From what you have seen in Japan's major cities this summer, do you think there are too many foreign tourists visiting the country for the industry to handle?

There are no foreign tourists where I live.

not many.

I remember hordes of chinese,koreans,etc in Osaka before but now...

its easy to understand,amount of people who can afford to ravel to Japan after covid is lower...

even in Kyoto

From what you have seen in Japan's major cities this summer, do you think there are too many foreign tourists visiting the country for the industry to handle?

No I haven’t……..seen any of Japans major cities this summer…..thank gawd!

There are many foreign tourists in Japan but (thankfully) nothing like pre-Covid days. No Chinese tourist groups now. If you hear Chinese being spoken by tourists now they are mostly from Taiwan. South Korean tourists are back and will likely increase as SK/JPN relations continue to improve.

The problem I find in Kyoto is commuting. The busy morning trains also have tourists and their remarkably large suitcases; there just isn't room for them, their bags, and commuters. The city buses are the same.

Driving at the weekends I need to make room for oversize tour buses in places where they really shouldn't be. They are also prone to park up and take up an entire lane when picking up and dropping off passengers causing jams. So personally I think the infrastructure is not up to it yet - in Kyoto anyway

The only one I've been to was Nagano City. There were no foreign tourists in the places we went, no traffic jams, no nothing.

This is just about Tokyo and Kyoto, right?

I'm always astonished at the moaning about 'too many foreign tourists'. People need to take a look at London, Paris, or even Cambridge which I know well. They all take it in their stride, with volumes of tourists way beyond Japan's imagination.

Regretfully for the Japanese there are always too many foreign people in their country.

Just look at it's modern history.

There are just too many tourists.

japan should find a better way to spur economic growth. Relying on tourism is a bad idea.

There are no foreign tourists where I live.

same

It's insane in Central Tokyo - It's only because I have frequented some places for so many years that I am still able to get reservations at relatively short notice.

Coming back to Haneda as I have several times this year for us residents is bad enough. As a tourist it looks like utter hell.

Tokyo ( I cannot comment on the rest of Japan) was totally unprepared for the double whammy of a all covid immigration restrictions being lifted AND a much weakened Yen at the same time.

Aly and Wallace - You see no tourists because there is nothing to see for tourists. In Aly's case,, people are hardly going to visit the suburbs ( no disrespect) and in your case @wallace, no one is going to visit a pensioner town where there is nothing to see but a Costco and a Gyomu,

Pick a lane.

You can trumpet on the world stage your unique omotenashi, or you can say that foreign tourists are some kind of burden.

Rome, london, Paris and Bangkok have no debate over whether or not the tourists are welcome to boost their respective economies.

Why is Japan bleating about people wanting to visit and enjoy this wonderful place?

I find the statement very strange. The goal of the tourist Industry is to have too many tourist, then not enough.

Get out of My Japan! You're running my experience!

ruining

From what you have seen in Japan's major cities this summer, do you think there are too many foreign tourists visiting the country for the industry to handle?

NO.

That's because they STILL don't know how to promote smaller towns and cities.

So, maybe Tokyo, Osaka and Okinawa are packed.

But I doubt anywhere in Kyushu, Shikoku, Hokkaido or lesser known areas are overflowing with tourists right now.

My opinion is not many, but I do see tourists down near Enoshima and Hase for the Big Bhuda, and they are polite and respectful for the most part.

My wife and I travel a lot in Japan and especially during Covid. Everything looked like tourist pamphlets. Three times walking slowly through the Bamboo Forests in Arashiyama had zero other people. Go to Travel was a brilliant concept for locals and permanent residents if you were not working like us. We tapped into over ¥420,000 in coupons. Showed the vaccine papers and got even more discounts.

We do help lost tourists now and it is interesting to help them out. Very grateful.

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No, not in my view. The numbers are probably not even a quarter of what they were before COVID.

Personally, I like to see people here on vacation, enjoying themselves. However, I'm having a hard time seeing all the terrible tattoos :(

Nope. Still seems a lot less than it used to be, and FAR less than what the government still wants -- unless you're the Kyoto mayor, then you just want the money but not the people.

theResident

Aly and Wallace - You see no tourists because there is nothing to see for tourists. In Aly's case,, people are hardly going to visit the suburbs ( no disrespect) and in your case @wallace, no one is going to visit a pensioner town where there is nothing to see but a Costco and a Gyomu,

We do not live in a pension town we live in a city full of young children with 11 schools. You know nothing about the beauty of the Seto Inland Sea or Harma-nada Sea with a range of very exciting foods. BTW we don't have a Costco.

Many local locations are worth a visit including the world-famous Himeji Castle attracts 5 million visitors per year.

There is much to see and much to enjoy and attracts many Japanese tourists. We also have a renowned world plum park overlooking the sea. Clean safe beaches which attract hundreds of visitors every summer for clam fishing. The largest tidal flat in Japan.

We offer a different experience than a crowded city like a BQ overlooking the sea on a warm summer night or an onsen looking at the stars. Yes, we can see all the stars here until Tokyo.