Friday, September 2, 2022
It’s been almost three months from the time Japan gently opened the door and welcomed international tourists on stern, guided tours, after experiencing COVID-19 related border restrictions for two years.
However, predictably keeping in mind the criteria for entry, international tourists have returned in a trickle rather than a wave.
In July, the number of foreign arrivals to Japan in general stood at 178,679, topping 100,000 for the fourth straight month after simplifying COVID-19 border control rules in March.
But, in July, the number of tourists was only 7,903 as the statistic in June was just 252, as per the data published by the Immigration Services Agency.
With industry stakeholders getting worried that international visitors may soon make other plans and delay Japan visit, Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida declared on Wednesday that the Japan government will ease its border controls further to make it seamless for international travellers to visit the country, emphasizing that the easy rules will help the industry to take the benefit of a continually weak yen.
Kishida explained that the daily arrival cap will be raised to 50,000 by Japan from the current 20,000 on Sept. 7 and permit the admission of non-escorted visitors on package tours.
As long as the travellers book flights and accommodation through a Japanese travel agency, individual travellers will be able to enter the country, as per a government official.
Tags: COVID-19 pandemic, inbound tourism, japan
Monday, March 20, 2023
