Cases are currently in freefall and will continue decreasing next month before bottoming out sometime between late October and early November. Moreover, how this played out with Japans last announcement is also instructive. 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. Bon voyage! Do I need to do a pre-departure Covid test? 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. 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. (It took a few more days for the guidelines to be released, and the clarifying FAQ isstillbeing updated. . More likely, the impact wont be fully felt until next years cherry blossom season. WHO urges countries to keep borders open as world races to contain Covid variant. Japan has resumed its visa exemption scheme for short-stay tourism and business travel. 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. Want to receive free updates on when Japan will reopen for travel? (Im sorry, I cant help myself. "We will lift the ceiling of the number of entrants. I am so glad that our community died, and that all of us who were trapped in this purgatory for so long have finally been able to resume our travels, adventures and lifestyles. 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. js.src = "//forms.aweber.com/form/28/412454028.js"; Japan is now allowing foreign nationals to enter Japan for purposes other than tourism so long as they have a sponsor in the country. 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. Just open the borders already. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has reacted with powerful . js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; See countries around the world ring in 2023 with a bang. InUnguided Tours in Japan Reopening Phase Rules, we cover what this entails and the recently-released guidelines and FAQ for these tours. It has been well over two years since coronavirus initially shut down global travel. 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. 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. As for you, Tom Id buy you a round at my favourite izakaya if I could! For my own peace of mind, could you please confirm that MYSOS form completion will no longer be a necessary requirement for entry into Japan from October 11th when the travel restrictions are lifted? Japan is always one decade lagging behind the developed world. Thanks for the updates Tom and thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts and opinions over the past 2 years. As weve stressed repeatedly, Japans populace has been among the most cautious in the world with regard to COVID-19. Its entirely possible that Kishida sees this polling and his sagging approval numbers and realizes that its time to move forward. 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. 1. Crowds not a problem. 7:09. The endisnear. 2023 when Japan is scheduled to downgrade the categorization of the virus. March 2023 Japan is finally open! However, Japan is now joining the rest of the world as people are ready to move on with life. Another possibility is that Japan will allow individual foreign tourists to enter the country andexempt them from visas if they have been vaccinated three times or submit a pre-arrival test result. 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. Be part of our community of seasoned travel and hospitality industry professionals from all over the world. Visit Japan Web App also let me pre fill out for immigration and customs, and just use the QR codes for those as well. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government launched a multilingual call center on COVID-19 for foreign residents. 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. The country is also bringing back visa-free entry for visitors from more than 60 countries. It kind of fell like a little community in here, like I know from Discord groups. despite protests. Do I need to be vaccinated to go to Japan? It will happen soon. How do you view the news about guided tours? Japan will open an embassy in Malta. Human behavior and sentiment dont change overnight, even if its economically advantageous and objectively safer to do so. 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. It remains unknown when independent travelers will be able to enter the. The Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) loophole has long been used by foreign teenagers who hope to work in the nation's fast-growing child workforce, jobs . KONO Taro (@konotaromp) September 22, 2022 "Finally, Japan will reopen the border,". 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. Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. For more than two years, the nation was effectively impossible visit Japan. This is. 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. While there are still some covid-related protocols in place, it's likely that the entire pandemic-era regime of border measures will be done away with my some point in 2023. The new Trunk Hotel Yoyogi Park opens here with a rooftop infinity pool and views over the park, in 2023. Are borders open as normal in 2023? Visit in Spring or Autumn. 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. Japan fully reopened its borders to tourists on October 11, 2022. People attending the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC 2023, sing the national anthem during the opening session, at the National Harbor, in Oxon Hill, Md., Thursday, March 2, 2023. fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); Ill never forget this amazing, special blog and the unlikely community of shared pain that flourished here for as long as I live. Of . ), 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. 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. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is. I just got back from my first post re-opening trip to Japan, and am open to answering questions. =w=)b. 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. What follows is based on that research and fixation with the on-the-ground situation in Japan. 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. China reopening most likely late Jan/Feb 2023. It's official: Japan will reopen to tourism on October 11. That also offers tips for avoiding crowds and strategy for visiting the best temples, shrines, and evening illuminations. Japan relaxed its border measures earlier in September while still being #1 in the world for new cases. Will be heading back again in a couple of weeks. 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. Yokohama 2023 sees the return of the Yokohama Biennale art festival, timed with the reopening of the Yokohama Museum of Art post-renovation. Were preserving this for posterity, but everything that follows is now (thankfully!) Decreased tourism plus falling exports, an increased consumption tax, reduced consumer spending, weak yen, and growing national debt. Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) looks forward to welcoming individual inbound travellers back to Japan with the long-awaited lifting of entry restrictions. Thats a wild card that could further extend any timeline. Japan slams the borders shut on Omicron. The specifics are not consistent among outlets, so lets start with where theyre in agreeance. 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. The Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism, Wada Kouichi . Koike said that Japans borders would fully reopen soon. By contrast,Fuji TV is treating this as a done deal, using less ambiguous language. As improbable as it mightve seemed even a week ago, Japan welcoming back international visitors who are not part of tours (guided or unguided) sometime before November is likely. With all borders open and international racing officially back on, Asia-Pacific's premier off-road triathlon series is ready to return with some of the best trails on the circuit as local and international age group athletes can finally go head-to-head once again in a season-long race for the title of XTERRA Asia-Pacific Champion. In short, the early October reopening is not just our most optimistic viewits now what we expect to happen. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Quite simply,Japan is inflicting pain on itself by remaining closed. So why aren't tourists coming back? 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. We have more good news! 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. Its possible the country views this as sufficient for tourism businesses to stave off bankruptcy or other financial hardship for another few months. This is despite Japans Go to Travel campaign that subsidized domestic travel, which was offered at various times during the last two years. Think the need to adapt and live with the endemic virus will outweigh fear when it comes to Japans reopening plans? }(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. Public opinion nowadays is very reluctant to allow foreigner to enter Japan even if you guys want to enter Japan on the purpose of studying or business. The national border is under the management of central government, Koike said. Either way, thats something to continue keeping in mind. Nov. 18, 2021 10:20 am JST Nov. 26, 2021 . It was finally announced that from October 11, 2022, the borders would be reopening to visa-free tourists. Yet despite the wealth of praises I have for Tom, this article and its two-year community, I am so, so glad, perhaps gladder than ever now, that compulsively opening this link in my browser is no longer part of my daily routine. But whatever winter wave occurs (and onewillhappen), thats unlikely to be an obstacle to reopening progress, as was the case last year. Kihara isnt the only one who has been vocal about fully reopening to tourists recently. 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. The country is also about to increase the daily cap of tourists allowed to enter Japan from 20,000 to 50,000. 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. Japan also began allowing unguided tours, meaning ones not accompanied by tour conductors. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced the news in September at a press conference. However, Japan remains one of the few major economies with significant restrictions on travel still in place, including a cap on visitor numbers. Would you consider visiting Japan later this year, or is international travel out of the question for you anytime soon? This is a major policy shift and will relaxif not eliminate entirelyJapans intensive COVID-19 countermeasures, including limiting the movements of infected people and their close contacts. The key question is: Can it learn to love foreign tourists again? I already moved on to read your other Japan travel posts to get tips which are also so helpful! Subscribe to our email newsletter for the latest news & instant alerts. The Government of Japan announced a policy of resuming entry by individual travellers for tourism purposes beginning on October 11. Japan fully reopening in full is all but inevitable at this point. Can you write one last update about the boarder being opened. That's a hardship for the many. Compared with the pre-pandemic level in 2019, it dropped 99.2 percent. Read on to find out more! Thanks for all the updates and helpful info during this stressful and hard time, Tom!! Im heading to Tokyo for the first time in 3.5 years on October 23rd and I cant wait! 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. The big one for most of you is likely going to beJapan Face Mask Rules v. Reality in 2023. The government will also take measures to stimulate and jump-start the economy. 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. Thats the sharpest fall on record according to the Japan Tourism Agency. A guide to all things new in Japan in 2023, Japan in 2023: A bucket-list-worthy adventure, These locations in Japan inspired beloved Studio Ghibli films, AutoFlight achieves worlds longest eVTOL Flight, Accors Mvenpick BalaLand Resort Lake Balatonopens in, AirAsia X resumes services to Shanghai with four weekly. tomthanks for ALL the help.I was told I need the MYSOS app to enter now, but there is mixed information on JapanWeb.