Eager to appreciate the colorful foliage, eat sushi and shop, hordes of foreign tourists began arriving in Japan on Tuesday with an end to pandemic border restrictions that had been in place for more than two years.
“We learned that we can still come. We are very happy,” said Nadine Lackmann, a German who was part of the crowd of tourists arriving at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.
Travelers like Lackmann are expected to supply a much-needed $35 billion condiment to the world’s third-largest economy. And the number of visitors is expected to continue to grow.
The daily limit of 50,000 arrivals is gone. Airlines have added flights in reaction to the complete reopening of borders. Visa waiver returns for business visitors and tourists from more than 60 countries in the short term.
David Beall, a Los Angeles-based photographer who has been to Japan 12 times, has already booked a flight, making plans to move on to Fukui, Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo. The last time he was in Japan was in October 2019. But those are things Americans look forward to, like dining on tonkatsu, the popular red meat chop dish in Japan.
“As cliché as it sounds, being back in Japan after all this time is what I crave most. This includes, of course, meeting new people, dining on the food I missed, like a smart tonkatsu, being in nature at this time of year, taking the trains,” he said.
About 32 million tourists visited Japan in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. His return is welcome for a reason. Many will have more purchasing power because the Japanese yen has lost its share price in recent months against the U. S. dollar, euro and other currencies.
The only protocols left for access are that you will need to be fully vaccinated with a booster or have a negative PCR control within 72 hours prior to departure. Virtually all visitors from the United States, the rest of Asia, Europe and South America who encounter such situations will not have to quarantine.
In August, Japan’s newest coronavirus outbreak, daily new infections nationwide surpassed 200,000. Since then, the number of cases and deaths has declined. Last week, daily deaths averaged 8 nationwide. and medically vulnerable to vaccination.
Visitors may need to adapt to the face mask, which most Japanese wear outside their homes. Many department stores and restaurants require consumers to wear masks and sanitize their hands. Some institutions are still ending prematurely or have closed completely.
But bookings with Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways, or ANA, have already quintupled since last week, while bookings for flights from Japan have doubled.
Air Canada said bookings for Canadians traveling to Japan rose 51 per cent this month through September, while the number of travelers from Japan to Canada increased 16 per cent over the same constant period.
The Japanese economy can take advantage of the influx of tourist spending.
Fitch Ratings forecasts Japan’s economy to grow at a rate of 1. 7% this year and 1. 3% in 2023, supported by simple credit, a recovery in service industries and a slow resolution of supply chain problems, which will boost production and exports.
Japan had necessarily closed its borders to tourists, but began allowing package tours in June. Many other people have chosen to wait for a person of indefinite duration before booking their tickets.
With nervousness waning over the threat of infections, Japanese are also on the rise, encouraged through discounts introduced through airlines, bullet trains, onsen spas and hotels to revive the suffering industry.
Although Japan offers attractions, from the ski slopes of northern Hokkaido to the semi-tropical beaches of the Okinawa Islands in the south, experts say those months are the most productive to enjoy what Japan has to offer.
The mountains are colorful with bright autumn foliage; the climate is temperate, icy, suffocating or humid; Seafood, grapes, chestnuts and other culinary delights are new and plentiful.
“Now we are all in a position to welcome other people from abroad,” said Shuso Imada, general manager of Japan’s Sake and Shochu Information Center.
Its task is to promote sake, rice wine and shochu liqueur made from barley, potatoes or vegetables, both at home and abroad.
“Autumn is the season to enjoy Japanese cuisine with sake and shochu,” he said.
That’s why Javier Pérez Toledo waited more than a year for his honeymoon.
“We are passionate about the country,” he said when he arrived from Spain. “We’re so glad we were able to come. “
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