Timeframe on US travel restrictions to Japan?

We have reservations to travel from the United States to Japan on May 7th, 2020 (which is 40 days from now). It appears that Japan recently placed travel restrictions (requiring a 14 day quarantine in Japan) upon arriving there from the US. I'm trying to find out if our trip might still be possible by then, or if the restrictions will still be in place. And, if the restrictions ARE still in place by then, when might be a good time, during 2020, to reschedule our trip? Thanks, in advance, for any assistance!

Quarantine measures are currently set to last through April; however - sorry for the pessimism - they are most likely going to be extended beyond that. And it is currently more likely that measures will become stricter rather than the other way around, e.g. the visa-waiver program with the US may get suspended and entry from the US may become impossible without a good reason (recreational travel would not be considered a good reason).

Ummm... let me ask my crystal ball ...

It will totally depend on the evolution of the coronavirus infection in the US, Japan and elsewhere. Seeing that the US surpassed China within a few days in number of infected and infections continue to grow exponentially and there isn�ft a full lockdown it is unfortunately reasonable to assume that number of infections will continue to rise in the US continuously for quite some time. Even once the situation starts to get under control I would expect that it will still take a few weeks before travel restrictions are stopped. Eg in China it seems that the situation is relatively well controlled but still travel from China is prohibited.

Regarding when is a good time to come to Japan in general (ie in a normal year) I�fd say April, May, mid Sep- end Nov. but actually also Jan, Feb can be nice as it is generally dry. But vegetation is obviously a bit dimmed.

Stay healthy and safe!

I would start making contingency plans now. The situation in the US is currently getting worse, not better. There's a pretty good chance US passport holders won't be able to enter on visa waiver soon, as is already the case for some European countries.

When you go is down to your personal preference and when it is possible to go. I would reschedule for July/August because I like the summer weather. Basically all times of year are good for somebody, so decide for yourself but be aware that there is no way to say when travel restrictions will be lifted as the situation is changing daily and policy is changing to reflect this.

Nobody knows the future. My trip in April got cancelled, and I was thinking to reschedule it for Nov/Dec. But even that looks too optimistic now. Things may settle in the US, but not necessarily in Japan. Nobody knows.

Three up to six month seems to be the minimum timeframe.

The month of May seems totally unrealistic.

I'm in the US, I had been hoping to go back to Japan in June like I've done multiple times over the past few years. I am expecting it not to happen because either things are too serious in the US for travel or things are too serious in Japan or both. I'm now hoping for February 2021. I actually really enjoyed my trip in February 2020 right before everything started closing .

I would not plan a trip anywhere anytime before September unless it is easy to cancel for a full refund.

Good luck!

Depending where you are in the US you might find getting to the airport is not permitted - even in May. Arriving into Japan I (like others) would guess that quarantine measures could still be in place for arrivals from the US.
As for future time frame, some of the airlines I track have basically suspended everything until the end of June so planning anything before then wouldn't make much sense.
For re scheduling - late summer to autumn is nice (September to November inclusive).

It looks like the US will soon be added to the list of countries from where entry into Japan will be refused without special reason and that the visa-waiver program will be suspended.

even in May. Arriving into Japan I (like others) would guess that quarantine measures could still be in place for arrivals from the US.

Knowing the current outbreak in the USA, what Uji said, IMHO, would be a certainty.

News has spread that Japan was/is hiding infection rates as they hoped the Olympics were happing in 2020. So besides where you are traveling from, Japan itself is no save option right now.

My flight to Japan in April was cancelled, and so I got a voucher so that I can rebook for another 12 months. But I'm quite sad because it wasn't an ordinary trip for me, it wasn't a holiday. I was coming to Japan to get married, we had planned it for months and now it was swept away from us because British people also can't travel to Japan right now. I'm thinking to rebook a flight for the beginning of August, but I'm still not really sure if that is a good idea. I think that the UK and hopefully Japan will start to stabalise the virus from around late July or the middle of September, but who knows? The idea of having to wait a year or more apart from my fianceé is really damaging to the soul.

I think May/June/July would be quite impossible, as the infection rates in the US are surging, so Japan will very likely put American passport holders under the same restrictions as the UK and many other countries. I would highly recommend trying to get a refund or a voucher of some kind so that you could reschedule your flight, because I'm sure new travel restrictions will come into place for American citizens, too.
If they don't make new restrictions and your visit is for tourism, then you will have a difficult time for the first 2 weeks as you will be quarantined for 14 days. This also means that when you arrive at the airport you will need to show them proof of where you will be quarantining and what mode of transport you will take to reach the destination. You must take private transport, i.e a friend's car. You can't go by taxi, train or any other form of public transport. This makes it very difficult if you have no connections in Japan.
I understand that it's very confusing and frustrating, if you read about my situation then you can see how I feel, too. But Japan are only doing what they can to protect their people, and so that must be respected. The less people that die worldwide, the better. If we need to wait several months to travel there then that is what we must do.

So make my view clear, I think you should not go in May because it seems very likely Japan will change their travel restrictions for American visitors at any given time. I'll bet in the first or second week of April.
I also think that you should find a way to obtain a refund or voucher of some kind so that you can reschedule your flight. I would not rebook any flights yet if you do this, so that you can watch as events unfold and then pick a flight when the timing seems more guaranteed.
I have been to Japan twice in March, August and September. I thought March was absolutely gorgeous, but that would be an entire year away for you to reschedule. August and September were excellent, too. But if hot weather isn't your cup of tea then I would avoid those months because the temperatures can soar. Considering the virus, I would recommend rescheduling your flight to September/October. This should - hopefully - be a cooling point for the virus and therefore the travel restrictions should hopefully be normal or less strict. Of course, this is all my only opinion and you should definitely keep yourself updated on all matters related to the virus and travel restrictions relating to your country and Japan!

If you take the risk to travel in May and the travel restrictions aren't changed for Americans at that point, that's really great for you and I'm happy for you. But please do remember that you'll need private transport to your location of quarantine. The location and proof of private transport will need to be shown to the immigration inspector, otherwise they could turn you away at the airport. That would be very tragic and I couldn't imagine the despair. So please, do keep that in mind.

Just to add:
These are the steps I'm taking if you are feeling somewhat lost, sorry if I sound rude.

I'm checking every day on the travel restrictions regarding my country (UK) and Japan.
I'm also checking the growth of coronavirus cases between my country and Japan. As long as they're going up, there's no way the travel restrictions are going to change. In fact, they will only get worse.
I'm checking news on the airline I'm travelling with everyday, too (British Airways). This is because due to the cornavirus, there are tons of cancellations and therefore the company is losing mountains of money. This strikes fear in my heart as I wonder if my country along with many others will go into a recession. This would make travel difficult in the future even when the virus is gone.
Lastly, I'm checking every week or so about flights to Japan from the UK. My heart was set on April/May but that seems impossible now. So now I'm thinking of the beginning of August. Right now, August also seems highly unlikely, but events could unfold in the coming months. I'm hoping for significant changes in June.

Maybe you can take the same steps as me, if you are unsure of what you are going to do.
Sorry if I sounded condescending, and for the super long messages. Good luck to you, I hope you will find what you want.

News just in:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/03/30/national/japan-entry-ban-...

Honestly, until everything is back to normal, you will not want to travel to Japan (or most anywhere) for tourism. Things will not be normal. You won't be able to visit all sites and attractions or eat where you want to eat. It won't be the trip that you want. Entry should be the least of your concerns.

Thanks for all the great responses, I really appreciated them. As soon as our confirmed number of Covid-19 cases here in the US started spiking, and with the (still) incredibly slow response from our government, I agree with everyone that restrictions will most likely get worse, long before they get better. I had wanted to see if Japan had given a timeframes, to see what kind of consideration I might potentially be able to pursue with the airline because I really just need them to refund my tickets (rather than issuing a replacement voucher), since I feel that my ability to travel to Japan (with the new travel restrictions in place) should now qualify as frustrated/impractical. I don't want a limited time voucher because I have no clue when these (and future) restrictions will be lifted. Even though I plan to use the same airlines if I'm still able to go sometime in the future. I'm partially waiting to call the airline, about a refund, until a full travel restriction is imposed by either country (which looks to be happening soon) to strengthen my argument for a refund. Thanks again to everyone for all your input!

I would suggest buying the tickets from ANA or JAL directly. I cancelled all my ANA flights, international and domestic for my trip in 3 weeks and they were refunded in full, whatever payment method I used. I don't fly carriers from the US, as their refund policies are atrocious. Something to think about for a future time.

That's why getting tickets through an online agency is often a bad idea - you can get some inexpensive airfares, but if you need to make changes or cancel, it can be a nightmare - even if officially you can get a full refund, you may have to get pushy and aggressive. I've dealt with them before, and the endless waiting on hold, long runaround, and 3 people giving you 3 different answers is nothing new.
A vaccine for the masses will likely not be available for 12-18 months. And like other things like a cold or flu virus, it will almost certainly mutate at some point. We may be dealing with this thing for the rest of our lives, and get a shot like some get a flu shot every year.