From September 7, 2022, the country plans to drop pre-departure testing requirements for fully vaccinated travelers (including one booster dose). 2023 Yosemite Firefall Viewing Guide: Best Dates, Reservations Info & Face Masks in Japan: Rules v. Reality (2023), Please subscribe to our FREE email newsletter, Japan Fall Colors Forecast & Autumn Foliage Viewing Guide, Tokyo Disneyland 40th Anniversary 'Dream-Go-Round' Details, New Parade & Japan Reopening Disney Tourist Blog The KKK News. Is Japan Open to Tourists? (February 2023 Update - Travel Caffeine Will be heading back again in a couple of weeks. Thanks for the posts, Tom. As for why Japans border is still closed over a year after most democracies reopened, that can largely be explained by the countrys apprehensiveness of outsiders. How do you view the news about guided tours? Japan to lift COVID-19 entry ban for 106 countries - RAPPLER Japan has maintained some of the strictest 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. Thanks to everyone in here in the comments for that! Japan border reopening: One of Australia's favourite destinations opens 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 . 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Oridinary by Conrad Bangkok, Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), 5 reasons why traditional travel protection is obsolete, 5 reasons why Cross Hotels & Resorts is APACs hotel operator of choice, Wake up at the magnificent Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef, MICE (Meetings, Incentives,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). Its entirely possible that Kishida sees this polling and his sagging approval numbers and realizes that its time to move forward. 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. First, theres already the realization that unguided tourslike guided tours before themwill not move the needle on inbound tourism in any meaningful way. Japan's struggling tourism sector despairs at lack of COVID exit Japan is always one decade lagging behind the developed world. 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. Think those will stick around for several months, or are simply theater to shift public opinion? One of the last closed-border hold-outs is now allowing entry for Australian tourists, with visitors from the rest of the world to follow on May 1. Japan reopens its borders. Are tourists ready to return? Here are all the details on visa-free travel, vaccination and Covid test requirements. Japan to reinstate ban on foreign visitors, G7 to meet over new Covid 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. 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. 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 borders were shut. Thanks for all the updates and helpful info during this stressful and hard time, Tom!! P.s. Analysis | Relax, This Isn't the Future of Japanese Tourism Its made it slightly more bearable having a community to discuss all the news coming out of Japan especially since group tours first became a reality. The prime minister, Fumio Kishida, said on Thursday that the. Japan Finally Shows Signs of Recovery: Skift Travel Health Index Those two posts cover essentially everything you need to know about visiting Japan as of 2023. Kihara isnt the only one who has been vocal about fully reopening to tourists recently. The country's domestic and international business community united on Friday in urging the government to open further, including "rapidly resuming" individual tourist travel and bringing. Are you concerned that Japan wont reopen until 2023, or think October is still realistic? Japan has eased travel restrictions, but will tourism bounce back You no longer need a visa to travel to Japan for up to 90 days. Of course, things could change between now and then, but its likely the border will revert to late 2019 status as of that date. Will Japan open borders in 2023? Saturday, 4 March 2023, 15:47 Last update: about 1 hour ago. The political and economic appetite for fully relaxation now clearly exists, and theres a vocal chorus of politicians in Japanincluding those who were previously in favor of closed borderschampioning reopening. 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. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. The total of guests at hotels and inns was 315.75 million, down 4.8% from 2020 and 47% from 2019. The short version is that it is possible to enter, regardless of whether youre vaccinated or unvaccinated, albeit with a testing requirement for the latter. tomthanks for ALL the help.I was told I need the MYSOS app to enter now, but there is mixed information on JapanWeb. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Japan Tourism: The decision means Japan will allow in a limited number of foreign tourists on package tours starting June 10. Were preserving this for posterity, but everything that follows is now (thankfully!) 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. However, Japan is now joining the rest of the world as people are ready to move on with life. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Summary Since October 2022, Japan is fully open, without the requirement for a visa for most visitors. The changes were intended to "support smooth international travels, given a low rate of positive test results among entrants", Matsuno said. This indicates that Japan is finally ready to move forward and sets the precedent for future changes during waves. Japan has been busy over the past two-and-a-half years with preparations to welcome back everyone. We have to carry it out in the not-so-distant future, he said. Japan will fully reopen borders on October 11 ), 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. Felix Ng. Weve already returned to Japan, spending about a month in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and elsewhere. . "We will lift the ceiling of the number of entrants. Im very glad its dead but am also appreciative of what existed while it did. This is despite Japans Go to Travel campaign that subsidized domestic travel, which was offered at various times during the last two years. But I was there from the beginning, first as a lurker and then eventually as a participant, so I know precisely how it came to be. Was less crowded than when I was there before, especially at the airport. Well, I visited only recently but it was one of the (very few) level-headed sites that discussed this topic. There are no quarantine requirements, and travel is visa-free for the vast majority of people reading this. Hi Tom, 2023 GPlusMedia Inc. national Japan to increase daily border cap to 5,000 people from Nov 26. Ive started to see on JP twitter people asking for No mask in Japan too, so the sentiment is shifting even there. 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. Either way, thats something to continue keeping in mind. TOKYO, Japan - Japan plans to ease COVID 19-related border restrictions by lifting its entry ban for foreign nationals from 106 countries including the United States, Britain and France on . 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. These are questions among those planning trips to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and this covers the answers. It is available from 10:00 to 17:00, and can be reached at 03-6233-9266. 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. Koike said that Japans borders would fully reopen soon. But whatever winter wave occurs (and onewillhappen), thats unlikely to be an obstacle to reopening progress, as was the case last year. Just open the borders already. 28 Feb 2023 0. 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. Economists fear a double dip recession in Japan due to the prolonged closures and restrictions. Wow, i cant believe it. Japan's Reopening & Entry Requirements for Tourists - Boutique Japan Japan will further ease in June border controls implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and bring them on par with other Group of Seven nations, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday. Japan Is Open For Tourism And Had Over 200K Visitors In September Japan's islands call as nation reopens to tourists - New York Post Finally, Japan will reopen the border. Oct 19, 2022 SHARE Not since 1853, when U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry forced Japan to open its borders to trade, has a reopening been so newsworthy. The resumption of individual travel to Japan and visa waivers, and the elimination of the daily arrival cap will allow international visitors to enjoy Japan in more ways than in the past two-and-a-half years. Japan is Likely to Reopen to Foreign Travelers in Spring 2022 if COVID-19 numbers remain low, according to industry estimates, although the government hasn't set a hard date yet. if (d.getElementById(id)) return; Japan reopened its borders to independent foreign travelers and reintroduced visa-free entry from October 11, 2022. . On August 31, Kishida made an official announcement encompassing all of the rumored changes, including unguided tourists. It remains unknown when independent travelers will be able to enter the. Call 81 3 3201 3331. This was a great place to keep up to date on the happenings. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. Your email address will not be published. If youre planning a trip to the Japan, check outour other posts about Japanfor ideas on other things to do! Japan plans to reopen to independent travelers in major shift, report That theres more upside than downside risk in reopening and encouraging more economic activity. Like a moth to a flame.). By. The good news is that we now have an answer to questionsweve been asking for nearly two years! Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly plans to make a decision as early as the end of this week, according to the news outlets sources. 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. Best wishes to everyone on your travels!! At that time, it was unclear whether unguided tourists would be allowed to enter. What are testing, face mask, and vaccine requirements for visitors? Japan also began allowing unguided tours, meaning ones not accompanied by tour conductors. While it certainly sounds likethe end is nearfor the Japan travel ban, its premature to have a high degree of confidence. Japan is open to travel. So why aren't tourists coming back? Nov. 18, 2021 10:20 am JST Nov. 26, 2021 . Instead of blanket testing of travellers from mainland China, Japan will only test selected samples, although travellers will still need to show a negative test before boarding their flights to Japan, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a news conference on Monday. Most people need months of time between booking and traveling; very few plan and take last-minute tripsespecially international ones. We can't expect Japanese government to reopen their border on April 2022 due to the emergence of Omicron variant. Is Japan ready to reopen its borders? | East Asia Forum Moreover, how this played out with Japans last announcement is also instructive. Japan to increase daily border cap to 5,000 people from Nov 26 It thus stands to reason that opening to individual tourists necessarily needs to occurthat raising the entry cap will do nothing in furtherance of their stated goal. Travelers from most countries can now enter Japan without applying for a visa in advance. With the relaxed travel measures, Japan is fully prepared to host these events. This time, instead of Black Ships, the. -. These measures are long-awaited news for tourists around the world who have been looking forward to visiting Japan.