japan

September 15, 2022September 15, 2022

Japan Is Allowing 50,000 Visitors Daily With Non-Guided Package Tours Starting 7 September

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced on 31 August that Japan will allow more than double the number of daily visitors as well as non-guided package tours.

As per the announcement, Japan will let 50,000 people enter the country daily starting 7 September. The current figure stands at 20,000.

japan-to-allow-non-guided-tourism-and-raise-daily-entry-caps” data-ylk=”slk:Bloomberg” class=”link “Bloomberg reports that Kishida also said that he wanted to increase visits from people trying to take advantage of a cheap Japanese yen and, as such, wanted to ease border controls.

How Japan started its reopening

Initial rules were extremely strict

Japan opened its doors to foreign tourists in June under a series of strict rules including that visitors will have to take guided tours, be triple vaccinated, and have private medical insurance.

kishida-covid/” data-ylk=”slk:The Japan Times” class=”link “The Japan Times noted that foreign tourists who are visiting under the strict guided package tours are unhappy with the system. This has also resulted in a very small number of visitors to the country.

Though the latest announcement makes allowance for non-guided packaged tours, The Japan Times report says that the details of what is meant by a “packaged tour” was not made immediately clear.

Aim to boost Japan’s tourism economy

In any case, the 31 August announcement is the latest in a series of decisions Japan has taken in the recent months to ease its extremely strict COVID-19 rules and bring the country’s border measures closer to the systems in place in the Group of Seven nations — an aim that Kishida had revealed in May.

The easing of restrictions is, of course, designed to give a boost to Japan’sJapan’s ailing tourism industry. As per Bloomberg, while there were 31.9 million foreign visitors in 2019, the figure

September 14, 2022September 14, 2022

Japan gives green light to non-guided package tours

TOKYO – Japan will conditionally allow foreign tourists to travel without a chaperone from next Wednesday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said.

The daily limit for all arrivals – including Japanese nationals, foreign residents, as well as those entering on business and tourist visas – will be raised to 50,000 from 20,000 people.

Since June, Japan has mandated guided tours for all leisure travellers – a hurdle too high for many prospective visitors who have lamented the lack of freedom.

Japan, which in 2019 received a record 31.9 million visitors, welcomed 8,155 tourists in June and July, said the Immigration Services Agency of Japan. Figures from the Japan Tourism Agency as of last Friday showed that 12,112 tourist visas had been granted for September and another 8,710 for October onwards.

The measures, announced at a news conference on Wednesday, have been cheered as a positive step in Japan’s reopening to tourism, with the country still lagging behind most of the world in easing Covid-19 border controls.

Among the other Group of Seven member countries, Britain, France, Germany and Italy have fully reopened to unvaccinated travellers and have no Covid-19 testing and quarantine requirements.

In the region, Australia, Malaysia and Vietnam have also dropped their border controls.

Mr Kishida, noting that tourism and international exchanges have been on the rebound all over the world, said that the latest steps will “allow foreigners to resume interactions with Japan and to benefit from the weaker yen”.

Yet the impact of the new measures is unclear, given that free-and-easy travel has not resumed and travellers will still be bound by conditions.

First, visas remain mandatory for all travellers. Tourists from all countries must apply for a visa through authorised travel agents by signing up for what Japan describes as a “non-guided package tour”.

September 11, 2022September 11, 2022

The latest holiday rules explained as tour guide requirement is axed

Holidays to Japan are, little by little, returning to normal. First it was announced that its pre-departure Covid-19 test requirement would be dropped for fully vaccinated travellers and, now, as of 7 September, tourists from the UK can visit without a guide.

The cap on daily arrivals has increased from 20,000 to 50,000 and holidaymakers can see the country on a package tour.

Japan began a phased reopening in June, since which foreign tourists have been able to travel to the country on group trips or private tours. Independent travel will still be off the menu, but this update makes Japan that bit more accessible to Britons.

About 300,000 British travellers visited Japan annually pre-Covid. For those wishing to return or who want to grasp the chance to see it after more than two years of closure to tourists, we explain the latest rules.

What are the rules for holidays to Japan?

You can now take a holiday to Japan as part of a package tour. Travellers from all countries will be accepted.

Visitors will still require tourist visas as Japan’s waiver system was suspended during the pandemic. Package travel providers should assist with the process of getting a visa.

Here are the first steps for planning a trip to the country:

Book a package tour
Apply for a visa: 1) Your travel agency will obtain the certificate for registration to the Entrants, Returnees Follow-up System (ERFS); 2) Apply for a visa at an embassy/consulate with the ERFS certificate.

The stipulation on package holidays is to ensure that the holiday provider helps you with obtaining a visa, offers advice on travel in the country, and guidance if you should test positive for Covid-19 while in Japan.

The japan.travel/en/practical-coronavirus-information/”Japan National Tourism Organisation offers further information.

September 6, 2022September 6, 2022

Japan further eases border controls for tourists, allowing non-guided package tours

TOKYO: Tourists will be able to visit Japan from next week on package tours without a guide, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Wednesday (Aug 31), as the country moves to ease strict COVID-19 controls.

From Sep 7, Japan will also raise its daily cap on the number of people allowed to enter the country from 20,000 to 50,000, Kishida told reporters.

Japan has kept strict border restrictions in place longer than many other major economies, and only in June began allowing tourists to visit on the condition they came in tour groups accompanied by guides.

“As international exchange becomes more active worldwide, Japan will join this movement – also from the viewpoint of taking advantage of a cheap yen,” said Kishida, who has himself just recovered from COVID-19.

From the same date, “we’ll also make it possible for tourists from all countries to enter the country on package tours without tour guides, and we will proceed with making entry procedures smoother at airports”, he added.

But the measures fall short of a full reopening and visitors are still required to book their trips through agents and obtain visas.

Public broadcaster NHK and other local media have reported that tourists will be asked to follow isolation guidelines if they test positive for COVID-19 in Japan.

Kishida said he hoped to ease border restrictions further, with industry officials keen to see the return of a waiver programme that allowed tourists from much of the world to visit without a visa.

Japan hopes to eventually “enable smooth entry” in line with other Group of Seven countries, he added.

September 5, 2022September 5, 2022

Japan Relaxes Border Restrictions By Allowing Entry Of Non-Guided International Package Tours

Good news for people heading to Japan. Starting on September 7, Japan allows for non-guided international package tours. Along with this, the cap on the number of tourists entering the country will also be increased.

However, visitors are still required to book their trips via agents and then obtain visas. Along with this, media reports state that tourists will have to follow guidelines issued for isolation if they are tested positive for covid-19 in Japan. Only people with Japanese nationality and people with long-term and pre-issued tourist visas are allowed.

With the ease in border restrictions, the tourism industry is eagerly looking forward to waiving programmes that allow tourists to visit the country without the need for a visa. According to media reports, Japan is hoping to get in line with the other Group of Seven countries to provide smooth entry to visitors.

According to Japan National Tourism Organisation, approximately only 1,44,500 foreign tourists arrived in Japan via group tours in July.

Japan has in place one of the most strict border restrictions. They had also barred the re-entry of foreign residents for several months during the first wave of coronavirus. Starting from June this year, Japan reduced most of its travel restrictions and allowed visitors to enter in tour groups only if they were accompanied by guides.

According to reports, in 2019, Japan had recorded 31.9 million foreign visitors and had aimed to secure 40 million in 2020 before the covid-19 pandemic outbreak.

September 3, 2022September 3, 2022

Japan to Make It Easier for Group Tours to Visit

Japan will allow tour groups without a guide starting next week in the latest lift of its pandemic-era travel rules.

The country, which first reopened to escorted group tours in June, will now allow unescorted visitors on “package tours” starting Sept. 7, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Wednesday, according to The Japan Times. The country will also raise its daily arrival cap to 50,000, an increase from its initial cap of 20,000.

Kishida said he would consider easing border restrictions even further in the future.

“In countries worldwide, international exchange is growing,” Kishida said, according to the site. “To participate in these exchanges and to benefit from the weaker yen, we will raise the daily arrival cap to 50,000 from Sept. 7, as well as allow [tourists on] nonguided tours from all countries to enter the country.”

Under the new rules, tourists will no longer need an escort, but they will still need “sponsors,” or travel agencies in Japan, The Japan Times reported. Individual tourists are still not allowed.

Earlier this month, Japan took another step to ease entry rules, dropping its pre-departure test requirement for travelers who received at least three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. That rule also goes into effect on Sept. 7. Until then, travelers must submit proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of their departure.

Japan’s tourism industry has been struggling. As of the end of July, just over 8,000 foreign tourists had visited the country since it re-opened, The Japan Times noted, citing the Immigration Services Agency.

Japan maintains some of the strictest border rules in the region with countries like Thailand and Singapore dropping testing and quarantine rules and allowing visitors to travel freely.