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Covid-19 Information

• Basic COVID-19 countermeasures, including: washing your hands frequently, using hand sanitizers, and wearing a mask when necessary, are still effective.
• Avoiding crowded places and hours when possible is still relevant as a counter-disease measure. Also, wearing a mask is effective when you cannot avoid boarding crowded buses and trains.
• Based on the decisions of individual businesses or organizations, you may be asked to  practice hygiene by wearing a mask and washing or sanitizing your hands.

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•   If you wish to receive medical consultation due to symptoms associated with COVID-19,  please consult to a nearby medical institution or MHLW’s telephone consultation services at your own decision.

Enjoy Kyoto with peace of mind (advice for tourism)

• In order to enjoy your trip with peace of mind, please avoid going to places at times when they are crowded as much as possible. There are many points of interest in Kyoto that are relatively less famous but still worth visiting, or that can be enjoyed in early morning or night when there are less people.

Airing of live camera feed to check congestion levels around tourist destinations

The Kyoto City Tourism Association shares live camera feed of popular tourist areas with predictions of how pleasant each place would be to visit at each time of the day.

Kyoto City Tourism Association YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/DMOKYOTO

Kyoto Travel Congestion Forecast

We provide useful information for avoiding congestion, by forecasting comfort levels around popular spots, real-time information from live cameras, and attractive sightseeing spots that are relatively empty even during the daytime. 

kyoto travel congestion forecast（English） kyoto travel congestion forecast（繁體中文） kyoto travel congestion forecast（简体中文）

Sightseeing in the morning and night

The morning is best for discovering Kyoto’s everyday. Crisp morning air, stone-paved streets catching the morning sun, serene gardens—mornings in Kyoto are full of fresh wonders that are different from those you can find in the noon or evening. You can go from location to location easily in the early morning, and visit the popular tourist spots when they are less crowded. Enjoy the city’s candid beauty by exploring it in the morning.

Kyoto shrines and temples open to morning prayers and visits https://kyoto.travel/en/see-and-do/kyotointhemorning.html

Other sources of information related to COVID-19 and disease control measures

COVID-19: Practical Information for Traveling to Japan（ JNTO ） https://www.japan.travel/en/practical-coronavirus-information/ About  COVID-19  ( Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare ) https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/0000164708_00079.html

Inside Kyoto

A Kyoto Travel Guide

Can I Travel To Japan Now? May 2024

Japan is finally open! Travelers from most countries can now enter Japan without applying for a visa in advance. Best of all, there are NO Covid protocols to enter Japan: You do NOT need proof of vaccination or a negative test to enter Japan.

Situation Summary

Last Update: December 4, 2023 (this page will be updated as needed)

• Japan is open! Visa-free, independent travel is now possible for most nationalities.
• There are NO Covid protocols for Japan. You do NOT need to be vaccinated against Covid to enter Japan. You do NOT need a negative Covid test to enter Japan.
• You can use the Visit Japan Web app to upload your immigration and customs details in advance. See our Guide to the Visit Japan Web app and Japan Entry Procedures for all the details. Note that the app is strongly recommended but not mandatory for entry to Japan. In fact, it’s probably quicker to not use the Visit Japan app on arrival.
• On March 13 2023, the indoor masking recommendation was dropped in Japan. You do not have to wear a mask in stores, restaurants, attractions, and on public transport. Some shops and restaurants may still ask that you mask, however. See our Japan mask page for details.
• Now is the time to start planning a trip to Japan. Contact Chris Rowthorn to start planning .

Commentary by Chris

Visa-free, independent travel restarted on October 11 2023. Citizens of 68 countries now get visa-free travel to Japan. Here’s the Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs visa-free travel list . If you are a citizen of one of those countries, you do not need to apply for a visa in advance; you will be given a 90-day tourist visa upon arrival in Japan (note that there are few exceptions which are listed on the MOFA site).

Given that Japan is now open, it’s time to start planning a trip. If you want help planning a trip to Japan, visit my consulting page to book a Zoom consultation.

What You Need to Do Now

If you’re planning a trip to Japan, there are some things you should do now. There is a lot of pent up demand for travel to Japan, so plane tickets and accommodations should be a priority.

• Buy plane tickets: compare flight prices and times for the best deals.
• Book hotels and ryokans: check Booking.com and Agoda.com .
• View our Packing List for Japan to make sure you don’t forget to bring anything.

Consider Doing

• Book some walking tours .
• Travel insurance: World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Buy at home or while traveling and claim online from anywhere in the world.
• Buy a Japan Rail Pass : Order one here .
• Buy a Icoca card : Get one here .
• Buy a SIM or pocket wifi : Order one here .

Check Hotel Availability

Destination, check-in date, check-out date.

Do You Need to Be Vaccinated to Enter Japan?

You do NOT need to be vaccinated with a Covid vaccine to enter Japan.

Do You Need a Covid Test to Enter Japan?

You do NOT need a negative Covid test to enter Japan.

Flights to Japan Currently Operating

Flights to Japan have mostly returned to pre-pandemic schedules and availability: compare flight prices and times  for the best deals.

More Useful Information

• Best Hotels in Kyoto
• Best Hotels in Tokyo
• Japan Rail Pass Guide

Kyoto Vacation Checklist

• For all the essentials in a brief overview, see my First Time In Kyoto guide
• Check Kyoto accommodation availability on Booking.com and Agoda.com - often you can book with no upfront payment and free cancellation
• You can buy shinkansen (bullet train) tickets online from Klook - popular routes include Tokyo to Kyoto , Kyoto to Osaka and Kyoto to Tokyo
• Need tips on where to stay? See my one page guide Where To Stay In Kyoto
• See my comprehensive Packing List For Japan
• Buy a data-only SIM card online for collection when you arrive at Kansai International Airport (for Osaka and Kyoto) or Tokyo's Narita Airport . Or rent an unlimited data pocket wifi router
• Compare Japan flight prices and timings to find the best deals
• If you're making frequent train journeys during your visit, you might save money with Japan Rail Pass – see if it's worth it for you
• A prepaid Welcome Suica card makes travelling around Kyoto easy – here's how
• World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Buy at home or while traveling and claim online from anywhere in the world

Kyoto District Map

• Central Kyoto
• Northwest Kyoto
• Northern Higashiyama
• Southern Higashiyama
• Downtown Kyoto
• Kyoto Station Area
• South East Kyoto

Disclosure: InsideKyoto.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com and amazon.co.uk. World Nomads provides travel insurance for travellers in over 100 countries. As an affiliate, we receive a fee when you get a quote from World Nomads using this link. We do not represent World Nomads. This is information only and not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.

Kyoto Wants You Back, but It Has Some Polite Suggestions

The city, one of Japan’s most-visited before the pandemic, desperately needs tourism’s money, but it would like to avoid the excesses of Instagram-driven itineraries.

Before the pandemic, Kyoto’s Kiyomizu Temple was as famous for its congestion as for its sublime architecture and spectacular view of the city below. Credit... Andrew Faulk for The New York Times

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By Ben Dooley and Hisako Ueno

• Published Sept. 25, 2022 Updated Sept. 28, 2022

In the months before March 2020, the food sellers in Kyoto’s Nishiki market often wished for an end to the seemingly endless stream of photo-hungry visitors from abroad who always seemed to be underfoot.

“We weren’t used to foreign tourists,” said Nobuyuki Hatsuda, who leads a business alliance promoting the shopping street in the city center, where vendors sell a dizzying array of traditional Japanese foods, carefully displayed and attractively packaged.

Nishiki has long been a working market, and the parade of visitors — rifling through the meticulously arranged merchandise, haggling with frazzled shopkeepers and blocking storefronts with their luggage — interfered with the flow of daily business, driving away locals who had long done their shopping on the street.

But then the pandemic hit. The tourists — along with their money — evaporated, and sellers had a change of heart, said Mr. Hatsuda, who sells kamaboko, a fish cake often formed into delicate pink and white loaves.

“We realized that we can’t choose our customers,” he said.

Other than China, Japan had maintained the strictest border controls of any major economy. Since the start of 2021, fewer than 800,000 foreign visitors have set foot in the country. As other countries began welcoming tourists back in numbers close to their prepandemic highs, Japan let only a trickle of travelers in. The country eased restrictions on trips for business and study in the spring, but as of September, it was still limiting tourism to travelers on package tours who were willing to negotiate a labyrinth of red tape.

That will soon change, however. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said last week that the country would further ease border controls in October, eliminating a cap on daily entries and allowing tourists to travel independently. (Even after normal travel resumes, however, Chinese visitors, who accounted for more than 30 percent of inbound traffic in 2019, are unlikely to return in large numbers until Beijing relaxes its strict Covid Zero policy.)

As tourism slowly returns, Kyoto, like other famous tourist destinations worldwide, is grappling with how to accommodate the crowds without sacrificing quality of life for those who call the ancient capital home.

In the absence of a clear solution, Kyoto’s government is betting on a change of perspective: After years of promoting “omotenashi” — a Japanese word for meticulous hospitality — it’s trying to take more time for self-care.

“Kyoto isn’t a tourist city, it’s a city that values tourism,” Daisaku Kadokawa, the city’s mayor, said during a recent interview at its city hall, where he wore the formal kimono that has become a trademark during his almost 15 years in office.

Growing popularity

Kyoto is home to several globally known companies, like Nintendo and Kyocera, and has produced more Nobel Prize winners in the sciences than any other city in Japan. But in the years leading up to the pandemic, it had become dependent on the flood of tourists that bumped, clattered and pushed through its streets.

Kyoto had always been a popular destination for domestic travelers. Before Japan opened to the world in 1851, pilgrims trekked from around the country to visit its more than 2,000 temples and shrines. Spared from the ravages of World War II, it later became something close to a living museum, a popular destination for school trips and people hoping for a glimpse of the country’s history and tradition.

No one comes to Kyoto looking for a party. Visitors are seeking a particular vision of Japan, one that is found in the koi ponds of meticulously kept temple gardens; the smell of roasting brown tea, known as hojicha, that wafts from the door of ancient storefronts; and the clatter of a geisha’s wooden sandals down a cobbled alleyway.

In the years before the 2020 summer Olympics, however, the realities of the modern travel industry had begun to compromise the city’s anachronistic charms. Japan launched an all-out effort to promote inbound tourism, and Kyoto experienced a surge in popularity among foreign visitors.

Starting from a base of around 10 million in 2013, the number of foreign visitors had more than tripled by the pandemic’s start, according to government data . Nearly a third of them traveled to Kyoto, where the tourism industry employed one of every five workers. Taxes from the sector comprised nearly 13 percent of the city’s revenue.

But locals quickly became fed up with what they called “tourism pollution.” Suitcases jammed the aisles of city buses. Eager visitors harassed geisha’s apprentices, maiko, for photographs on their way to work. And lost tourists stumbled into people’s homes while searching for their Airbnb.

Social media, especially, shaped tourism in the city. And not for the better.

Masutami Kawaguchi, who offers private English tours of the city, said that — before the pandemic — his clients’ itineraries were almost entirely determined by Instagram. Tourism became laser-focused on the city’s famously picturesque areas, with people getting off the train at Kyoto Station and then rushing to the two or three best photo spots — the bamboo groves of Arashiyama, the orange gates winding up the mountain behind Fushimi Inari shrine and the golden pavilion at Kinkakuji temple — creating traffic jams and massive crowding in the surrounding areas.

Kyoto’s famously polite residents began to express their displeasure with uncharacteristic bluntness.

In Nishiki, signs popped up among the stalls admonishing tourists not to eat while walking, a pet peeve in Japan. Neighborhood shoppers, tired of the crowding and commotion, began going to supermarkets, and some long-established sellers closed.

Even Buddhist monks lost their cool.

In autumn and spring, when the streets became clogged with tourists gawping at pyrotechnic bursts of maple leaves and cherry blossoms, “people couldn’t even leave their houses. The city was barely livable,” said Kojo Nagasawa, the secretary general of the Kyoto Buddhist Federation, which includes three of the city’s most famous temples.

The group has long called for moderation in Kyoto’s economic development. In 1991, it took out a full-page ad in The Times opposing the construction of new, high-rise hotels, which it said would destroy the city’s unique character.

“Before we knew it, the economy was nothing but tourism,” Mr. Nagasawa said. “The city didn’t know when enough was enough.”

Looking to curb some of the worst problems, in 2018 the city cracked down on investors who were snatching up traditional houses in residential neighborhoods and converting them into Airbnb rentals.

The pandemic’s damage

In the spring of 2020, Japan slammed its borders shut. The fire hose of foreign money turned off, and Kyoto, which had long struggled with financial problems, found itself on the verge of bankruptcy.

The city got a taste of life without tourists, and the combination of the coronavirus and red ink was “a double punch,” Mr. Kadokawa, the mayor, said.

At the beginning of the pandemic, “people in the city were saying, ‘We’ve returned to the old Kyoto, isn’t that great?’” said Toshinori Tsuchihashi, the director of the city’s tourism department.

But, as the economic damage mounted, residents “have come to recognize tourism’s importance.”

Many businesses have yet to recover. Before the pandemic, it was nearly impossible to get a reservation at one of the many restaurants lining Pontocho, an atmospheric alleyway running parallel to the Kamo River in Kyoto’s city center. But on a recent weekend night, “for lease” signs hung in darkened shop windows, and many of the terraces looking out on the water sat unused.

Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto , a luxury Western-style hotel, opened in late 2020 and has operated well below capacity for most of the pandemic, according to Manabu Kusui, the general manager.

As tourists begin returning to Kyoto, the hotel hopes to differentiate itself by providing guests with exclusive experiences it has negotiated with some of Kyoto’s beautiful but less trafficked destinations. One of the first is a private tour of Nijo Castle, the residence of Japan’s first shogun of the Edo period, Tokugawa Ieyasu, conveniently located next to the hotel.

It’s a style of tourism the city is trying to promote as part of its new strategic plan to address prepandemic crowding.

But Mr. Kusui knows that people come to Kyoto with a certain itinerary in mind, and “we can’t tell them not to go to some place like Kiyomizu Temple,” he said, referring to the famous Buddhist temple perched on a mountain face on Kyoto’s east side.

Some polite suggestions

With no legal options for instituting hard limits on visitors, the government hopes to dilute traffic so it is less concentrated in the same times and places. Planners are also discussing how to fix problems, like crowded city buses, that aggravate residents. So far, however, the initiatives mostly consist of soft measures like trying to educate visitors in Kyoto’s traditional “morals” and hoping for the best.

In that spirit, Nishiki market has decided it will try to encourage tourists instead of admonishing them, exchanging its list of “don’ts” for a list of “pleases.” Visitors who scan a large QR code at the entrance are presented with a list of suggestions for enjoying the market and rewarded with free Wi-Fi for reading it.

At the same time, many in the city are trying to improve the experience for tourists and residents alike by reimagining Kyoto’s overall approach to the industry.

Kiyomizu Temple is among the institutions that have taken up the gauntlet, trying to promote a new kind of tourism that encourages tourists to think of the city as a place to live, not a theme park.

Before the pandemic, the temple was as famous for its congestion as for its sublime architecture and its spectacular view of the city below. In high season, pushing through the crowds clogging the temple’s graceful walkways had become an enervating and dispiriting ordeal that few locals would willingly undergo.

When Covid hit, the temple's abbot, Seigen Mori, was already experimenting with ways to allow visitors to experience it as it was intended — as a tranquil place of worship — but with limited success.

The last two and a half years, however, have given him an opportunity to “press reset,” he said, and explore different ways of interacting with visitors. In recent months he has begun opening the temple at night to small groups, taking the time to personally lead them in prayer and conversation.

Seeing the temple at night fundamentally transforms visitors’ relationship with the space, he believes, as the disorienting press of the usual crowds is replaced with the chirr of cicadas, the rich aroma of incense and the soft flicker of shadows on ancient statuary.

Mr. Mori is eager to welcome guests from abroad, he said, as long as they understand that the experience is focused on contemplation.

Kyoto is anticipating the inevitable return of those guests with a mix of longing and apprehension, said Takeshi Otsuki, a general manager at Japanese travel giant JTB.

“We’re hoping the number of visitors increases gradually, and we have a soft landing,” Mr. Otsuki said.

Some in the city are eager to greet the new tourists.

Fuminari Shinbo is part of a group of retirees who began training ahead of the Tokyo Olympics to give English tours to visitors coming to Kyoto, devoting hours to memorizing English dialogues they never had the chance to use.

In late August, about 20 of the volunteers eagerly gathered in front of Fushimi Inari, a shrine that has become Kyoto’s most popular tourist destination, for a dry run.

Clothed in bright blue bibs with white lettering advertising free help for English-speaking tourists, they introduced the shrine’s most famous feature, a corridor of nearly a thousand bright orange gates that have provided a vibrant punch of color to countless vacation photos.

When the tour was over, Mr. Shinbo said he was excited that he would finally be able to put his hard work to good use.

So far, he said, “I’ve only been able to practice on my grandson.”

52 Places for a Changed World

The 2022 list highlights places around the globe where travelers can be part of the solution.

Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram , Twitter and Facebook . And sign up for our weekly Travel Dispatch newsletter to receive expert tips on traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Dreaming up a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 Places for a Changed World for 2022.

An earlier version of this article misidentified Tokugawa Ieyasu. He was the first shogun of the Edo period. He was not the first shogun of Japan. The error was repeated in a photo caption.

An earlier version of this article spelled the name of a tourist site popular on Instagram incorrectly. It is the golden pavilion at Kinkakuji temple, not at Kinkauji temple.

How we handle corrections

Ben Dooley reports on Japan’s business and economy, with a special interest in social issues and the intersections between business and politics. More about Ben Dooley

Hisako Ueno has been reporting on Japanese politics, business, gender, labor and culture for The Times since 2012. She previously worked for the Tokyo bureau of The Los Angeles Times from 1999 to 2009. More about Hisako Ueno

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The return of tourism might not be enough to save Kyoto from its economic woes

Anthony Kuhn

As travel restrictions ease in Japan, the country's ancient former capital, Kyoto, is anticipating a return of tourists. But it may not be enough to save the city from its financial difficulties.

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Hard-hit Kyoto is conflicted as Japan prepares to reopen to foreign tourists after COVID lockdown

Poring over the ledger at her more than 230-year-old liquor shop in Kyoto, Yasuko Fujii has mixed feelings about the return of foreign tourists who would crowd the streets of Japan's ancient capital before the pandemic — and buy lots of whisky and wine.

Key points:

• Kyoto locals say they want some foreign tourists, but not too many
• Japan is restricting the number of foreign tourists allowed in to a small number
• The yen is at its weakest in two decades, acting as a boon for tourists

Her ambivalence reflects a broader uncertainty in Japan about welcoming tourist hordes amid fears they could trigger a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, even though a weak yen would be a big draw for tourists and a boon for local businesses.

"From a business standpoint, we want foreign tourists to come," the 79-year-old Ms Fujii said.

"But from an emotional standpoint, we want customers from Japan."

Millions of tourists from China, South Korea and South-East Asia used to throng the Nishiki market, where Ms Fujii's shop is located, before curbs set in two years ago.

Locals often felt overwhelmed and many stopped coming, she said.

Kyoto hit badly and deeply relieved

Japan's opening up to mass tourism over the last decade brought an economic boost — a record 32 million tourists visited in 2019 and spent some $38 billion — but that also led to complaints of shoddy behaviour at sites such as Kyoto's temples.

Known for its narrow streets of tea houses and ryokan inns, Kyoto has been both badly hit and deeply relieved by the absence of foreign tourists, locals say.

With the yen at its weakest in more than two decades and a revival in global travel, Kyoto's hard-hit hotels and traditional sweet shops should have been bracing for a tourism surge.

Instead, only some visitors have trickled in as Japan is allowing a small number of tourists to enter the country after easing curbs in June. 

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, whose ruling party is expected to win an upper house election on July 10, is seen sticking to a gradual easing of measures after he won public support for keeping borders shut last year.

He would face a backlash if visitors sparked fresh COVID cases.

While the weak yen is a boon for tourists it is a headache for the government as it drives up fuel and electricity prices.

'Our capacity to accommodate'

At Sengyo Kimura, a fresh fish shop in Nishiki market in business since 1620, Kaoru Kimura, 68, says she wants tourists to return, just not so many of them.

The family-run shop was flooded with visitors before the pandemic. Knowing the Kimuras would not accept tips, visitors often left tokens of gratitude: a Canadian flag pin, paper cutting from China, Russian perfume and Hawaiian nuts.

"The issue is not about foreign tourists but rather our capacity to accommodate customers," she said.

"If too many come we aren't able to show them proper hospitality."

The number of hotels that shut down nationwide rose to a five-year high in 2021 and the local tourism industry in Kyoto has been badly hit, according to research firm Teikoku Databank.

"The damage is quite significant," said Teikoku analyst Keisuke Noda.

Demand has dried up for businesses like rental kimono shops, aimed mostly at foreigners.

Across the street from Hakuba, an antiques store founded 40 years ago, fleets of buses used to bring tourists to the Daitokuji Temple complex.

Now the massive parking lot stands empty.

"Kyoto is a tourist city and without foreign tourists we're really in trouble," said Hiroshi Fujie, the 70-year-old director of Hakuba, adding he was not sure if the store could survive a third year without foreign tourists.

For Ms Fujii, the liquor shop owner, business is back to 60 to 70 per cent of pre-pandemic levels thanks to Japanese tourists.

Roughly 5.17 million people stayed in Kyoto hotels and guest houses last year, almost all of them Japanese, government data shows.

That compared to about 13.2 million in 2019, when both foreigners and Japanese stayed.

Back at the fish shop, workers in rubber boots and aprons were cutting up salmon and tuna, which they arranged carefully alongside clams and oysters at the store front.

Ms Kimura said she still wanted people from "all walks of life" to try their fish.

"The queue, though, is a nightmare".

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Decimated by pandemic, Kyoto tourism hinges on Japanese visitors

Foreign sightseers fall 99% amid coronavirus restrictions

TOKYO -- Kyoto and other cities in Japan should focus on attracting visitors from within the country, analysts say, as the novel coronavirus pandemic has almost completely wiped out foreign visitors.

Kyoto's tourism plan calls for 3 million overseas visitors spending the night each year. Actual numbers had easily exceeded the target, hitting 4.5 million visitors in 2018, with the sector as a whole bringing in more than 1 trillion yen ($9.3 billion) in revenue to the city. But the situation has taken a dramatic turn this year.

Japanese business travel to Vietnam to resume with trial flight

Japan's tourism sector sees 1-2 years for rebound: nikkei survey, foreign visitors to japan fall 99.9% amid pandemic, japan set to lift quarantines for business travelers in summer, coronavirus-torn asia looks to reconnect with 'travel bubbles', latest on travel & leisure, china may day travel set to test consumer appetite for spending, niseko gin shows japanese resort offers more than skiing, from kyoto to kamakura, japan braces for new surge in overtourism, sponsored content, about sponsored content this content was commissioned by nikkei's global business bureau..

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Covid robbed Kyoto of foreign tourists – now it is not sure it wants them back

City that had 8 million overseas visitors in 2019 – including free-spending parties of Chinese people – is getting used to the peace and quiet

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U ntil a couple of years ago, negotiating the hill leading to one of Kyoto’s most popular temples would have tested the patience of a Buddhist saint. The arrival of yet another coachload of sightseers would send pedestrians fleeing to narrow paths already clogged with meandering visitors on their way to Kiyomizu-dera .

That was before Covid-19. Today, the cacophony of English and Chinese, and a smattering of other European and Asian languages, has been replaced by the chatter of Japanese children on school excursions. Shops selling souvenirs and wagashi sweets are almost empty, their unoccupied staff perhaps reminiscing about more lucrative times.

Two years into the pandemic, some of the ancient capital’s residents admit that they have learned to embrace life without foreign visitors, who were once welcomed for the money they ploughed into the local economy and resented for their cultural faux pas and, in some cases, staggering bad manners.

The global boom in Japanese pop culture and cuisine, a weaker yen and fading memories of the March 2011 nuclear disaster in Fukushima turned the country into a tourism success story. In 2019, a record 31 million people visited from overseas – an estimated 8 million of them including Kyoto in their itinerary.

Buoyed up by its successful bid to host the 2020 summer Olympics, the government set an ambitious target – to which it continues to cling – of 60 million overseas visitors by the end of this decade.

But after two years of the toughest borders restrictions in the world, Japan’s tourist boom feels as if it belongs to a different age.

By last year, the gains of the previous decade had been wiped out, first by the arrival of the coronavirus, then by new waves that forced the government to abandon plans for a gradual opening up to tourists and other people from overseas. Just 245,900 foreign visitors arrived in Japan in 2021, according to the tourism agency, a drop of 99.2% from pre-pandemic levels.

“It feels very different now,” said the owner of an ice-cream shop near Kiyomizu temple. “There used to be lots of foreign tourists, but now it’s almost empty.”

Despite the loss of revenue, Kyoto residents are divided over the eventual return of significant numbers of overseas visitors.

It wasn’t long ago that the city was at the centre of a backlash against “ tourism pollution ”. Signs were erected in the Gion district warning visitors against trespassing and – a common complaint – pestering passing geiko and maiko entertainers for selfies as they walked to their evening teahouse appointments.

Traffic clogged popular sightseeing spots, while locals struggled to find space on buses crammed with tourists and their luggage. Restaurateurs railed against tourists who made group reservations but failed to turn up.

For now, Kyoto’s tourist economy is dependent on domestic visitors, whose presence ebbs and flows in lockstep with measures to contain the latest wave of coronavirus infections.

Mari Samejima is among the local businesspeople who are eager for the return of the bakugai – explosive buying – unleashed by free-spending parties of Chinese tourists who descended on Kyoto before the pandemic.

“They spent a lot of money here,” said Samejima, who runs a gift shop. “I understand why some people are hesitant about a return to those days – and I have my own doubts – but I’d prefer to see foreign tourists again.”

The number of customers at Yoshinobu Yoshida’s shop, which sells Kyô sensu folding fans, has slumped by as much as 60% over the past two years. “I don’t know what we’ll do if it carries on like this,” said Yoshida, whose shop has stood on the same spot near Kiyomizu for a century. “If I’m honest, I can’t see it returning to normal for another few years.”

With the Omicron surge yet to reach its peak, and Japan’s government showing little enthusiasm for lifting its travel ban , few expect foreign tourists to return to Kyoto soon. And when they do, the numbers are expected to be a fraction of those before the pandemic.

That may not be a bad thing, according to Tomoko Nagatsuka, who remembers hearing more Chinese than Japanese being spoken in her cafe, where weary tourists recharge with green tea and traditional sweets.

“Kyoto isn’t a particularly big city, so too many foreign tourists put pressure on things like public transport,” she said. “They were great for business, but it was difficult to live a normal life with so many of them milling around. Part of me really wants them back, but another part of me loves the peace and quiet.”

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Kyoto Is Implementing More Rules for Tourists — What to Know

Tourists who enter private alleys will be fined.

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The Japanese city of Kyoto is banning tourists from some private alleys in its geisha district.

The city will place signs in both English and Japanese around the area, called Gion, warning tourists to stay clear as well as fine anyone who doesn’t listen, The Associated Press reported . The fine will amount to 10,000 yen ($67.97). 

The public streets in Gion will remain open.

“We are going to put up signs in April that tell tourists to stay out of our private streets,” local district official Isokazu Ota told the wire service.

The decision to ban visitors from these blocks comes as the city has dealt with overcrowding and misbehaving tourists, the AP noted.

This isn’t the first time Kyoto has tried to protect geisha, the women who dress up in traditional kimonos and makeup and perform for customers while they dine. In 2015, the city handed out pamphlets warning against “nuisance activities,” which included taking photos of geisha, CNN reported . And in 2019, Gion again put up signs prohibiting photography and warning of potential fines.

“The people taking pictures of the streets of Gion on the main street and the tourists taking pictures of [apprentice geisha] from afar are probably unaware of the rule against photography,” Ota told CNN . “But I think the foreign tourists waiting for [apprentice geisha] to come out in the alleys of Gion’s photography-prohibited areas know the rules but are ignoring them. Even if we warn tourists, it is difficult to get through to them at this point.”

Kyoto isn’t the only area in Japan cracking down on tourists. The local government for Mount Fuji has also voted to impose limits on daily climbers and charge them a fee as well as place new guides on the mountain to manage safety and enforce etiquette.

However, while certain areas in Japan impose rules to deal with overtourism, the country as a whole is courting visitors. To that end, the country is launching a digital nomad program , which will allow foreigners to travel to Japan and work in an effort to expand tourism. The visa will be offered to visitors from dozens of countries and territories, including the United States.

• The Inventory

Kyoto Looks Different Without All The Tourists

Kyoto, like the rest of japan, has prohibited international travelers.

This June, for the first time in a long time, I went to Kyoto with my kids to see the sights. But like everywhere, the city felt different. S omething was missing. It was summer. The kids needed something to do. Kyoto Prefecture is not far from where I live in Osaka. I can be there in 20 minutes by car. We masked up and planned to social distance and stay outside. But honestly, for a Saturday, in what would usually be some of the most crowded parts of the city, it often seemed like we were alone. I remember walking around Kiyomizu-dera and Yasaka-no-to Pagoda and trying to explain to my two younger sons that it wasn’t usually like this. “It’s typically crowded with people,” I said.

Related Content

Twenty years ago when I first arrived in Japan, Kyoto was overrun with tourists. Of course, it did have a tourist industry, but the city never felt like it was bursting at the seams like it had been until the pandemic started. Recently on 2ch , photos were posted online showing just how empty Kyoto’s tourists spots can be during the pandemic. Below are some comments.

“It’s totally different without foreigners.” “The bus wasn’t crowded which was nice.” “This is what an economic collapse looks like.” “I’m shocked that there’s nobody at the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove.” “How are rental kimono places getting by?” “I really want to visit in November, so keep things like this until then.” “I live in Kyoto, and to be honest, right now is a good chance for sightseeing.”

Over the years, I’ve spent plenty of time in Kyoto, whether that’s been hanging out, visiting sake breweries, or for family reasons like gatherings, weddings, and funerals. But in the last decade, when tourism in Japan, especially to Kyoto, exploded, I found myself going to Kyoto less and less. Getting there is so easy, but driving through Kyoto City, pandemic or not, is always a pain. Then, there were the crowds. Goodness, were there the crowds. In 2019, Kyoto welcomed a record 87.9 million visitors. New, slick hotels sprung up across the city like mushrooms. There was an expectation that these big numbers would get even bigger. Then Covid-19 happen. By April 2020, Kyoto city hotels were reporting a 99.7 percent downturn. The shift was to domestic tourism, but with Covid-19 flareups and repeated states of emergency, even those became hard.

Even without the influx of international visitors, there were flurries of tourist activities. While Kyoto city hotel reported an operating capacity of around 20 percent in July, Japanese tourists flocked to Kyoto’s Arashiyama during the fall, causing a 280.4 percent increase in visitors. Yet, the inevitable seemed to have: rising Covid-19 cases across the country and states of emergency declared.

Spurred by a weak yen and a government eager for foreign cash flows, the Japanese tourist industry started to heat up about ten years ago. Many parts of Kyoto city are simply not designed for the number of visitors that were pouring into the city. When the pandemic hit, Japan closed its boarders to international travelers—as well as students and those with work visas trying to enter the country. Permanent residents were not permitted from leaving Japan initially, but that was changed.

And so has Kyoto. The core of Kyoto, its Kyotoness , remains. But walking around, with visitors prohibited from entering, was a different experience from how it’s been in the past few years.

Back in 2019, I wrote an article for Kotaku called “Tourists Are Causing Headaches In Japan” and another one titled “Tourists in Kyoto Are Making Geishas’ Lives Difficult.” Walking towards the Yasaka-no-to Pagoda this past June, I thought about both articles. They seemed like a million years ago.

I thought about the empty shops I passed. I imagined the disappointment of those who had just opened a profitable hotel, a bar, a restaurant, or another business only years before and were now struggling. I thought about people I knew in the hospitality industry and how things were for them. And I thought about the people who wanted to visit or enter the country for work or school, but couldn’t.

This wasn’t only happening here. It’s happening all over. Places around the world don’t look quite the same. I suddenly felt sad. Navigating the Kyoto sights on foot was easy, sure. Nobody got in my way, and photo opportunities were plentiful and picturesque. But goodness, it was lonely.

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For the time being, foreign nationals who have stayed in any of the areas listed in the following table within 14 days prior to the application for landing are denied to enter Japan, unless special exceptional circumstances are found. Note that foreigners from the countries/regions where the entry bans do not apply are not denied to enter Japan, even when traveling via those countries/regions listed in the table for refueling or transit purpose. Those who entered those countries/regions are, however, subject to the entry ban.

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From 12:00 am (Midnight/JST) December 2, 2021, as an emergency precautionary measure from a preventive perspective against coronavirus variant Omicron (B.1.1.529), validity of visas already issued by December 2, 2021 is suspended except for the status of residence of “Spouse or Child of a Japanese National”, “Spouse or Child of a Permanent Resident” or “Diplomat”. This measure does not apply to foreign nationals who departed from overseas before 12:00 am (Midnight/JST) on December 2, 2021 and arrive in Japan after the time.

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Kyoto becoming more proactive in tackling overtourism

Kyoto, a popular tourist destination with numerous world-famous sightseeing spots, is contending with undesirable effects on the lives of local residents and the natural environment from a soaring influx of visitors.

To address related challenges, the city government implemented enhanced measures last autumn, just in time for the full-scale start of the tourism season.

A key focus of the initiative is mitigating the congestion of buses inundated with tourists, which has adversely affected local passengers.

In an effort to alleviate the strain, the city government made strategic changes. At the end of September, the sale of one-day passes — priced at ¥700 for adults, offering unlimited use of bus services operated by the city government, Kyoto Bus and West Japan JR Bus within flat-fare sections of the city — was discontinued. Additionally, the authorities also decided that the passes would no longer remain valid after the end of March 2024.

Instead, the city government is actively promoting an alternative — a ¥1,000 one-day subway and bus pass. The ticket gives users unrestricted access to all subway and bus lines operated by the city government, as well as nearly all service areas covered by Kyoto Bus, Keihan Bus and West Japan JR Bus. The objective is to alleviate bus congestion by encouraging tourists to use the subway system.

In another effort to ease traffic congestion around tourist attractions, the city government is actively promoting use of a park-and-ride system, with individuals parking their private vehicles at designated lots and utilizing public transportation to reach their intended destinations.

Despite earlier publicity efforts via printed media including leaflets, there was limited success in reaching a large number of tourists from the Kinki and Chubu regions, who frequently rely on private vehicles.

In response, the city government launched the use of social media in 2023. During the months of October and November, the government actively utilized its official account on X, formerly Twitter, to emphasize the advantages of public transportation and share information on accessing tourist spots from parking lots. It also introduced a related website.

In areas with high volumes of tourists, such as the vicinity of Kiyomizu Temple and the Arashiyama area, the Kyoto government implemented additional charges for private vehicle parking. In November, fees for two parking lots were increased by 20%. At a parking lot near Kiyomizu Temple, the fee rose from ¥1,600 to ¥1,920 per use. An official from the city government said, "We will analyze data on traffic congestion and leverage (the findings) in the coming years."

Furthermore, the city government has actively promoted "empty-handed tourism" as part of its strategy against overtourism, aiming to enhance the overall quality of visitor experiences. The initiative reflects concerns that large bags, including suitcases, exacerbate bus congestion.

In September, the city government revamped its dedicated website for information on empty-handed tourism. The number of listed businesses providing temporary baggage storage services was boosted sharply from four to 63, accompanied by integration with Google Maps to facilitate easy location access for site visitors searching for nearby storage service providers and coin lockers.

According to a city government official, some bus drivers have reported a reduction in the number of passengers carrying large bags. Encouraged, the city government is gearing up to intensify efforts for popularizing empty-handed tourism. "We need to communicate relevant information steadily and persistently," the official said.

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• Entertainment

Kyoto outlines 'overtourism' measures for autumn, including extra bus services

September 19, 2023 (Mainichi Japan)

Japanese version

KYOTO -- The Kyoto Municipal Government has compiled a list of "overtourism" countermeasures for the autumn tourist season, such as increasing the number of extra bus services and calling on foreign tourists to behave appropriately.

The autumn foliage season is the peak for crowds in Kyoto every year, and with the relaxation of coronavirus measures expected to bring about a full recovery of visitors this fall, the prevention of overtourism is an urgent issue.

The number of annual sightseers visiting the ancient Japanese capital reached 53.52 million in 2019. It dropped after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, falling to 21.02 million in 2021, but recovered to 43.61 million in 2022 due to the easing of border control measures and other factors.

During the tourist season prior to the pandemic, there were problems caused by visitors, such as the impact of excessive crowding on the lives of local residents, illegal dumping of garbage, and hindrances like sightseeing buses waiting on the streets. With the rapid return of tourists, there is concern that these problems may resurface, and the city has compiled a list of measures to deal with the situation.

Measures to address congestion at sightseeing spots and with transportation services include: increasing the number of extra "Rakuraku line" city bus services that connect railway stations and sightseeing spots; ending the sale of the "one-day bus pass," which allows unlimited daily rides, and instead promoting the use of the "one-day subway/bus pass" to encourage the use of the subway as well; establishing a temporary luggage storage area at JR Kyoto Station to promote "sightseeing without luggage;" and creating a brochure introducing morning and evening events and congestion forecasts.

Regarding measures for tourism etiquette, electronic billboards will be installed at Kyoto and Karasuma Oike subway stations to inform visitors of rules in English, Chinese and other languages. The city is also working with the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) to call on overseas travel agencies and others to help improve tourist behavior through JNTO offices in China, Singapore and Australia.

An official with the municipal government said, "We would like to promote specific initiatives to achieve sustainable tourism that is in harmony with the daily lives of residents."

Kyoto Mayor Daisaku Kadokawa announced on Sept. 14 a supplementary budget plan for general accounts for fiscal 2023 totaling 6.18 billion yen (about $41.8 million), including 140 million yen (some $948,000) for measures to address tourism issues.

(Japanese original by Norikazu Chiba, Kyoto Bureau)

Related Articles

• 'Touristship' raises awareness about problems with too many travelers in Kyoto, beyond
• Crowding on Kyoto buses as tourists return creates headaches for stroller users
• Editorial: Japan needs new strategies for sustainable post-COVID tourism growth
• Kyoto launches crowding forecast map online in English, Chinese to prevent overtourism

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Japan’s struggling tourism sector despairs at lack of COVID exit

Japan is increasingly an outlier in a region that is lifting border restrictions and reviving quarantine-free travel.

When Japan implemented a blanket ban on inbound tourists in April 2020, Andrew William braced for a tough few months.

As revenues from his Kyoto tour company An Design plummeted, William shifted to virtual experiences to keep his business afloat.

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He never could have imagined he would still be struggling more than two years later.

“An Design relies heavily on inbound tourism. Pre-pandemic I was typically leading 20 to 35 walking tours a month. Since March 2020, I have led six walking tours,” William, whose company specialises in tours of Japanese gardens and off-the-beaten-path attractions, told Al Jazeera.

“Making my business here in Japan was a major life goal and I am not going to give up on it so easily. With that being said, this has been extremely difficult and has created an immense amount of stress … I don’t know how much longer I can continue in this way.”

Still largely closed to the world, Japan is increasingly an outlier in a region that for the most part has lifted border restrictions and revived quarantine-free travel.

Although Tokyo has allowed business travellers, foreign students and academics back since last month, tourists are still barred, putting Japan in rare company with China and Taiwan. Most arrivals must also undergo three days of quarantine.

For businesses that depend on tourism, the border controls mean the pandemic recovery has barely had a chance to begin.

Satoko Nagahara, Ludovic Lainé, and Melody Sin, co-founders of Deneb, a luxury travel design company based in Japan, said the industry, while resilient, would take several years to recover.

“We recently surveyed luxury hotels throughout Japan, asking various questions related to the pandemic,” Nagahara, Lainé and Sin told Al Jazeera by email. “One of the commonly agreed perspectives by hoteliers is that, pending there is no major negative event related to the pandemic, it will take about two years before the industry thrives again thanks to the international visitations.”

Anne Kyle, CEO and founder of Arigato Travel, told Al Jazeera the past two years have been stressful, though pivoting to online tours has allowed her to keep some cash flow going.

“But I’ll be very honest, we are on borrowed money,” said Kyle. “We are on the verge of using personal savings to keep the company running.”

Tourism boom

Tokyo’s initial ban on tourists came in response to the first wave of COVID-19 infections in early 2020 and at a time when the Japanese travel industry was booming.

Following the loosening of visa rules under then prime minister Shinzo Abe, Japan witnessed inbound tourism growth for eight consecutive years, with overseas visitors peaking at 32 million arrivals in 2019.

Some 40 million visitors were predicted for 2020, the year the Tokyo Olympics were initially scheduled to take place, while the government set a target of 60 million visitors by 2030. International visitors’ economic contribution increased year on year over the period, with 4.81 trillion yen ($3.8bn) spent in 2019 alone.

“In terms of pure positive impact on domestic consumption activity, tourism is not overhyped,” Jesper Koll, a Tokyo-based economist, told Al Jazeera. “In addition, the border closures disproportionally hit the regional economies where the inbound boom had a much more disproportionally positive impact.”

There was hope in travel circles that borders might reopen after most of the population was vaccinated – 80 percent have received at least two shots –  a surge of the Omicron variant subsided, and border controls came down in neighbours such as South Korea and Malaysia.

A post on the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ website earlier this month appeared to herald an end to the protocols, stating: “The following 106 countries will not be subject to denial of permission to enter Japan from 0:00 am (JST) on April 8, 2022.”

But those hopes were soon dashed when the government confirmed the changes only applied to returning residents and family members with extenuating circumstances, students enrolled in Japan-based study programs, and work permit holders, all of whom will be subject to reduced self-isolation periods if they fulfil the necessary criteria.

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 “relaxation of border measures”.

Further complicating Japan’s reopening prospects is a steadily rising number of COVID-19 cases, as well as the recent discovery of the Omicron XE hybrid variant in a traveller who arrived at Narita Airport from the United States.

Tokyo has responded to rising infection rates and new variants with more stringent restrictions in the past , raising fears that tourist-friendly border policies could still be some way off. In a December poll by the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest daily newspaper, almost 90 percent of respondents said they were in favour of tough border controls.

Some pundits have drawn parallels between the pandemic years and the Sakoku era, a period of more than 200 years during which Japan cut itself off from the outside world.

Koll, however, said Japan simply has its own narrative.

“And it is not just a narrative of caution, but also one of lost national confidence because of Japan’s inability to develop a vaccine on its own,” Koll said. “This narrative of overdependence on global rather than local innovation has stifled a more effective and more rational global communications strategy.”

Kumi Kato, a Professor of tourism at Wakayama and Musashino universities, agreed the communication surrounding Japan’s border measures has been confusing, but said such problems have not been exclusive to Japan. Kato said the pandemic could also be an opportunity for Japan to course correct on unsustainable tourism.

“Japan should use the COVID downturn to improve aspects of tourism“, Kato told Al Jazeera. “Japan was not quite ready for a big influx of tourism … The new policy of focusing on sustainability, but not hurrying to increase inbounds, I hope will be effective and show results when the border opens up more freely.”

For small business owners like Kyle, who also runs the Japan Foreign Tourism Professionals private Facebook group, the question of when that will actually happen feels almost as uncertain as ever.

“A lot of people in the group were very optimistic, but are now getting impatient,” Kyle said. “It’s very hard to predict [when the borders will reopen] as it’s not clear what data the government officials are using.”

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Kyoto Hotels Facing Serious Labor Shortages After Post-COVID Tourism Rebound

By Seira Unegouchi / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:05 JST, November 19, 2023

KYOTO — As Kyoto enters autumn tourism season, its hotels and accommodation facilities are facing serious labor shortages. After the subsiding of COVID-19, the number of foreign tourists visiting Japan has steadily increased and the percentage of occupied hotel rooms in Kyoto is expected to reach nearly 90%. However, competition for workers is increasingly fierce due to the opening of many new hotels in the city as well as chronic labor shortages, making it more difficult for accommodation facilities to hire enough workers.

Canceled group reservations

On Nov. 3, the first day of a three-day weekend in early November, the Togetsukyo bridge in the Arashiyama district of Kyoto was crowded with tourists.

Despite that, hotel representatives did not look cheerful. “Even though we try to recruit workers, we do not have enough applicants. We are managing to operate by increasing work shifts for existing employees,” a hotel representative said. The hotel has failed to fill staff positions for its restaurant, which had laid off employees during the pandemic when it had less customers. The hotel manages to make up for the labor shortage by hiring short-term casual workers via phone apps, but it sometimes must cancel reservations from large groups of guests, according to the representative.

The Kyoto Ryokan Watazen in Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto, which has been in operation since the Edo period (1603-1867), cut its capacity in half during the pandemic. Now, accommodation demand has improved due to students on school excursions, but the ryokan still operates at half-capacity.

Masayo Ono, 39, the okami proprietress of the ryokan, said, “We cannot compromise the quality of our hospitality just because we are short-handed. We must also protect the work environment of our employees.”

According to the Kyoto City Tourism Association, about 43.61 million tourists visited Kyoto last year. By month, November, which is the fall foliage season, saw the largest number of visitors at about 4.68 million and the room occupancy ratio at hotels was 80.2%, exceeding 80% for the first time in three years. As many foreign tourists have spent nights in hotels this year, the ratio is expected to reach 89.2% in November this year, the same as the pre-pandemic level.

Specific to Kyoto

Labor shortages at hotels are a national problem. According to the labor force survey by the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, the number of people working in the hotel industry stood at 530,000 people in 2022, which is 120,000 down from before the pandemic in 2019.

In June, city tourism association conducted a survey on 152 businesses in Kyoto including accommodation facilities. According to the results, 70% of the respondents said they were short-staffed. By industry, 46% of respondents in the hospitality industry said they faced labor shortages. Many people apparently avoid working in the industry due to being required to work at all hours of the day and night and working conditions such as wages. On top of that, there are reasons specific to Kyoto.

According to the Kyoto municipal government, the city has 650 hotels and accommodation facilities, up 100 over the past six years. Many large foreign-capital hotels and luxury hotels have opened recently, and they are competing to secure workers.

Many tourists spend nights in Kyoto, which also has an impact. A hotel group introduced automatic check-in machines two years ago to address the labor shortage. However, it has stopped using the machines and receptionists handle check-in and other operations now. “If there is no one at the front desk of the hotel, we are not able to provide information on tourism and restaurants for our guests,” a representative of the hotel group said.

Subsidies for recruitment

Aiming to address labor shortages at hotels, the city tourism association launched a subsidy program in October to provide up to ¥50,000 to hotels and accommodation facilities to place online recruitment ads. The association also plans to create a video to communicate the appeal of working in the hotel industry.

Mitsuo Fujiyama, a researcher at the Japan Research Institute Ltd. who is knowledgeable about the tourism economy, said, “The central government and municipalities, which aim to make Japan a travel destination, need to provide long-term support for accommodation facilities to secure and train workers. Accommodation facilities should make efforts to improve efficiency in their operations by utilizing means such as information technology.”

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