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Forum - View topicNEWS: Japan to Allow Limited Tourist Entry From U.S., Australia, Thailand, Singapore
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ValkyrieZeroZeroOne
 Posts: 434 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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Fingers crossed that all goes well and the country opens up fully. June is earlier than I'd have expected it to open up to full tourism, but I'm not going to complain, especially if that also means entry numbers would go up further later. I'm currently booked to land in Tokyo on the morning of the 30th of September, so I'm still hopeful.
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fencer_x
Posts: 281 |
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It's so much cheaper and easier for my friends and family to come see me than vice versa right now, and I have several friends who have been wanting to move back for literal years now but haven't been able to because of visa issues.
I'm very very excited for this and praying it goes smoothly with no worrying numbers spikes that will cause them to close back up again. |
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OrangeRafi
Posts: 88 |
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This sounds great except the line that says "you will need to be on a tour, which will be strictly planned & accompanied at all times by tour conductors.". No thanks, I like exploring Japan on my own pace. Japan is actually one of the countries that best to explore without using any tours at all even if you don't understand Japanese. Part of the experience is using their superb train network and going around cities and countryside and figuring your way out.
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wmderemer
 It...it's not like I post for you or anything! Posts: 308 Location: Stroudsburg, PA |
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Certainly understandable. Some people want to go on their own and explore, like you. Some are willing to join a tour group and follow an itinerary, like I will be doing next March for my 1st trip to Japan. Nothing wrong with either approach. I understand the reason they are starting with organized tours 1st, as it makes it easier for contact tracing if something does go wrong...(though I fear that means the 2 'free days' in my tours' itinerary will have to be filled with a scheduled activity instead...) After my 1st trip, I may feel like you do for my next trip...who is to say? I hope whenever Japan opens fully to self-guided tourism, you have a great time! |
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omoikane
Posts: 494 |
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https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14623293
Localities have to opt in for the tour group trial. That's hilarious. This is so many levels of pols bending to xenophobia. Allowing tour groups also doesn't address all the humanitarian reasons why this is still outright terrible and the baby steps have zero logic and basis in science. |
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luisedgarf
Posts: 670 Location: Guadalajara, Mexico |
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Meanwhile, no country have the guts to do the same against the Japanese. But, I guess the well-being of those military bases in Japan is more important for the Americans, right, folks? Last edited by luisedgarf on Tue May 17, 2022 11:40 am; edited 1 time in total |
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kuma991
Posts: 106 |
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So, not unlike North Korea then?
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Jariten
Company Representative
 Posts: 180 Location: Here and there |
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Don’t worry, the whole “free days need to be free” bit will be one of the big, BIG things I’ll be bringing to Japan’s attention on the trip next week. We got ya. 
- Evan (PacSet) |
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SenpaiDuckie
ANN Community Manager
 Posts: 531 Location: PH |
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Please stick with the topic: Japan's reopening of entry for tourists. This isn't about Japan military security
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Greboruri
Posts: 390 Location: QBN, NSW, Australia |
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That's absolutely appalling. With so many restrictions and the added hurdle of having local governments allowing the tour groups to come into their prefectures, why would even bother with going over? The elections for the Japanese House of Councillors is happening in late July, and it's been suggested that things may change after then and this absurd proposal to recommence tourism. In other words, they don't want to get offside with voters. The whole thing is pretty bizarre as both the Abe and Suga governments had increased tourism as a key policy into order help the economy. Tourism did contribute up to around 2% of GDP to the economy up to early 2020, so this seems like cutting off your nose to spite your face. Even if they relent and go back to their pre March 2020 policies, I really feel that I'm not wanted over there and may not do my planed trip there. |
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ZiharkXVI
Posts: 390 |
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Limited is the right word. I was planning a trip back before Covid and I think I'll hold off. I'm not getting one more shot just to get in (still got Covid even with a double vaccine, so my incentive is exceptionally low), and I definitely don't want to go with a group. Not to knock their policy logic, but if their effort is to be able to trace covid infections, what's a couple more months gonna do? Is June the month they suddenly won't care? Doubt it.
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Covnam
 Posts: 3853 |
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Nothing wrong with doing your own thing completely or touring completely, but even on a tour you still should have the freedom to do your own thing if you want (as long as it doesn't interfere with the rest of the group). This sounds way too restrictive and controlling, so I'm not sure who this would really appeal too, but I guess whatever gets things finally moving towards opening.
Personally I can't wait till they open back up so I can go again, but with numbers on the up swing I'm not itching to travel either, so I'm not really chomping at the bit either
Hey Evan! Speaking from experience, if you're traveling with PacSet I'm sure you'll have a great time! |
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enurtsol
 Posts: 14896 |
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"The limited opening to tourism will serve as a trial run for the POSSIBILITY of a full opening of the country to tourism in June" June is not guaranteed. I presume if something bad happens during the planned-tour trial run, then that may be pushed further back |
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ValkyrieZeroZeroOne
Posts: 434 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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The planned travel groups would have to have had a reasonable amount of knowledge about this already otherwise it would be difficult to get everything planned on such short notice. Given that the Japan Times is reporting that the initial plan for this to happen was last November before Omicron slammed Japan's borders shut completely, maybe these groups have been ready to go since then. All in all, the Japanese government is in a precarious position. There's popular support for keeping the borders closed to prevent the spread of Covid (despite it not being all that effective). On the other hand, businesses in Japan that rely on tourists have been suffering the last two and a half years. Many have fallen by the wayside already. |
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Jariten
Company Representative
Posts: 180 Location: Here and there |
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THANK YOU! <3 I can talk a bit about the November/December tours: those were completely different groups and itineraries, and also included a 3 day quarantine (which the new groups do not). The new tours are organized by many of the same Japanese travel agencies but have different destinations. They're also limited to 4 people for some reason (insert your favorite "4 = shi = death joke here). As someone that has run trips to Japan for 12 years (and has stopped calling them "tours" because it's inaccurate and gives people the wrong idea), I believe that any good trip, whether you go solo or with a group, HAS to allow for some degree of exploration and time away from a set itinerary. I can't overstate this enough: travel is a VERY personal experience. How you respond to it is as much a reflection of who you are as much as it is of the culture you visit; it's not a one-size-fits-all experience. That also means that when someone gives you a list of "MUST VISITS" for your solo trip, you should take them with a grain of salt; I've heard countless tales of woe from travelers who go solo and have an awful time because they're following someone else's list of must-sees. What I believe Japan is trying for with these tours is to get an idea of how to re-start things without creating a panic. In Japan, that means running tours subject to a billion precautions before either: 1) tours continue following the same unnecessarily restrictive rules OR 2) the borders are flung open and the test tours are touted as an example of how Japan "tested the waters" to placate the more conservative supporters of the LDP. We shall see... |
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