Japan is set to welcome back tourists and visitors from over 98 countries after a gap of 2 years.
This move is welcomed by the tourist population worldwide as they get ready to pack their bags for the much looked forward vacation in Japan. After the onset of the COVID-19, the Japanese government has maintained the travel and quarantine restrictions. The nation will continue to follow the COVID-19 guidelines and travel restrictions.Japan’s Foreign Affairs ministry has stated that it has divided the 98 countries into three risk zones, namely red, yellow, and blue. Depending on the category of the risk zone and the departure destination, the passenger may skip or have quarantine protocols to be followed. Citizens or ex-pats residing in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the US will be allowed to enter the Japanese mainland in small tour groups. Tourists from these low-risk countries will be exempted from a COVID-19 test and quarantine on arrival regardless of their actual vaccination status. However, the tour groups will take utmost responsibility for the mask culture, strictly adhering to as long as the visitor group is on Japan’s mainland.
The Japanese Foreign Affairs ministry banned tourists and visitors from attending the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games since the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, Japan welcomed 31.9 million foreign tourists. Fumio Kishida, the Japanese prime minister, said he wants to ensure that Japan is absolutely safe and sound for all foreign tourists and locals alike without further mishaps, especially after a Thai tour group recently tested positive and had to undergo a mandatory quarantine of 7 days. However, things will move at a slow pace as Japan has just made baby steps towards normalcy.
Starting from 1st June 2022, the measures and protocols for foreign travellers will be reviewed. Red and Yellow zone passengers will still have to produce a negative RT-PCR nucleic acid test taken 72 hours before their arrival in Japan. The Yellow category tourists will undergo a 7-day quarantine. There would be a daily limit of 20,000 capped on foreign tourists who can arrive in Japan from 1st June 2022. International flights will start operating at Hokkaido’s New Chitose Airport and Okinawa’s Naha Airport from this month. So, get set; your Japanese holiday is just around the corner.
