Hi!
I’m Nathan and welcome back to Ninja monkey.
The place for all things related to Japan,
I do the research so that you don’t have to and put all the readily available information
into one place.
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This has certainly been an interesting week.
I’ve just come off a zoom video interview for TV station Asahi’s morning program where
I was representing tourists and was even asked to send the government of Japan a message!
.. more on that soon, this update is all about Japan’s so called “reopening” so make
sure you watch all the way to the end, not only to help the channel out but also so that
you don’t miss anything of importance!
Hopefully you will gain a better understanding of the situation in Japan and this video will
help you make informed decisions.
Anyway, Let’s start off with the nitty gritty as we always do, briefly checking out booster
rates and the situation in Tokyo and nationwide.
I’ll be travelling in London over the weekend so today’s stats are from Thursday 9th June.
As from June 9th, 60.1% of the population has now received their third dose.
And 89.4% of those aged 65 years or older have now received their booster shots too.
In fact 19,452 (4th) Doses have also been administered, with over 17,000 of those going
to the elderly population.
Tokyo’s hospital occupancy now stands at 15.5% of standard covid beds in use, that’s
782 patients admitted into hospital in Tokyo.
A positive reduction compared to last week!
And, in terms of severe patients there are 14 reported in Tokyo, that’s 3.3% of the
420 beds set aside for severe patients in Tokyo.
This number has actually not gone up compared to last week, however less beds are now available
for severe patients.
Once again demonstrating that Japan is doing pretty well in this regard.
And to give further positive news and a good overview of the situation.
Tokyo is actually on the 27th day in a row of declining cases.
Confirming 1,876 new cases on Thursday, down by about 460 from a week before!
And now that we have a clearer picture of the situation in Japan, let's look at all
the important stories since the last update.
So it’s been a long time coming, Tourism is ‘Back’ ... Well, kind of, I guess.
No, tourism is not open for the masses yet and only those who choose to go on a group
tour will have access to enter the country.
And even then, you might want to reconsider whether or not you actually want to go on
one of these group tours as we will explore.
And yes, group tours are certainly not for everyone, but there is always a demographic
that will benefit from having a curated, no fuss, easy to follow experience in a land
that so many people sometimes find intimidating.
However, I also know that the large majority of viewers would rather enter with the freedom
that individual travel brings.
So, if you are indeed willing to enter in a group tour then this one is certainly for
you.
And if you prefer individual travel then, perhaps this is still of interest as I suspect
some of the outlined guidelines will likely remain for some time.
Foreign tourists would have actually just been allowed into the country by the time
this update goes live.
However, nothing much changes in the sense that these visitors will be required to abide
by the nation’s coronavirus measures, something that really should be a given when you are
a guest in another nation.
We must be cautious however because mask wearing will form a big portion of this, and this
is something that many of us may no longer be accustomed to.
Additionally, entry into the country will come at the extra cost of purchasing private
medical insurance in case you test positive during the trip.
The Japan Tourism Agency has finally unveiled what actions travel agencies, guides and tourists
will need to do before and during their trip.
“To resume inbound tourism, it is important that the places where tourists will be visiting
are willing to accept them and feel safe,” ...
...“If travel agencies and others comply with the guidelines, inbound tourism will
resume smoothly and lead to a further increase (in visitors).”[NR1] tourism minister Saito
said.
Firstly, tourists currently able to enter as part of a group tour will need to belong
to one of the 98 ‘Blue’ countries that Japan has labelled as low risk.
[NR2]
Tourists will need to wear masks, disinfect their hands and avoid closed spaces, crowded
places and close-contact settings (also known as the Three C’s)
Tourists will also need to pre register with the Visit Japan Web and Fast-Track services,
which will allow them to upload their immigration and quarantine paperwork before travelling,
hopefully making entry smoother and faster.
And it seems that these rules will be strictly enforced by the tour guide.
“So we are asking guides to inform tourists not just when they need to wear masks but
also when they are allowed to take them off,” such as during outdoor activities like trekking
and going for a walk in a place that is not crowded, the official said.
The good news is that it seems that group tourists will have free time and will mostly
be treated in a similar way to business travellers, but we will have to wait and see as ultimately
the tour operator will be responsible and they might indeed not want tourists wandering
around too much.
“It doesn’t mean they are banned from going out on their own in their free time,”
... ... “It’s the same as with business travellers.
They are allowed to have their own free time, and so are the tourists.”
tourism minister Saito said.
Travel agencies will act as the sponsor for the tourists and make sure they comply with
rules and regulations and seek medical treatment if one of them is infected and report to public
health authorities.
Only Firms registered under the travel agency law will be allowed to conduct the tours and
if foreign travel agencies plan the tours, they will need to partner with a registered
agency in Japan.
And, in the event that a tourist does test positive, it will be the travel agency and
guide who will be responsible to make sure that medical attention is received, hire an
interpreter if necessary and provide additional support until the patient can go back to their
home country.
Crucially, Tourists will be informed before their trip that they will need to pay for
any medical costs up front, which will likely be reimbursed by medical insurance later on.
Therefore, tourists must account for this hopefully never used additional expense.
Close contacts will be identified by the travel agencies.
Anyone within a metre of the infected person for more than 15 minutes will be deemed a
close contact, and anyone dining with an infected person too according to a tourism agency official.
“If the tourists dine with the same people at the same table throughout the tour, the
risk of many people becoming close contacts will be lower when one of the tourists becomes
infected,” the official said.
And if you are on the same tour and not deemed a close contact then you will be able to proceed
with the tour.
So Team, how do you feel now that the terms and conditions for group tours have been set?
Is it too risky being in close contact with a group that will likely mean spending more
than 15 minutes with someone especially during meals.
Do you feel that it's worth the risk?
Would you even be able to have the extra cash in case you do indeed get sick.
And, will the additional cost of medical insurance put you off?
It still needs to be seen how individual tourism will be treated but I wouldn’t be surprised
if only Blue listed countries will initially be allowed entry and medical insurance will
become mandatory.
These new guidelines, although bringing clarity, also leave some unanswered questions.
If places where tourists will be visiting will also need to be willing to accept them,
does this mean that some places will opt to not allow tourists in, would this mean say
a restaurant or coffee shop could have a no tourist policy?
How about temples and shrines.
Could this also mean that whole cities and towns might choose to not allow tourists in?
What sort of image would this give Japan if this is the case?
As always Let me know your thoughts on this in the comment section or I look forward to
hearing what you have to say in a future livestream!
In continued good news, Nikkei has reported that the Government is considering bringing
forward and re-examining the quota of entry that was just recently changed on the 10th
of June to accept 20,000 entries.
The article notes that the government will consider raising the daily immigration limit
and is aiming to increase the number of foreign visitors to Japan due to the fact that the
Yen is weak.
Group tours would have just started when this update goes live and according to Chief Cabinet
Secretary Matsuno things are going well.
"I can't say quantitatively at this point, but there are overseas reports that travel
reservations to Japan are going well."
He said at a press conference on the 9th.
Within the government, there are plans to expand the immigration limit to 30,000, 50,000
people and to abolish it.
And it seems that the specific timing is being adjusted.
Team, it's interesting to read a report that the government is looking at tweaking entry
numbers.
This is certainly a good step, and if this is the case then who knows.
The optimist in me wants to believe that they could also shorten the time frame of strictly
only group tours and bring forward reopening for all tourists.. but hey, maybe I’m being
too positive here?
What are your thoughts team?
All in all, Team, it will certainly be interesting to keep an eye on how group tourism goes.
As I said at the start of the update.
I have tried to voice my opinion as a tourist on Japanese TV and even called for the government
themselves to reopen for individual travellers.
I will certainly be talking about my Japanese TV experience in a future livestream or maybe
make a feature video out of it once I return from London.
Do you think this has been a positive update?
let me know!
As always I look forward to reading thoughts in the comment section and hopefully seeing
you in the chat section of a future live stream where we not only discuss Japan’s border
situation but also talk about Japan related topics too!
And If you find value in my content, how about showing your appreciation by becoming part
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feature that is kind of like a super chat but for normal videos.
You can also make a one off Paypal donation too?
And if you don’t want to, that perfectly fine, hitting the like button also helps!
Anyway Team, thanks so much for sticking with me through this journey!
And if you’ve watched all the way to the end then thanks a million!
Stay positive team!
(but covid negative) Till next time, I’ll continue researching and keeping an eye on
all updates until the next video!
So.. till then, Arigatou, gracias, thanks bye!