Tourist chaos erupts as cherry blossom festival is shut down, officials triple tax to curb crowds

Visitors from acold and wide person been traveling to Japan — and present authorities officials volition beryllium raising their tourer taxation successful an effort to curb overtourism.

Japan volition beryllium tripling its planetary tourer taxation of 1,000 yen, oregon astir $6, per idiosyncratic — to 3,000 yen, oregon astir $18, per idiosyncratic — starting July 1.

Hokuto Asano astatine the Embassy of Japan successful Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital the alteration is portion of the government’s efforts to cautiously calibrate its tourism goals.

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"[Japan] is targeting 60 cardinal inbound visitors and 15 trillion yen successful inbound tourism spending by 2030 — portion balancing the enlargement of tourism with the prime of beingness for residents and promoting determination destinations," Asano said.

He said the travel of American tourists who are visiting Japan is "performing precise strongly" — noting that determination were 220,000 visitors successful February of this year, for a 15% summation from 2025.

Visitors from acold and wide person been traveling to Japan — and present authorities officials volition beryllium raising their tourer taxation successful an effort to curb overtourism and the issues it brings.  (iStock)

"While the fig of visitors from China to Japan has declined, the summation successful tourists from a wide scope of different countries has much than offset this trend," said Asano.

As a result, wide inbound question to Japan continues to transcend past year’s levels, helium noted. 

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Asano said the state is continuing to intimately show the interaction of the concern successful the Middle East connected tourism issues for Japan.

Cherry blossom play is simply a large attraction successful Japan, drafting tourists from astir the world.

A vessel is shown sailing successful Japan arsenic cherry blossoms bloom betwixt April and May. (iStock)

But this year, officials person canceled a fashionable festival that was meant to pull visitors owed to overtourism.

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Fujiyoshida canceled its cherry blossom festival, with aggregate reports saying the telephone was made owed to tourer pollution, specified arsenic postulation jams and littering.

Asano noted these problems are not unsocial to Japan and are seen successful galore different countries.

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"The Japan Tourism Agency volition proceed to heighten its tourism policies by balancing the acceptance of tourists with maintaining the prime of beingness for section residents, portion besides promoting question to determination destinations," helium added.

In aboriginal 2022, a household is shown taking photos with blooming cherry blossoms conscionable down them.  (Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Japan precocious launched a caller process for all incoming visitors successful an effort to streamline the question process — positive to beef up security.

Travelers to Japan could beryllium required to motion up for the Japan Electronic System for Travel Authorization (JESTA) and wage a interest of astir $19 (3,000 yen), arsenic Fox News Digital reported earlier. 

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Visitors indispensable use for the "single-entry short-term enactment visa for the intent of tourism for a play of up to 90 days" online anterior to their trip, according to a authorities website.

Asano said the applicable authorities is presently nether examination, "and the constitution of the strategy has not yet been finalized. Details specified arsenic fees and postulation methods person not yet been determined."