KYOTO, Apr 28 (News On Japan) –
Tourism surged with the beginning of Golden Week, with some individuals venturing out and others staying put. Among them is a narrative of transformation: in Hakuba, as soon as a quiet summer season vacation spot with few guests, native gamers have efficiently turned it right into a bustling hotspot.
Their efforts to constantly put together new services and sights have helped stop overtourism whereas drawing in crowds.
At the identical time, there are vacationer areas now fighting the impacts of overtourism.
Amid rising costs, many are feeling the pinch, with guests noting {that a} journey to Universal Studios now prices round 15,000 yen per individual, in comparison with lower than 10,000 yen only a few years in the past. The results of inflation are being felt throughout this yr’s fragmented Golden Week holidays.
One of the newly common locations is Hakone’s Ōwakudani in Kanagawa Prefecture, the place a brand new statement deck opened simply in time for the vacations. The deck, that includes clear glass flooring, permits guests to stroll above the valley and expertise an exhilarating view that has rapidly change into a significant attraction.
At the identical time, Japan’s tourism business is more and more specializing in inbound vacationers. Last yr, spending by international guests reached 8.1 trillion yen, making tourism an business second solely to vehicle exports in scale. Areas like Hakuba in Nagano Prefecture are drawing consideration for his or her profitable methods in attracting each home and worldwide vacationers.
Hakuba, as soon as identified primarily as a winter ski resort, noticed solely round 30,000 summer season guests in 2017. However, that quantity surged to roughly 260,000 final yr. A consulting firm helped lead the transformation by enhancing scenic spots the place guests may take pleasure in views, take pictures, and calm down. In 2018, a terrace providing foods and drinks towards a panoramic backdrop was opened. Then in 2020, a big swing designed to let individuals really feel immersed within the surrounding nature turned a sensation, at one level drawing five-hour queues.
To ease congestion and unfold out guests, the world launched new sights equivalent to mountain cart rides. Efforts had been additionally made to broaden lodging capability, together with leasing and reopening conventional inns, as summer season tourism in Hakuba started attracting extra international vacationers. However, the challenges of an ageing inhabitants of inn operators and labor shortages stay a priority, with homeowners noting that managing lodging and meal companies calls for vital effort.
Elsewhere, overtourism is beginning to have an effect on the lives of native residents. In Kyoto’s Kōdai-ji Temple, which is generally closed to the general public, unauthorized entry by vacationers final September triggered in depth injury, together with damaged bamboo and collapsed fences. Although indicators have since been posted to discourage comparable incidents, temple employees lament that signage spoils the panorama and ideally shouldn’t be crucial.
Kyoto City has stepped up efforts to handle unhealthy vacationer habits by distributing multilingual etiquette guides and elevating consciousness. To safe funds for additional countermeasures, the town can be planning to lift its lodging tax to a most of 10,000 yen per keep. As inbound tourism continues to develop, the query stays how one can create environments the place each guests and native residents can coexist comfortably.
Source: YOMIURI