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Japan announced Thursday that it will lift strict restrictions on foreign tourists, reopening its borders after two and a half years.
Speaking on the New York Stock Exchange, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the pandemic has disrupted the free flow of people, goods and capital that help the country prosper.
“But from October 11, Japan will ease border control measures to match the United States and resume visa-free travel and personal travel,” said Kishida, who is attending the United Nations General Assembly in the city.
Japan and China have insisted on strict restrictions on tourists as much of the world emerges from the pandemic.
But unlike China, Japan has never imposed strict lockdown measures during the crisis.
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Visitors to Japan will enjoy a weaker yen, which has plunged so low against the dollar that the Ministry of Finance intervened in currency markets on Thursday for the first time since 1998.
The return of the visa waiver program, which was suspended in March 2020, will restore ease of entry to the country for the record 31.9 million foreign tourists in 2019.
Since June, Japan has allowed tourists to travel in groups accompanied by a guide, a requirement that has been further relaxed, including self-guided tours.
James Brady, head of Japan analysis at US consultancy Teneo, said the cautious approach to reopening was deliberate.
Brady told AFP that Kishida “was inaugurated a year ago, and he knew that the perceived mishandling of the pandemic was a key factor in undermining public confidence in his previous administration”.
“He has been very careful not to repeat the same mistakes.”
In total, Japan has recorded around 42,600 coronavirus deaths — that’s much lower than many other countries — and 90 percent of residents aged 65 and older received three shots of the vaccine.
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There’s no law requiring people to wear masks, but it’s still almost ubiquitous in public places like trains and shops, and many Japanese were willing to wear them when sick even before the pandemic.
On the streets of Tokyo, the public welcomed the announcement.
“I think it’s a good thing to gradually bring foreign tourists back here,” said Michio Kano, 76, who runs the bar.
He called for a relaxation of anti-Covid rules following the move.
“You can’t soften the rules for foreigners and say to the Japanese, ‘don’t do this or that,'” he said.
Katsunori Mukai, 28, said Japan should welcome tourists as long as there is no surge in cases.
“It’s true that here we still have a culture of wearing masks and stuff, but I think people can come as many times as they want if there’s generally no serious risk of contracting serious illness,” he said.
Analyst Brady said that while the return of mass tourism should have a “minor hit” to Japan’s economy, its gains could be limited by China’s zero-coronavirus policy.
“Much of the pre-pandemic economic gain came from the arrival of large numbers of Chinese tourists and spending a lot of money on tech products (and) cosmetics,” he explained.
But “currently, Chinese citizens face their own travel restrictions at home and won’t travel to Japan in large numbers.”
However, Olivier Ponti, vice president of insights at travel analytics firm ForwardKeys, said demand for travel to the country was pent up.
“Searches for travel to Japan peaked at the end of August this year,” and while flight bookings in early September were only 16% of 2019 levels, “we expect bookings to surge after visa regulations are lifted,” Pang said. Tee said.
“Demand in Europe is likely to remain subdued due to the rising cost of living in Europe due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis, and rising fuel costs pushing up the cost of air travel,” said PATA chief executive Liz Ortiguera.
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