Hidden Cost of Tourism in Japan

In April 2024, I had the opportunity to visit Japan again after 7 long years. I, like many others, were keen on re-visiting the country after a long period of Covid-19 restrictions. I figured that the height of the Cherry Blossom season would be a great time to revisit a country I so deeply loved.

Unfortunately, it appeared like everyone else had the same idea as well. While my visit to Japan was spectacular, I felt that the country was being overshadowed by a rising issue - namely badly behaved tourists. In just the span of one month, I witnessed tourists break rules, ignore safety guidelines, and create a mockery out of the Japanese people. This was in stark contrast to my visit in 2017, where I only saw the occasional bad tourist. Now, it seemed like the country was teeming with them.

Overwhelmed, I escaped to Kofu and then Osaka where I was able to connect with the Japanese locals on a deeper level. Here, the streets were not filled with picture hungry tourists, but instead people who were happily removed from the bustling cities of Tokyo. Here, I was offered a much needed reprieve from the loud, obnoxious tourists I had been forced to interact with. It was then that I allowed myself to be angry at how people were treating Japan. As I stared off into the Japanese countryside, I found myself asking just how things had become so bad?

Here’s what I discovered.

Foreigners behaving badly in Japan is nothing new. In fact, I witnessed my own classmate get kicked off of our study abroad trip in 2017 after he decided to take his shirt off in a Shinto Shrine. Our group leader, a man who dedicated his life to closing the cultural gap between Japan and America, had little tolerance for my classmate’s foolishness. As a result, he was sent home two-weeks early and a failing grade in all of his classes. While my group leader’s decisions may seem harsh, they proved a point to us and the Japanese people - disrespect would not be tolerated.

Similar to my group leader’s actions, Japan has enacted its own travel restrictions to tourists. They have set up two travel restrictions for non-Japanese nationals in 2024 alone.

In April, the Japanese government announced that tourists would no longer be permitted access in the Gion district. The city of Kyoto came to this decision after tourists repeatedly grabbed, touched, and took pictures of the Geisha (Japanese courtesan) without permission.

Then, at the end of April, the city of Fujikawacho made a similar announcement. Fujikawacho was home to a beautiful landscape of Mt. Fuji hidden behind a lawson store. This picturesque location caused foreigners to cause traffic violations in order to get an instagram worthy shot. The mayor of Fujikawa Who announced that a barrier would be erected between Mt. Fuji and the town due to the behavior of tourists.

These are just two of the most recent incidents in which the Japanese government has had to create barriers to keep tourism out. And I’m disgusted because things only appear to be getting worse.

When I was in Japan my friend and I took measures to ensure that we were not going to be perceived as a problem by the locals. This began with both of us brushing up on our Japanese skills prior to leaving the country. Then, we only elected to stay in Air BnBs in suburban locations to avoid the other tourists.

While most of our Japanese neighbors were wary at first, they eventually warmed up to us when they realized that no, we were not going to cause any disruptions. In fact, all of our Airbnb hosts gave us their personal number and told us to contact them if we ever came back to the country. Our respect for the Japanese people and their culture deemed up trustworthy in the eyes of the Japanese people.

And the baffling thing? We didn't even do that much. If we had a quiet hour, we respected it. If we were asked to move or get in another line at the supermarket, we didn’t make a fuss. We understood that we had a lot to learn with our time in Japan. We came humbly. I understand while writing this that many people do not come humbly to japan. Instead, they come wildly with little disregard for the culture and the people.