baseline, and anything that does happen occurs gradually and in stages. Does that mean it will be as easy to visit now as it was pre-pandemic? From the beginning this page was the only place I checked (sometimes daily) for hope. }(document, "script", "aweber-wjs-adqosrqps")); If youre planning a visit to Japan, our recommendation at this point is to target sometime in November at the earliest. Our view is that the worst-case scenario is nowhighlyunlikely. I land on Nov. 2, the website the new form come out Nov.I am so confusedbut no one seems to come here anymore.if anyone reads this please answer if you can. What we had here was a weird little community of sorts, and a really nice one considering the circumstances. With the relaxed travel measures, Japan is fully prepared to host these events. It will happen soon. Toranomon-Azabudai A futuristic development project by Heatherwick opening in 2023 in the well-heeled area of south-west Tokyo by the same name, the Toranomon-Azabudai Project will foreground green spaces, a new temple, retail spaces designed by Sou Fujimoto, Japans tallest high-rise building, two Aman properties and the new permanent location for teamLab exhibitions in Tokyo from 2023. [1/2]Passengers on a plane from Chinas capital Beijing arrive at Narita international airport in Narita, east of Tokyo, Japan January 8, 2023. P.s. We eagerly await your arrival!. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. 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. Copyright - Sarah & Tom Bricker, Travel Caffeine. Even if China begins opening sooner, we forecast China will not fully reopen until at . InUnguided Tours in Japan Reopening Phase Rules, we cover what this entails and the recently-released guidelines and FAQ for these tours. During the Bloomberg New Voices panel,Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said she would open the countrys doors tomorrow if it were her decision. We were wrongthe unguided tours offered two steps forward but one step backwards. Cases are currently in freefall and will continue decreasing next month before bottoming out sometime between late October and early November. With this, the visa exemption would be reinstated, making that a non-issue. This time, instead of Black Ships, the. Up to 20 per cent of these arrivals will also be required to take a COVID-19 test on arrival at the airport. KONO Taro (@konotaromp) September 22, 2022 "Finally, Japan will reopen the border,". The government is planning to submit a bill in October, which could give accommodation operators more authority to impose these types of infection control measures. Thats all we need, more authority (power), given to an already power drunk country, to impose more measures on us tourists. Ill never forget this amazing, special blog and the unlikely community of shared pain that flourished here for as long as I live. Subscribe to our email newsletter for the latest news & instant alerts. This is despite Japans Go to Travel campaign that subsidized domestic travel, which was offered at various times during the last two years. Still, Wanping Aw, CEO of the Tokyo-based travel agency Tokudaw said her company saw a large uptick in business after Japan reopened its borders in June with 50% of enquires and bookings . Japan finally opened its borders to tourists on Friday, but with strict rules. Thanks for the updates Tom and thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts and opinions over the past 2 years. That this would be achieved in such an unexpected setting on the comments section of a single article on a white-and-orange travel blog, which came to accumulate nearly 3,000 comments as though it were a 2000s-era forum feels almost too ridiculous to be true. for individual tourists. Wow, i cant believe it. Will be heading back again in a couple of weeks. The Government of Japan announced a policy of resuming entry by individual travellers for tourism purposes beginning on October 11. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. 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. It's official: Japan will reopen to tourism on October 11. Despite the aforementioned numbers, Japan is maintaining its goal of attracting 60 million foreign visitors by 2030. By Lilit Marcus, CNN Published 9:20 PM EDT, Sun July 31, 2022 Link Copied! Japan reopened its borders to overseas visitors on package tours Friday in a move that will potentially boost the economy over time, though the initial spending impact is likely to be limited. 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. Japan fully reopened its borders to tourists on October 11, 2022. While I hope to see you around here on future updates, I know that probably wont be the case. Are you concerned that Japan wont reopen until 2023, or think October is still realistic? On the same topic. Thank you, for this wonderful site with its very helpful regular updates! Then theres the middle ground or base case. With that in mind, lets 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.. Japan is always one decade lagging behind the developed world. In response to the announcement, JNTO will be doing everything we can to provide you with the latest information on coming to Japan so that many tourists can visit and journey throughout our country. That may soon change. Compared with the pre-pandemic level in 2019, it dropped 99.2 percent. Autumn is already a lost cause. Most people need months of time between booking and traveling; very few plan and take last-minute tripsespecially international ones. The number of people anxiously awaiting Japans reopening is shrinking, not growing. And indeed, there was nothing today, either, or even this year so far because at last the Japan we loved, the Japan that rejected us against sense, science and reason, has finally provided a sensible, responsible option for people like us to enter the country, which was all we ever asked for in the first place. Subscribers also receive a totally free copy of ourJapan on a BudgeteBook. (February 2023 Update). Not A Hotel Ishigaki Opening on the island of Ishigaki in 2023, this Sou Fujimoto set of luxury sea-view villas have the unique property of being raised as if from the ground, with meadows for rooftops, a sleek futuristic design reminiscent of his designs at the recent Shiroiya Hotel in Gunma. If you want a copy of thistotally freeeBook and Japan reopening updates, all you need to do issubscribe to our newsletter! Thank you so much for this free and respectful space for everyones opinions that has helped us get through these difficult years.
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