Travel agents are the big winners of the move by
the Japanese government to ease travel restrictions.
From 7 September, tourists will no longer be
required to join a tour group to visit Japan.
The government will allow tourists to enter the
country without joining a guided tour when their visit has been arranged
through a travel agency.
The agencies that arrange tours are expected to
manage their clients' schedules and Japan will continue to deny entry to
individual travellers who don't make arrangements through travel agencies.
Airlines are expected to move quickly to restore
schedules which were cancelled during the pandemic, while the hospitality
industry overall will ramp up their Japanese business.
The Pan Pacific group has announced two new hotels
scheduled to open in the first half of 2023.
Bellustar Tokyo, a Pan Pacific hotel, and Hotel
Groove Shinjuku, a Parkroyal hotel, will open within Tokyu Kabukicho Tower, Shinjuku’s
new landmark skyscraper complex by architectural firm Kume Sekkei, designer of
the Yayoi Kusama Museum in Tokyo.
Japan has taken a cautious approach to the
reopening of borders with the result that international tourism numbers have
slumped. The number of foreign tourists entering Japan stood at about 7,900 in
July.
Pre-travel
testing will be dropped for those who have been triple-vaccinated.
Prime
Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan would gradually ease border controls to allow
entry procedures to be “as smooth as those of other countries”.
“We
will speed up our efforts while balancing infection measures and social and
economic activities,” the PM added.