Resumption of tourism - Latest info?

I'm so disappointed in <insert country here>. The Xenophobia, the lack of transparency, the slow work being done
That comment does not apply only to Japan - I can think of a dozen other countries that followed and still follow similar approaches - slow, opaque, and anti-traveler.

�e They have mentioned reliability of pre-depaturing testing in countries of origin in the media the past �c�f
All well & good in theory. A few days ago, a friend (vaxxed with 4 doses) left Aus with negative PCR but tested positive at Narita on arrival. He caught Covid on the plane. Quarantined for 10 days, thus missing out on the recent sports event.
His next event is straight on to the plane to return home.

if Japan uses the data of current infection rate of each country for categorization, probably, USA and EU will be categolized as unsafe countries.
Japan takes a risk for accepting people from high infection rate countries.
why are you complaing ?

most of countries have already gave up to fight the virus, whereas some countries, like China, still are fighting. so, conditions for tourists should be different, depending on countries, already given-up or still fighting.

counties, like USA and others, considerable numbers of weak-body people were already dead by the fight. in Japan, they are still alive. (1000000 was dead in USA, while 30000 in Japan.) so, don't say stupid and selfish complaings. your complainments show your lacks of intelligence and considration for weak body people.
your comming is a risk for weak-body people living in Japan.
therefore, slow opeining of the boader is quite understandable.

your comming is a risk for weak-body people living in Japan.

That's the misconception at the very heart of the problem! Travelers arriving in Japan have been tested negative within 72 hours of arrival (and currently once more at the airport) and are above-average vaccinated. If anything, they pose a lower risk to the weak-body people in Japan than the common people living in Japan who have not recently been tested and on average are less vaccinated.

I simply do not subscribe to the theory that travelers pose a higher risk! But even if they were to pose a slightly higher risk, is international isolation really worth the huge economic and reputational damage? I certainly do not think so.

Closing the borders made perfect sense when there were no Omircon cases in Japan yet. But as soon as the virus spread domestically, the isolation stopped making scientific sense. I am shocked by this widespread absence of pragmatic thinking, especially among top politicians.

Except that Japan historically hasn't been particularly fond of visitors, and that isnt something that changes in the blink of an eye. Just as my country (Australia) at its roots fears other cultures, even though it professes to be multicultural. Xenophobia waiting for a platform, and COVID gives it.

Xenophobia exists everywhere. And it does not surprise me that it is widespread among the common people in Japan and elsewhere. What really shocks and disappoints me is that - unlike with Abe and Suga - it is now embraced by Japan's prime minister.

your comming is a risk for weak-body people living in Japan.

Yes! this nonsense xenophobic statement is essentially the same that Edo bakufu had for keeping japan closed for more than 250 years. Keep this evil gaijin out of the "land of the Gods"!!, expel barbarians!!

Japanese nationals are free to travel in and out of the country, but only gaijin are the ones who are a risk for weak-body people living in Japan? Apart that is already proven that, in current situation, and with vaccines already working, travellers are not a higher risk for anything.

Japan always had a taste for being isolated from the world, covid has been just an excuse for another �½�‘

History repeating again

foreign nationals who have resident statuses can go in and out from Japan. so, the restriction is not specific for foreigners. it can be said that the restriction is non-resident specific.

don't tell lies or exaggarate it for insist on your selfish desire.

Japan can decide thier actions by theirselves. you need to learn minimum politeness as human.
moreover, because of the reason that the situation is inconvenient for you, don't accuse others with bad words.

to Uji,
personally, I don't trust Japanese government, but, I understnad that they need some time to decide it.
I think no one in Japan believes that the war to the virus was over. the govenment needs some evidence (or some time) to convince people.
politics is not scientific and not logical. people may believe non-scientific things.
if I say my personal opinion, the previous prime minister, Suga, did better action, but he failed to convince people. the present prime minster, Kishida, do nothing, but he is succesful to convince people right now. politics is always like that.
one thing more, I think Japan is successful to stop the virus spreading well, but, this success story makes a new dilenma by which they hesitates the re-opening. I think this is an example that everthing has a front and a back. it is difficult to win all the time.

ken, I fully agree.

it can be said that the restriction is non-resident specific.

https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13860577

https://www.trtworld.com/magazine/dear-japanese-government-please-let-...

so, I wasn't telling lies at all, foreigners have had a different status than japanese during this pandemic, and these sources are little examples of treament they have received, ask them about the selfinesh you claim we have.

Apart from that, for you is it impolite pointing to the historical fact that japanese liked seclusion and self-isolation? And what happened with covid is just a reflection of that?

to smes,
are you posting the above one from the year2021 ?
now, at present it is 2022.
everyone in this forum are arguing 2022's situation.

when in 2020 and 2021, Japanese did not traveled internationally so frequently, because the government said "stop un-necessary travels". but, during that time, foreigners, who had resident status, freely went out from Japan and got in, because their nations accepted their people freely. Japanese could not travel freely at that time, because foreign governments refused foreigners (non-citizen's) travels.

according to the common sense of Japan and other civilized countries, each country is responsible for individual nationality holder. i.e. Japan is responsible for Japanese nationality holder. Japanese have a right to return to Japan at any time, and the government can't refuse it. but, resident status for foreigners is not a right. it is a permission. permission can be canceled and can be stopped.
you can go back to your country at anytime, but Japanese need to get a permission to go to your country. so, it is same.

by the way, currently in Japan, there is almost no argument for re-opening the boarder. no TV NEWS, no statement from opposite political parties. I think no one is interested on this. or they (who are on the opposite side of the government) think it is not a good timing to argue this. very calm. so, posters, who complained about the governmental regulation, probably don't know real Japanese situations.
generally speaking, intellectual and sophisticated Japanese don't speak too much, before someone decides the direction. they may try to speak out, only when it goes a wrong direction, because it is a good chance to evaluate someone's ability for leadership. so, if a Japanese don't say anything, you could be tested. it is the time when the prime minister, Kishida is tested. the result will highly influence the election in July, I believe. we are doing games, under the circumstances different from this forum poster's positions, although posters only have interest on visiting Japan. have a good insight to see through the truth and fact from miscellaneous matters.

Dear Ken, probably you have not been affected like many of us, for you, it is easy to defend the stupidity of the Japanese government and how they branded the pandemic, and how that evolved into something far worse than you may imagine.

My expertise is soft power and diplomacy. Whenever you think of Japan and Japanese people/culture, whenever there is an issue in the world in which Japan is involved the vast majority of people would side with Japan. That is public opinion putting a lot of pressure on their governments. Now that is about to change due to the polemic rising with xenophobia.

Let's put that aside for a second.

Do you know how many relationships ended due to the partners not being able to meet each other for 2 years? Do you know how many people missed their loved ones while they passed 10000km away for the fear of not being able to return? I myself have lost many of those things mentioned above. I also live in a country, where in march they decided "the pandemic has ended". And guess what? The number of deaths per day is either 0 or a one-digit number. The number of people in the hospital is at 5-10% of what it was 3 months ago. Living in a country where the pandemic ended 2 months ago, you will soon understand how useless all the measures are.

I bought a house in Japan in Dec 2019, I renovated the house via the internet with a local company, and still am not allowed to go unless I book a tour and visit it. Have been vaccinated, I don't mind quarantine, I don't mind 10000 PCR test... still not allowed. It's not about being safe, Ken. IT NEVER WAS. Because if that was the issue, they would have allowed tourists willing to spend 5-14 days in quarantine with multiple PCR testing. But they did not, and they are not. It is true that a foreigner tourist who has only 2 weeks of vacation might skip Japan, in such a case, but there are those who would not.
I'm paying taxes to local authorities, and I have paid at least a hundred of millions of yen in my interaction with Japan, and yet they have treated everyone with a lot of disrespect.

I have friends that have residency and before October 2020, were not allowed to return to Japan regardless of that. A friend who had a visa to study only was allowed to enter a month ago, after 2 years of waiting.

I have been in Thailand in February, the measures might have helped but once you were in you could get the virus from any local that was or was not vaccinated, but carried the virus all over the workplace (hotel/spa/restaurant).

A country has the right to protect itself. But when there are double measures, hypocrisy and rules to look good on papers, that HAVE NO EFFECT on protecting anyone life, then your defending of it makes you part of it.

Side story to highlight that not only Japan is stupid: I made my vaccine in late July 2021, went again in Viena, Austria in March 2022, and got told my 2 dose expired around February 2022 as they restricted the 2 doses of vaccine certificate to 6 months valability only. So at the border they tell me I need to make a test, which I do willingly. I get at the hotel, they inform me as my vaccine has expired a month ago, even though I had a negative test result, and I was getting tested daily at a lab, could not eat breakfast in the dining area, only in my room. I was negative every day, my friend who I was traveling with had the booster and got Covid probably in the hotel and was allowed to eat at breakfast in the restaurant. Everytime I was going to a restaurant then I had to relay on the mercy of the staff to allow me to eat, even with a negative result done a few hours back.

Japan is acting in the interest of public opinion, no in the interest of public health safety.

Back to the topic, based on the friends I have working in the Japanese Government, they will allow a large number of tourists from October 2022 if the trial (June-August) is successful. The rules of entry, if any are unknown.

I agree with MirceaM. There were ways to allow couples, relatives and even tourists into the country with minimum risk yet they didn't.

I'm one of those couples that broke up due to these 2 years without being able to enter the country to meet. My ex works like crazy (like many in Tokyo) and they didn't give him vacations long enough to come visit me, so I was supposed to travel there yet never got to (still got the ticket for September though, after rescheduling it thrice).

I've got 4 shots of COVID vaccine and I was willing to do all the PCR needed and quarantine for as long as they asked. Some countries created a "couples and relatives" visa, with their own criteria to fullfil, but Japan didn't care about us at all.

Work stress plus all this uncertainty regards the entry ban, not to mention the emotional pain of being apart for two full years from your significant other, made my ex fall into depression and he ended the relationship in hopes it would "relieve" him somehow of at least some stress.

It was extremely painful (and stills is) to see someone you love struggle all by himself with depression, unable to be there to support and help him. It's devastating to get your hopes up each time an announcement is made just to have them crushed again. It's heartbreaking not being able to make any plans at all because there's absolutely no plan or schedule announced, not even an estimation, to work with and feel like it's just a little longer.

It's complete darkness and it brings so much despair that I cannot even imagine what those who lost someone without being able to say goodbye must feel...

Thought i'd already posted this but...

..apologies, having some internet issues here..

Anyway, I'd like to take a vote please..who thinks it will be possible to enter Japan on 14th July for a tourist? Just asking for general feeling/opinion.
We have to take a very expensive gamble and I have no information to go on!

thank you

It's kind of irrelevant what any of us think because the only people who really have any clue what is going on are in the government and possibly a very select few in the travel industry. But if you really want a random nobody's opinion then I would say that there is close to zero chance of entry for independent tourists at any point in July.

The daily entry limit will be 20,000 starting from June, so I think that going from that small of a number to basically opening the floodgates for anyone to come in within the space of only a month or two is extremely unlikely.

Changes are absolutely happening and we are heading towards a reopening, I don't think any reasonable person would argue that isn't the case, but in my opinion it is going to be constant, gradual changes rather than a complete reversal of what has been a popular policy for over two years now. Maybe, MAYBE we can expect things to start happening at a faster pace after the election, but who knows really.

If what you are really asking is should you take a very expensive gamble on July, then no, absolutely do not do that. Wait until later in the year when we have more information.

Liz..thank you.
It makes more sense to cancel our trip to Japan. I just can't imagine that things will change in time for us, this year. Even if we get to go this year, we still have to face 14 hours flight, even if it is in premium economy.

One thing i have noticed is that very few agents mention the actual time a flight is going to take from the UK. I have been tracking a couple, which have been taking longer and longer. Initially it was 13 hours, now it's over 14 (up 5 hours on our original route via Helsinki). Most ticket sites and agents are selling these flights with the original timings still. Imagine when you pay up and get your final itinerary, you realise you have a whopping 14 hour flight!

There is going to be some sort of announcement tomorrow, so I'd hold off until then.

It seems Japan will open the door for the foreign tourists from next month.
For further details, please refer to the website below:
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/japan-travel-covid-19/index.htm...

This is quite interesting...

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2022/05/07c03f97fe7d-breaking-news-...

...but not enough is known yet for us to assume that they are truly going to open the doors as soon as next month. My main question is, how would that be compatible with the daily entry limit of 20,000 people? On a busy day at Narita it sometimes feels to me like 20,000 people are entering every hour. Expect any reopening (if one happens at all) next month to be very limited.

Needless to say I am sceptical, but the fact that this seems to be something that is even being discussed and considered by the government makes me feel hopeful that things may be moving faster than I thought. Could it be that I will actually get to go back this calendar year?