Japan Starting to Charge Foreign Tourists Extra
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- čas přidán 3. 06. 2024
- Inbound tourism is only expected to increase further. To combat overcrowding and provide better services, some municipalities and businesses in tourist areas have started additional taxes/fees for foreign tourists. But it seems like some people in Japan find it hard to accept it.
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Correction: At 1:04, the tourist tax in Paris applies to not only tourists, but also locals using the hotel. So that's a wrong example. My apologies for the mistake!
Thanks, that's good to know! That makes more sense because France is concerned with political correctness as well.
Yes, it's one thing to have a tourism tax, it's another to have a foreigner tax.
大事！
Once go up, next will be japanese people as well, always same around world. First just some people. Later everyone.
For foreign residents, its easy just show your Zairyo Card, that's how you tell between tourists and residents since we have to have our Zairyo card on us at all times
As a non Japanese living in Japan, I think it'd be very difficult to tell between residents and visitors, would turn non Japanese residents into second class citizens.
u already r
Yeah, that's the problem I see, also. I think it would be somewhat easy to charge a tax per day in a hotel, since there the status is known. And definitely get rid of all "foreigners" only discounts first, would be my strategy.
Different prices In places like restaurants or convenience stores or I believe it would be pretty impossible to implement, or at least cost more to implement than it would generate additional income.
Wouldn't it be easy with citizenship and permanent residency cards?
yeah just have the new second class citizens have to show ID everywhere they go kekkk
@@woopygoman sure but what I'm saying is how can a Japanese vendor tell which foreigner is which? Do I need to wear a star of David?
One cause of overtourism is that a lot of popular tourist sites are highly concentrated in specific cities and most of the time right in residential areas. It would benefit both Japanese citizens, non-Japanese residents, and tourists if the government found ways to spread awareness of less visited areas and also incentivize residents in Japan to move to the countryside or less populated towns by renovating those areas, fixing the infrastructure there, and modernizing those forgotten places.
It can be used to promote national pride for the beauty of Japan's rural areas and the history of those areas.
This ∆∆
I suggested this in another video too
People like abroad in japan have done their part to give notice to the underrated parts of japan. And he's a foreigner
That's one reason that we go all over Japan. This time, we went North. Not many tourists, and the locals were terrific. It's when you get back to Tokyo to fly out, and it's packed, especially around places like Asakusa.
@@pheunithpsychic-watertype9881 yeah, but you still need better infrastructure to get to those places.
Some dedicated tours would help a lot
But then they have foreigners walking about all over their country, best to keep naturally restricted to certain areas.
Everyday I get a bit more disappointed that I haven’t visited Japan. They closed the Mobile suit Gundam showing, certain places are becoming less inviting to tourists because of the disrespect tourists exude on foreign land and it’s becoming less likely I’ll visit every day it seems.
They also closed the
Detective conan museum i believe...at least i read somewhere a few weeks ago...
So many things went away before i could visit japan even once i still cant afford it even now
all while ungrateful bastards who dont even care went there and made trouble for the japanese and people who really wanted to travel and traverse japan from their bottom of their heart...
Everyday i see the only place i ever wanted to visit slowy drift away further and further from me...
Just come back when it's quieter.
@@Avantime I sure will need to schedule a visit.
Yes I feel the same way..
The disrespect is a two-way street. Sore losers.
Japan can do whatever they want. It is your country man. However, this will damage japan's reputation in the long run and impact economy negatively I think.
I wish Japan finds different answer.
13 year resident in Japan. I know that if I went anywhere outside of my small town of 15k that I have lived for the last 10yrs that I would get hit with that tax immediately. Especially in the areas around Tohoku that I live in. The concept of "foreign residents" seems....well....foreign to people around here. I'm not even sure if I showed my 在留カード and my "gold band" driver's license that they would even accept it. Now if I were out with my wife (Japanese) and kids, no one would bat an eye. But alone, I'd get tagged quickly.
Honestly, and being 100% honest, Japan should impose these taxes specifically on "high tourism" location like Tokyo, Osaka, Nara, Kyoto, Chiba, Ginza, Shibuya, but not in places like Shikoku, Tohoku, Hokkaido, or Kyushu. This way tourists that are looking to see Japan can do so in areas that would greatly welcome foreign tourism and would really incentivize it. I live in Tohoku, this place could handle higher levels of tourism if:
A. People knew about it and it was more easily accessible.
B. If the old people in charge of tourism would just put more resources to foreign advertising utilizing social media instead of focusing only on domestic tourism and physical paper distribution.
Honestly, I suspect that the talk of tourism taxes are more likely to be applied in those locations you mentioned, as lower-tourism areas wouldn't even have the visitor numbers to justify setting up separate price-lists, ect. One of the tourists interviewed talked about similar policies being applied in Amsterdam, which is something I've never seen despite living in the Netherlands for 5 years as an immigrant, and it's probably because I've visited or lived in almost every part of the country except for the high-tourism randstad area.
I behave very similarly whenever I visit Japan, and I actually enjoy my rural Japan far more than the bigger cities. I find a great charm in visiting locations that don't feel like they're trying to show off to or cater specifically for me, as it lets me really absorb the real culture. I appreciate things as small as being able to walk into a restaurant and not be handed an English menu based on my appearance. Shikoku and Hokkaido have been my favorite locations to visit in Japan, and I'm really interested in finding good locations to see in the Tohoku region.
That is a good idea....
I life in Shikoku and I absolutely agree with you!
As a fellow foreign resident of Tohoku, 100% agree. I think the tax is a decent idea but I know for a fact it would make my shopping/eating out a pain in the ass.
1. Promote tourism with programs designed to encourrage tourism in places other than Tokyo Kyoto Osaka etc.
2. Charging people more is only making more money for the Owners of the businesses. Theyre not likely paying workers more. And uptick in price most likely isnt parallel to the increase in labor costs.
3. The Yen is considerably weaker. The amount of the tax is what is important imo. If its like 30% or something then hell no. If its 2% or 5% or whatever that isnt terrible and likely wouldnt be felt much by visitors.
4. Rather than putting the tax on the tourists, which depending on the amount of course might cause the tourists to spend less money across less businesses overall.. They should compensate for the increase by giving incentives and tax breaks to businesses in areas with abnormally high tourism. This way, maybe tourists will visit more establishments and spend more overall.
5. If the government wants to keep it under control and prevent obnoxious and disrespectful foreigners from coming and disrupting the daily lives and customs of the Japanese people, they should implement something like a temporary visa that costs money. A paid permission slip granting access to the country for the duration of your visit. Charge an amount, whatever it is... say 50 bucks or 100 bucks or 10 bucks per day w/e.. and then pass laws that impose very harsh fines on tourists currently visiting under that temp visa/access pass if they break laws... Like litering etc.
I do want to point out that this isnt entirely uncommon in the united states. MANY MANY MANY schools have lower tuition rates for students considered a resident of that county or state. Considerably lower.
Well for No.5 it already happen way before these past few years the problem rich first world country is the one that normally got the VISA exemption while people from 3rd world country that need to work hard to go to Japan needed to make VISA
I was thinking something similar, to use the visa system to better control the flow of people (like maybe issuing a set number of tourist visas per quarter, though your idea could work too - though unless it costs a fair bit, it might not deter many people from coming, so you'd still have the strain on employees and infrastructure, which seems to be the real problem here).
An easy step against overtourism: discontinue the JR Pass.
Thank you for having a normal reasonable take on this instead of the reactionary drivel of "it's all the foreigners fault".
Tohoku, basically the top 1/3 of Japan is visited by about 3% of tourists. The Japanese government desperately needs to offer incentives and advertisement to visit literally anywhere else but Tokyo and Kyoto. That will fix the overcrowding off the bat.
The Japanese government also needs to start enforcing their damn laws when foreigners break it instead of punishing everyone else who wants to come to their country. Johnny Samole literally recorded himself breaking the law multiple times and they just let him go with no repercussions.... The best way to force people to respect and obey the law is to freaking enforce it. The message gets across if people are going to jail for defacing monuments.
Thank you for having a normal and logical take on this situation.
Tohoku, basically the top 1/3 of Japan is visited by about 3% of tourists. The Japanese government desperately needs to offer incentives and advertisement to visit literally anywhere else but Tokyo and Kyoto. That will fix the overcrowding off the bat.
The Japanese government also needs to start enforcing their damn laws when foreigners break it instead of punishing everyone else who wants to come to their country. Johnny Samole literally recorded himself breaking the law multiple times and they just let him go with no repercussions.... The best way to force people to respect and obey the law is to freaking enforce it. The message gets across if people are going to jail for defacing monuments.
Do tourists behave badly, litter, make noise, are the buses full of people?
I live in Chiba and I am the only foreigner in the private sector among the Japanese, there are no tourists or just other foreigners. And here is my view of Japan:
- it’s a 40-minute walk to the railway station, the buses are so jam-packed, it’s stuffy and stinks
- I go to the supermarket and there is always garbage on the sidewalk,
- one of my neighbors doesn’t want to sort garbage and constantly throws away unwashed bottles with labels,
- they rush past the house at night on motorcycles with such noise that the windows shake,
- the old neighbor smokes on the street right under the window, all the smoke from the cigarettes comes from my window, I hate tobacco
- another neighbor cooks fish outside (grilled or smoky), it often stinks and I can’t even open the window
Are tourists ruining Japan? Japan is ruining itself.
Shh 🤫 blaming Gaijins are easier to spin to the public.
For what I have observed and this is highly personal. Western tourism seems to be a combination of people who are aware of the rules here and the typical tourist assholes. But I ro notice theres a lot of Chinese and Korean tourists too, and they seem to be pretty loud and break lots of rules too. I dunno how that is perceived.
"- they rush past the house at night on motorcycles with such noise that the windows shake,"
This pisses me off too!!! I'm sick and tired of the morons revving their little motorbikes with straight pipes throughout the night. It happens nearly every evening and night in my area of Yokosuka.
@@denmaakujin9161 True. The govern destroy the money ( Years of stagnation economic ) , Haven't invested in public transport infrastructure for years (I heard reports from people who live there), does not install enough trash bins on the streets, but it's all Gaijin's fault not the govern fault. 😆😆😆 (sorry my english)
@@sinister_sushi we have a 交番 on this road, no reaction, they just ignore
If the goal is "To combat overcrowding and provide better services", why not stop approving so many tourist visas? They're only entering the country because the government gave permission. Don't need a new tax.
Visa exemption is the answer
Actually there’s a 90 days de-facto visa coming with the passport of several countries. I am not sure which countries in detail (I guess: OECD++), but that represents many tourists.
End visa free travel and this will end the overtourism problem. In my experience 90% of the disruptive tourists came from countries with easy access to Japan.
When I was in Japan a while ago, it was funny how it went from "overcrowding" on one day to meeting maybe around 10 people in total the next day when I went to another place. ;-)
The thing with "automatic passport 90 days landing permissions" is, that a lot of the times it's based on mutual acceptance. I can go to Japan for a up to 90 day trip visa-free regularly if I want, and any Japanese citizen can come to Germany for 90 days regularly if he/she wants.
Basically one of the biggest differences I can see, is that Japanese usually know how to behave when visiting, a lot of foreign tourists in Japan don't. 🤷
I live in the Neckar Valley somewhat in the are of Heidelberg, and I always love to meet Japanese tourists.
Becouse that would be too simple and the NIHONGO goverment would need to learn to read -.-""
It seems as though there are people in Japan that point the fingers at tourists for mundane problems like litter and places being overcrowded. Last I checked, cities have ALWAYS had these problems. When I visited Japan 15 years ago, back when tourism wasn't as popular as it is today, this was the case. It's not just foreigners who cause these problems. The Japanese are also responsible for littering, crowded public transit and public spaces, overworking staff, etc. What it seems like is passing the blame onto others for their own mistakes. Are foreigners guilty of making things hard? Yes but not to the extent some people in Japan are making it out to be. If they want to lower the number of tourists in one location, then promote other parts of the country.
I'm sure Korea or China will gladly take the tourism cash
add Thailand hell probably Mongolia too
But remember the "cash" doesn't touch most Japanese people's lives.
Japanese Yen went from 100 per dollar to 150. Worse than Korean Won's crash. Chinese Yuan is still the same. Japan is the bargain country.
@@shawnbell6392 ridiculous. "A rising tide lifts all boats." Crowded restaurants means the owners will build more restaurants, _and more restaurant workers will be hired._ Same for hotels, taxis, etc.
@@FRN2013 Different culture and different business culture. A sole proprietor is likely to stay that way and there is a labor shortage in Japan in service sector roles in dining, hotels, and drivers in relation to increased tourism.
if Japan stopped giving "Tax Free" with shopping to foreign tourists, that would help immediately. It should not be based on who has the strongest currency, That would hurt tourists from other countries where the currency isn't that strong. I would accept a entry tax on tourists if it was a flat fee. my concern is some business might feel empowered to have a double standard when charging tourist for the same goods that the Japanese purchase. I am in favor of a fee for some Shrines and Temples that some already collect in remote areas. I don't believe it is Xenophobic to charge tourist fees on certain things, but if they apply those fees to people that don't "look" Japanese and they live and work in Japan but still face these fees or taxes that would be Xenophobic indeed. Great reporting as always.
Totally agree with getting rid of "Tax Free". Such a dumb idea, but Japan's not the only country that offers this. Was just in Japan last month and didn't do a single tax free shopping. The cashiers were often confused that I refused tax free.
Wtf dude. Do not tax religion. Are you going to raise a tax on orphanages and on the homeless next?
I've seen dual pricing in Thailand and India, the latter of which can charge foreigners much more to enter certain attractions like the Taj Mahal. I understand that I'm wealthy by local standards and can afford to pay more, so don't mind doing so.
Japan is a little different. It's the fourth largest economy in the world with a high income and high cost of living. Charging tourists more looks extremely greedy.
I'm astonished that they think crowded businesses is a bad thing. Do they really want to hurt their lagging economy even more?
I agree w you so much! Greed is the word.
it's basic economics, higher prices - less demand. Japan just has to find a balance it wants.
Japan locals cannot afford the higher price. That’s why they are complaining now. Their currency is artificially devalued to boost their economy. The government wants the people there to work cheaper and harder so that the economy would grow. And it has been working for major corporations.
@@lchristophor3107 Exactly. Their currency problems are mostly self-afflicted due to central bank monetary policy. It's just funny that instead of complaining about that, they blame the foreign tourists once again (which eventually turns into blaming foreign residents, as well).
Japanese media and politics love to dance around the main issues of problems, instead focusing on symptoms of those problems. Well, I guess media and politics do this almost universally around the world, but it seems especially bad in Japan because of the high trust in government and popular institutions.
@lchristophor3107 Europe currently has Tourist tax at hotels.
@@AlcaholicDrivingBecause corrupt Governmental and Corporate institutuions don't want the public to realize on mass, that they're the problem.
Especially Central Banks.
Nothing about financial economics is basic, economy means production, but IMF and stock are entirely an establishment of social cohesion. It's already inherent to the currency trade that the prices are in effect raised, so on top of that charging more is double-taxing.
Same is true for whoever spends money in a foreign country, but in the case of USA they mostly SAVE money by exporting a whopping 12% of domestic garbage production in the world, and pocketing both savings and the ease of relying on microwave meals.
I can't IMAGINE living my life based on Lunchables, but finding out how Swanson TV dinner came to be and the recent lead content, makes a lot of morbid sense of it. Same as a bunch of socialized labor in freeway production and foreign wars, of a "capitalist" country with such belt & road inititatives.
As an Australian tourist who’s been coming to Japan for 10yrs I noticed the increase in tourists this time and I can understand it being very annoying for locals. So if we need to pay a little more it’s ok. Can also do what Bali does now and charge a visa fee when entering if putting prices up upsets locals.
that actually sounds like a good idea in comparison
Then YOU can pay more for me if it doesn't bother you so much. Oh wait no I get it rules for the but not for me. Eat my ass
Yeah other countries charge for tourist visa, I think Japan should as well :)
@@Bropapi I doubt they will do any changes for VISA requirements. The tourists in which Japan require VISA are mostly from third-world countries therefore would contribute to their economy less than those tourists that have no such requirement.
@@rontype1554 you can charge people for their Tourist Authorization as well, it’s called an ETA (Electronic Tourism Authorization) and Australia, America and many other countries have it even for the countries that don’t need a Visa for tourism
I do understand, but I am a Japanese speaking tourist who wouldn't be visiting Tokyo anyway because I've spent time there already. Tourist trappy places that are crowded are never fun to visit. Showing a lack of respect to places you visit is disgusting.
The phrase is "tourist trap," THE PURPOSE OF A PHRASE IS TO REMOVE REDUNDANT SUFFIX, REDUCING FORMATION OF FAKE WORDS LIKE "touristy."
I usually visit the northern part of the island. People in the north tend to be pretty friendly, and usually don’t mind conversations with visitors.
Tohoku, basically the top 1/3 of Japan is visited by about 3% of tourists. The Japanese government desperately needs to offer incentives and advertisement to visit literally anywhere else but Tokyo and Kyoto.
I find it a bit amusing after visiting Japan and being advised often to make sure not to tip, because it would be taken as an insult. Fast forward a few years and now they want to charge me more for being a tourist.
now you regret tipping in the past , all that tourist tax money you tipped, you could have payd now /s
Japan, be careful what you wish for! More taxes, then fewer tourists, then less money brought into your already-faltering economy.
Restaurants too crowded? That should be celebrated! More restaurants can be opened, creating more jobs, more prosperity. Same with hotels, etc.
This is essentially a supply and demand problem, too much demand(tourists), then sooner or later, prices obviously will follow suit
It feels like we live just to pay taxes!!! I'm against all this taxes in all countries, not just Japan
If you have enough money to spend thousands of USD on a international tourism trip you can spare me the "woe is me the government is milking me dry" line.
@@raumfahreturschutzeHave you ever considered not being a bootlicker to governments?
Dual pricing stinks. If you need to raise funds for infrastructure just raise lodging tax. You already made the JR Pass much more expensive. Surely that puts lots of cash into the agency coffers. Tourists bring much needed income into this stagnant economy. It's easy to blame a lot of problems on foreigners, handy scapegoats they make.
Every article I've seen on this topic shows lots and lots of Americans and Europeans as they talk about the tourism problem. But the reality is that most of Japan's tourism comes from China, and there is already a lot of political tension and a growing anti-Japanese sentiment in China. Has anyone thought about how a move like this would be received by the Chinese government? Or is the plan just to tax people who don't look Asian?
Also, just to add to this response, this whole discussion is kind of academic, because Japan already does charge tourists more on a lot of things, since there are all sorts of loyalty programs and discounts you can only participate in with a Japanese phone number, which you can't get unless you are Japanese, or have a residence card.
I think a tax would have to be on the front end like an “entry free” to Japan similar to what they’re doing in Venice. It might rub people the wrong way if individual stores, restaurants, or attractions charged more for foreigners. The complicated part would be distinguishing tourists from foreign born residents of Japan. Charging someone extra money just because of the color of their skin would be untenable and likely generate lots of bad press. The extra tax revenue taken on the front end could be used to offset extra costs imposed on businesses or infrastructure but the process of equitably dolling it out to the people who needed it most would be daunting to say the least !
It makes me happy to see all the people having nuanced takes. Nuance is so important yet so rare.
Most regular Japanese people are pretty decent. The ones in government not so much.
Agreed... which is shared similarly by many other countries as well : )
yeah because rule is enforcement is SO bad :|
@@HackersSun shut up
A truth that transcends boundaries lol
My country was open for tourism only for a couple of years and they charge locals and tourists the same prices. that is why locals started to avoid places that is focused on tourism here. while charging tourists more sounds unfair to them it might help solve having too many tourists related problems. it can be applied during over tourism periods but as permanent change, it might affect Japan tourism in negative way long-term
As a foreigner who has been living in Japan for nearly a decade, married to a Japanese woman, and working in the Japanese school system for much less than I'd make in my home country...I'd like to know they aren't charging me a damn gaijin tax based on my looks. I can't imagine needing to flash my damn alien card every time I go somewhere to buy something.
Also known as dual pricing / discrimination of tourists - already tried and tested in Thailand.
It's a great way to destroy all the goodwill Japan have build up over the years, as being a decent and fair country.
While other countries are dreaming of getting more inbound tourists to boost revenue in the tourist industry, Japan is complaining getting more inbound tourists. And what actual game are we playing here? The number of tourists just reached the same amount as before covid19, but at that time it wasn't a problem. Why is it supposed to be a problem now??
I think it's about greed and nothing else. If you want to lower the amount of tourists, just stop making it visa-free to most countries, that will make it less attractive for many to visit Japan.
Edit.: And just for the record, even China isn't dual pricing tourists. So I don't feel too proud about Japan being the country to lower the bar.
It's weird that people are talking about adding taxes for tourists or adding tourist-only price increases as a solution when taxes get a cut of business profits and tourism drives up profits.
A few years of not having the tourists meant a lot of amenities were cut to save money. Most people didn't even notice because there weren't any tourists. Today, rather than admitting to that and restoring them, the government does nothing and blames tourists for all of the problems.
Take trash for example. Sure, some tourists will litter regardless, just like how some locals will, but most will use trashcans if they're provided. Unfortunately, there are even less trashcans than there used to be.
From a practical standpoint, people shouldn't have to carry backpack just to throw away a wrapper from something they got at a convenience store but didn't eat right away, yet they are expected to
Realistically, they could make up for the costs of the tourists by *heavily fining* tourists who break obvious laws, like vandalism and littering, and putting that money towards those diminished amenities
Japan should identify the main issue they want to solve. Too much tourist or too much bad tourist or some touristy thing they don't want. Don't want tourist from some countries - make visa processing hard. Want less trash - just put more bins, I understand local people are used to taking their trash but majority of countries do not. Easy to say tourists should adjust but be realistic. Here in Australia where salaries are sky-high there are bins everywhere that are cleaned up regularly. Too much bad acting tourist like that Somali-something guy that ran amok for a long time, just do what Singapore does and fine/jail/cane them. Don't wanna do all of these coz local culture is different - well just grin and bear it until Japan's economy goes up (yen goes up) or people get over their post-Covid travel itch.
Just do it the European way. In Germany we charge tourists a small fee no matter where they come from when they check into a hotel. But only in some overcrowded places and cities. Other places don't have these fees.
I mean where is the difference between a foreign tourist and a domestic tourist? None. To the locals they can be equally annoying (speaking from experience). Every other way of just charging foreigners would be racist. Plus how do you do that? Check their Visa every time when someone orders things or buys things? Not practical in my opinion. That gives restaurants etc. even more to do and will eventually lead to angry tourists and discussions that everyone wants to avoid.
I think the European way would work well in this case.
But maybe this discussion at least makes other foreign tourists behave better. When I see the photos of Kyoto these days it makes me sad to see it that trashed.
There are taxes levied this way around Japan. You pay it in accommodation no matter where you come from.
@@JanMyler Oh I didn't know. Then the topic sounds even more pointless to me since smth like this already exists.
I feel like I should rethink my plans to visit Japan. Watching your channel has convinced me that people there wouldn’t appreciate my visit no matter what kind of person I am.
Haha ya his videos suck!!! I don't know why ppl are watching his videos. He gathers most ppl who agree with his xenophobic views and then make a video to, I don't know, maybe discourage ppl from visiting his country. Really hate it when CZcams puts his videos in my feed. Going to ask CZcams to stop feeding his videos to me. Sooo annoying because his views are certainly not what the majority of the Japanese think.
just go to a less touristy place like fukui (visit their dinosaur museum!), Oita (hot springs in beppu!). kumamoto, etc. and behave nicely. A lot of "smaller" towns are really welcoming to tourists!!
Lol my comment agreeing with you was deleted. Oh well.
How would they differentiate tourists and non-Japanese living there for work or education?
edit: I'm glad Nobita mentions this. I like the suggestion of adding a higher priced option.
God point. Perhaps with a driver's licence or other form of ID.
@@user-lv5rd6kb5o So you need to show your passport to buy a McDonald's burger?
Residence card that every foreign resident is required to carry at all times.
@@zionismisterrorism8716 I think they'd just expect you to pay more if you look foreign or speak English better than Japanese unless you show your driver's licence to prove you're a citizen: it would be like showing ID to buy dangerous objects or alcohol.
P.S. They could, in theory, also just add your nationality as a variable to your bank account so they can charge you more based on your bank details.
@@user-lv5rd6kb5o So they will give you a menu with higher prices? Or charge extra at the supermarket? You would be able to easily avoid these by checking the prices and realize that they're scamming you.
Never had issues with "too many tourists" when visiting Japan. Truth is, I usually landed in Haneda and then after a day in Tokyo I was riding out to travel on a bicycle. I've visited places where there was no tourists (ex. Iya valley) and only time I felt there is too many people was when visiting Kyoto (for total of 100 days I've spent in Japan, 2 days in Kyoto were always filled with people) or any major city. Thing is, I don't like big cities and I visit Japan to immerse mayself in Japanese countryside.
You are not the majority of tourists.
1:20 There is a MUCH easier and Smarter way to do it.
Setup places like Disney World McDonald's ect where everyone will obviously pay a higher price and have a tourist price and maybe some traditional areas as well, Tourist Zones, then you offer a discount for RESIDENTS OF TOKYO for example, for Residents of that state or province.
But if you just charge anyone who is foreign extra money without setting up a system, you could create a lot of trouble.
Someone I know was overcharged at a place he went and he is a very powerful person, it was a very small amount, but he used his power to destroy that business because it was the principle that he felt they were trying to steal from him.
Be very careful. It is better to setup smart systems like residents discounts where they can show a local ID, or Frequent member cards, students discounts, alumnai discounts, there are an infinite number of groupings you can setup.
Be smart, don't create bad karma and hurt feelings.
Every country must prioritize its own people over visitors.
Tourists will be the same, tax or not, and the tax will not solve the issue. As a Japanese resident from Spain I think the issue is not overtourism (Japan actually has way less tourists than Spain annually), but that the tourist spots are over populated (most people go to the same places), and some places like Kyoto have very poor transportation systems.
For Kyoto an specific bus line that goes from and to the specific tourist hot spots (Kinkakuji, Arashiyama, Nijo Castle, Gion district, Fushimi Inari) aimed for tourists exclusively would reduce the issues of crowded buses for locals.
And there is also the issue mentioned in the video for local residents, I don't want to show my residence card every time I go to a restaurant. Also what if I go with a family member that came to visit? Most of the tourism come from China so it might also bother native residents as they might have to carry identification to confirm they are not Chinese due to the similar facial features
Introducing additional bus lines would solve the problem, but it would also mean that the city has to change something. It is so much easier to blame foreigners.
I think another issue with the transportation system is that it does not accommodate large suitcases. Honestly I think many tourists bring way too much shit with them on holiday, but even the shinkansen barely has any space for large suitcases, let alone regular trains and buses. However, since tourists are only moving around with their suitcases between hotels, cities etc. perhaps it's not such a big deal, but I do think we need a bus service for tourists that goes along some of the major routes with a lot of hotels if such a service does not already exist.
Indeed. I think this needs to be thought more of as a local issue. There are many places that have zero to no tourists. How can the infrastructure and service industry better handle the inflow. The national government should just focus of the rate and source of entry.
Hello. There is overtourism in many cities in Spain, like Barcelona and those in the Balearic islands, Malaga and others. Barcelona or Granada can be compared with Kyoto for transit problems the number of tourists cause. In other cities it is the bad behavior of a large number of tourists, mostly related to overdose of alcoolic beverages, that cause problems for locals. Japan could charge for tourist visa at airports and ports; cities that need to improve their infrastructure due to the number of foreign visitors can charge a tax on accomodation. Exerpt from Paris city website: "Visitors aged 18 years and over staying in hotels, aparthotels and furnished rentals during their stay in Paris must pay tourist tax. Tourist tax is commonplace across Europe including popular holiday destinations such as Rome, Milan, Naples & Venice."
@@jean-pascalesparceil9008 Tourists already pay a 200yen/night per person tax on hotels (or more for more expensive places). Actually it's an accommodation tax so nationals staying in a hotel in Kyoto also pay it. It still didn't help with the problem (but it's nice the amount of public toilets and trash cans they have compared to other cities)
How would Japanese tourists like it if Hawaii for example started taxing them.
given the currency valuation. They may as well
Local residents get a discount at tourist attractions.
Native Hawaiians, especially after the Maui fire, don't want any more tourists.
If tourism is the issue it’s just better to charge for Tourist Visa way more even 100$ and use that to support trash cans and infrastructure in highly trafficked areas. That coupled with reward apps to incentive locals to keep coming should help a lot.
What about the tourists who don't even go there? What about the tourists from countries that have a visa agreement with Japan?
They can find a way to do a entry fee for all tourist
@@robertchandler2063 They can't find a *good* way to do it, though.
Also, they *should not* even try, because that's literally just collective punishment for people who have done nothing wrong and will do nothing wrong.
There are already laws in place to deal with littering, vandalism, etc., so why not just *enforce those laws* first? If the punishments are insufficient to make up for the crime, adjust them accordingly.
Make vandal pay a fine + damages. Make litterbugs clean up trash. It's not that complicated.
The more I look into this situation, the more it seems like a lot of these places scaled back on amenities and resources for dealing with tourists when the pandemic hit then refused to go back to how things were because they don't want to spend the money.
Rather than just admit that fact, the government wants to blame solely the tourists and gouge them for money. Keep in mind that there is no way to guaranty that the money gets spent where it's supposed to be. Governments aren't exactly reliable with spending and accountability.
@@InfernosReaperYou dont get it.... the "nothing doing wrong" case isnt applicable here. Because its the mere number of tourists what it to much.
@@hennipap6800 Except that the people doing stuff wrong are the *main* argument against tourists in just about every discussion on the subject.
It also depends on where you go. In England, where I live, you expect to pay higher prices in the most popular areas for food and drinks, and that applies to everyone, not just tourists. In the little country town where I live, a cup of coffee costs $4, but in central London it costs $6 or more.
Japan is already insanely expensive for me. This just means I will never come to visit those places.
Tohoku, basically the top 1/3 of Japan is visited by about 3% of tourists. The Japanese government desperately needs to offer incentives and advertisement to visit literally anywhere else but Tokyo and Kyoto. That will fix the overcrowding off the bat.
The Japanese government also needs to start enforcing their damn laws when foreigners break it instead of punishing everyone else who wants to come to their country. Johnny Samole literally recorded himself breaking the law multiple times and they just let him go with no repercussions.... The best way to force people to respect and obey the law is to freaking enforce it. The message gets across if people are going to jail for defacing monuments.
I volunteer at a Big tourist railway. that sees a lot of japanese and foriegn tourists, what we have done is if you are a local, say the postcode... you get 15% off the tickets, and we leave the foriegn tourists to buy the full prices. they love it and we make sure they enjoy thier time.
having been a tourist in japan, if someplace has barred foriengers or has a higher price for foriengers, I'd go to the next store/cafe. they can get my money. even tourist traps... i'll avoid them
Fantastic idea!! In this way, the price you see on the menu can be accurately charged to your bill, if you're a tourist, and locals have a discount that you can't really 'see', but is ultimately there, and also encourages domestic Japanese spending. The only problem I can see with this idea is that it might not address the issue of population density/overcrowding in Kyoto/Tokyo, because if it's cheaper to shop in Kyoto or Tokyo, yet MORE Japanese rural residents will either vacation/commute/move into the cities to take advantage of the discount.
I don't think new or higher taxes will solve the problem of "overtourism". I don't know how it is in other countries, but if I book a trip to Japan in Germany with a tour through the country, I easily have to pay around 3000 euros for 10 days (NOT a single room, but a shared room). And these are still old prices, from May of this year the German government increased the kerosene tax, which means that every flight became even more expensive (around 140 euros more for the return flight). People who could afford it before will continue to do so in the future. They may have to make small austerity measures at home (e.g. eating out less), but these people will continue to flood Japan's streets.
And I personally would like to go to Japan someday. Certainly also to see the megacities like Tokyo or Osaka, but I would also like to see rural Japan. For example to Hokkaido or Miyagi, but also to Mount Ikoma between Nara and Osaka (amazing view, if CZcams is to be believed). But with ever higher taxes, you as a "normal earner" will soon no longer be able to afford it and will only be able to look towards Japan and dream about it, but never experience it, while the rich and privileged are of the opinion that money can buy you anything.
I know that Japan and other countries are struggling with "over-tourism", but mostly only the big cities and not the rural areas, because they usually come away empty-handed. I don't think taxes are a solution, I just don't know what a good solution is. I hope that I can still afford to travel to Japan one day. This country with its culture is worth it.
An alternative to charging more is to offer membership or point cards to encourage locals to come back for a discount.
"Gotta spend money to save money!"
But seriously, that's a good idea. Being that the JPY is so weak compared to USD, I have often told anyone who will lend me an ear: "You know, if you need clothing/electronics etc, it's basically 25% to 50% to shop in Japan. You could save money by buying everything you need for your vacation over there instead of buying and brining it!"
People need to understand that travel to Japan, at least for Americans, is at an all time low cost, so they should spend more there, because it's great value.
@@geekofsteal yeah, this way they're still giving lower prices to locals without making it seem like theyre just charging foreigners more. Point cards are also something that non-Japanese residents can use as well, since they are locals. Seems like a win-win, other than having to carry around cards.
I hate to know the fact that there are some tourists who are acting obnoxiously in Japan.
An example of them is logan faul (last 2018, you know what he did), and johnny somali (he did things so disturbing that I do not want to mention it here). They are the best examples of "GET BACK TO YOUR HOME COUNTRY! (not that I am racist though)".
that is a different problem
i find these gaijin taxes disgusting, in the brothels i understand kind of, maybe there should be alternate places for tourists can go instead of the crowded areas, no offense nobita but Japanese always "fix" things in the wrong place without addressing the issue, when ever i came to japan i would do things in the off season or go away from tourist areas even areas local Japanese don't go to, i live in japan as a resident and i would find it absolutely annoying to flash my residency card just so i dont get taxed, these taxes too wold they be collected to go towards improving things too? or does that business just pocket them? its a complex matter that shouldn't be rushed forward. as the black guy said how would you feel like it happen to you when you visit a country
How would you feel if you walked in a restaurant in America, which is already expensive by the way, and they charge you extra because you’re a foreigner? Also, how would restaurants or hotels distinguish tourist from residents to actual citizens? My friend doesnt look Japanese, but she is Japanese citizen. Does that mean she has to carry identification everywhere she wants to eat in order to not be charged extra??? This was not well planned
it'd be a great idea if you wanna keep tourists out of or limit them in Japan
I am 100% for it, being a foreigner. The over tourism is damaging the country, places too crowded and especially the excess in garbage on the streets, who cleans for that? Definitely not the tourists.
Aint a solution, and would kill the economy even more. The goal should be to foster it in a healthy way ( that isn't overpopulated or disruptive ), not try to kill it or punish it. ITS ALREADY EXPENSIVE ENOUGH TO FLY TO JAPAN AS WELL so "the yen" has nothing to do with it here.
As someone that lives on a tight budget and that's always wanted to visit Japan/one day live there, this really discourages any hope of travelling there to see it first.
Tourists concentration is the problem. I think they need to figure out how to entice tourist to visit other parts of Japan. Not just Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. The goal should be for an even distribution of tourism across the whole of Japan or as much of Japan as possible.
One question is if such a tax wouldn't be eaten up by the increase in bureaucracy anyway. IF they want to do something like that it needs to be charged at the airport or maybe the hotels where you can do it once. A better idea may be to just distribute the tourists better and not funnel them all to Tokyo and Kyoto. Make some ads for other locations and add different languages to everything tourists need/want and they will come. Sprinkle in some tourist traps at strategic locations and you can earn the sweet cash they bring. Locals can just avoid them.
You stay home, we stay home. Problem solved.
As an expat here, I'm fed up of overtourism and the rude baka tourists. TAX THAM HIGH!
This seems like an overreaction to me. Japan is getting more tourists because it closed itself off for longer than most countries during the pandemic and because the yen is weak. Once the extra post-pandemic demand is gone and the yen recovers, tourist numbers will probably decline. Then we'll see whether these extra charges on tourists are removed. If not, Japan will just look greedy. It's also worth noting that a lot of people accept dual pricing in third world countries on the basis that locals can't so easily afford to pay. Japan, as a first-world country, will not find visitors so charitable. This behaviour would be likely to lead to much conflict and tourists finding Japan an unpleasant destination.
I was in Kyushu recently and it was FANTASTIC. Very few tourists, nothing was crowded. Tokyo, in comparison, was a zoo.
However, it is very hard for a North American tourist like me to go directly to the Southern Japan. There are no direct flights; most of us would have to pass through Tokyo or Osaka first. The only reason why i was able to do this was because I flew from SEA.
I think what Japan needs to do is push the tourists out of the golden route and into the other parts. This can be done with a combination of better advertising, easier (cheaper) transportation to places like Kyushu, etc.
Sad to say but the best time to travel in Japan (recently) was during covid. Not only there were the “Go Travel” discounts, the lack of international tourists and smaller volume of local tourism has made many popular places actually enjoyable. Not the shitshow they've since become again.
For the past many years, Japan is running massive campaigns to attract tourists, the government is constantly talking about it. You can't be that way and then be surprised when visitors actually come. There was a lot of murmuring during covid about how to make tourism more sustainable and the outcome? Not much happened, as expected, and now everyone is scratching their heads again.
Might have to wait yet another few years to visit till things settle down
Venice does charge extra for tourists to enter the city. Even provides QR codes as proof of payment to the guards that inspect. It's a way to deal with overtourism.
Require tourist to use a special payment system that applies a tax every time. Suica & Pasmo for locals, something else for tourists. Of course, the state will need to move away from cash payments for this to work.
I'm a frequent visitor of japan. I absolutely love it there.
Japan should absolutely raise taxes on tourists. Many other countries do it. I think it's especially needed because of the weak yen.
As others have also said, it is about getting the balance right. Make the charge too high and obviously that is a problem, but for a modest amount it is a useful tool to fund the extra workers that are needed to deal with tourists - for example to fund the employment of a member of staff who speaks foreign languages. I do agree that a "locals discount" is a slightly nicer way to implement it though.
Wow Japan must be a very popular tourist destination
Charging tourists a higher price does kind of make sense because they're not paying income tax in the first place. While still getting the benefits of tax payer funded/subsidized services
Would definitely approve of it, if done correctly Japan is a very hospitable country, don't be afraid to use a monetary incentive to steer tourists away from hot-spots. A lot of countries have a "Hotel Tax", (or "Kurtaxe" in Germany), that is set by the municipality. E.g. in Germany people pay an additional up to ~3.50€ a night in tourists hot spots that have decided to charge it, to fund the additional expenses those town have. A lot of swimming pools etc. in tourist towns when I was a kid charged local people less than tourist.
The big price increase of the Japan Rail pass (while bad for me personally as a tourist) I have seen as a step in the right direction. Having massively cheaper flat-rate transportation for foreign tourist than for locals on a crowded transport is not a good thing in the long run in my opinion. So I would definitely understand if one of the steps would be to get rid of all specifically *foreign* tourist discounts.
And I would definitely want the locals in tourist hot spots, where prices would go through the roof if purely be left to supply/demand, be still able to enjoy the things in their own home towns.
No because not every tourist is rich and most barely were able to scrape some money to visit Japan which is already pretty expensive.
Taxing tourists more is also discriminatory
Resident in Japan here. Terrible idea. It would only make Japan seem even more xenophobic than it already is, drive tourists away and cripple the yen further.
It baffles the mind how people can't see making people pay more because they're not from the same country as anything other than xenophobia and segregation. If the money is for the benefit of tourists then it becomes less of a problem (though one can argue that it isn't the tourist's fault for inadequate service) such as more available space to eat, etc. If you don't want over-crowding, make efforts to move the tourist areas away from residential areas.
But of course, it's too much effort for Japan to change so the politicians will just blame the foreigners as usual.
I am happy however that there are people with common sense who realize this, including my colleagues.
Your country's xenophobia is all that protects it from turning into a third world shit hole like the United States and Europe. Paris and New York City were once thriving metropolis that boasted some of the most beautiful architecture and innovation the world has ever seen. Now you can't walk ten feet without an unwashed Arab man screaming in your face to buy his gaudy trinkets, or a bum on fentanyl passed out with cock in hand pissing across the sidewalk.
In twenty years when Japan looks like every other dumping ground in the world, they will tell you it was always like that.
The implementation is the tricky part - you don't want to end up with a tax on 'not looking Japanese'.
I visited a zoo in my home country recently and they offered discounted entry if you could prove that you lived in the local city.
You'd need ID with you home address listed for that kind of thing to be practical if applied widely though.
tax-free for tourists, how do you call that if not "tax break on not looking Japanese"?
@@alexisfrjp what is tax free for tourists?
Yes, it should definitely be set up as a discount to residents rather than a tax on tourists. That is way more palatable, since tourists will thing they are paying regular prices, locals will feel like they are getting a discount, and you could also make the discount only for people local to the city, prefecture, just residents and it could be easier to implement as it would tie in with other discounts you might have set up like those for children, elderly, family etc.
If you want to limit tourism shouldn't the easiest way to do it simply be to limit the number of Visas you issue over a period of time? Might be more work from an application stand point and you'd have to cancel any of the visa agreements with countries that makes it easy to travel for everyone. But I think that might be what you need to do until you've figured out how to deal with tourism. Japan was not ready for this, they need to figure things out before they ruin themselves over it.
The numbers are only a tiny bit higher than 2019. If they weren't ready, that shows a lack of competent leadership and a lack of grasp of basic mathematics. (It's not that hard to count the number of airline seats arriving in a country.)
This is a TERRIBLE idea. It will be the start of a divide between Japanese & tourists that leads to a slippery slope of tourists resenting Japan & Japanese people for having to charge them more. It reinforces the already present problem of a divide between Japanese & tourists by strengthening the concepts of "us" vs "them." Plus, what about people who are half Japanese, or Japanese natives that have non-Japanese genetics? They will have to argue with the shop owners that they should be charged the native prices instead of the tourist price which is just going to cause more headache for everyone involved.
Japan is their country. If they don't want much foreigners, they are allowed to so. They are of no obligated to appease foreigners.
@@murimurimrui Sure, but the problem is that this will negatively impact the locals too. There will be (and already are) arguments among the locals themselves that will cause a strain on the social climate. It will also minimize opportunities for locals to interact with and learn from other cultures, which is already an issue that Japan faces due to its low English literacy. As you can see from the interviews, a lot of locals want to talk to foreigners but if there are fewer tourists and an increased divide between tourists and locals this will make it harder for them.
well I think there’s should be some kind of system that allows foreign tourist to be charge with tourist tax and are not discriminatory to the locals (Japanese and non-Japanese alike).
@@rin15290 why would japan need to open they culture to other ? Its one of thr safest country in the world, polite etc… do you want it to br like us or europe ?
@@murimurimruithan don’t piss and moan about the weak yen. If you want to get rid of bad tourist, start revoking passports for the few idiots that go there. Been to Japan multiple times and to act like the only people littering and acting stupid are foreigners is ridiculous.
I like the idea of locals getting a discount by showing an ID or something. That way the prices are standard for everyone else as a whole.
In Chicago there are local discount prices for musuems if you live in the city and have an ID.
Its a difficult problem to balance this on how they will do it with taxing tourists like its mentioned in the video. More tourists which means they also have to improve infrastructure. Such as Kyoto with the buses. I think they should put prices up in the tourist spots and yeah Japan is becoming what Europe has become. I agree with on foreign side of things with the kiwi guy and dutch girl. They also need to make the locals live comfortably.
The actual problem with taxes as I see it is 3 things, 1: lack of transparency(in calculating, collecting, and spending the revenue) 2: Use as a behavior modifier instead of as a means to collect funds for a stated purpose. and 3: the funds are raided for a purpose other than the justification for collecting it.
If a tax policy doesnt break these 3 things, most people will tolerate it even if its quite high it seems.
Indeed. These are the issues with adding any tax.
No. When the usdjpy was 85 yen equals $1.15, you didn’t see Americans charging more just because the tourist were Japanese.
The GBPJPY is nearly at 200 yen per GBP. The Kuwait Dinar, just one Dinar equals 506 yen.
The Japanese economy is stagnant along with its birth rate. In addition, Japan doesn’t any natural resources. It’s mainly a purchaser of resources and crafting superior goods. In all honesty, the true value of the yen compared to USD is 300yen for $1USD. As it was before in the 70s or 80s can’t remember.
I think, in this case, it's all about how it's implemented. Overcrowding is a problem. This channel has done a previous video about how tourism doesn't always mean that the money they spend remains/stays in the country. I think, rather than us ordinary people agreeing or disagreeing, this really needs some experts and/or studies to determine things like how much, time limit, where to implement it, etc.
Honestly as a foreign tourist I wouldn’t mind paying a surcharge to enter the country, as long as it directly helps the workers or for conservation.
If I can afford to travel I can afford to pay a bit more, as long as it goes to the right places
It's like the one child policy in China. People wanted to have kids but the government didn't want anymore so they restricted people from having kids. Then a couple decades later no one wants kids and the government is already at a 3 child policy lmao. Who knew such a insignificant change at the time people thought would have such a huge impact where China is literally be crippled. I'm not against taxing tourist as it wouldn't affect me however it would affect the entire idea of traveling japan to come across someone's mind. Advertisement is a valuable commodity that japan has. It's pretty much unfathomable simply because its being spread by so many different means like anime. Taxing tourist basically means people who cannot afford to travel should be prohibited. This will affect them and their country origin. Slowly less people would travel as people would assume the negative aspects of not doing so.
You are right, other countries have implemented this policy. But it will be a slow gradual change in perspective is there and will be irreversible or at the very least take a very long long time to undo like China. I won't be against Japan for what they want to do but money will flow to the direction most easiest. People may opt for other country to visit as they can get more value for their money. It is already the case. I don't mind less people as I can certainly afford so. However I cannot speak on behalf of other people and people will make their own decisions to travel somewhere else where their money is just as worth.
Travel, especially international travel is a privilege, not a right. I've seen Western backpackers begging for money in airports in Thailand, they're not the kind of tourists any nation would want. If you can't afford to go, then stay at home.
Politicians trying to solve the problem
expectation: tax tourists
reality: tax the Japanese people
🤣🤣
@@Avantime unfortunately privilege means nothing when the transaction is an exchange. The same can be said for customers or tourist. it's a privilege to have customers that pay your business or country expenses.
@@AK255. It's a free market, customers could always go to another place, or even another country. Don't like how Japan is overcharging you? Go to South Korea or China.
And it's not a privilege for a business to have customers, it's a privilege for you to be their customer. I mean go to a high-end restaurant that has a dress code while wearing a T-shirt and shorts, and see how far that gets you.
I understand the situation for Japan and as a Foreigner who came 4 times there. I would understand the increase of price to discourage an excess of tourism. If the country doesn't have the capacity : space, vacant places for hotels, public transport tickets for the locals their daily routine and the surge of tourists going around. And the capabilities with the lack of foreign languages speaking helpers. It is dicriminatory but it can't be helped considering the situation of this country. If they have this policy only to reduce tourism in overconcentrated areas/cities. We are not in the same situations in the US... However, unfair restaurants or salers who charges x4 times is not right. Be lawful and only apply the tax your Government tells you to apply. Or don't apply at all if you want to feel fair with your customers.
During the pandemic, I got emails and ads from every prefecture’s tourism ministry BEGGING me to come visit
In Hawaii you have two prices in many places, one for tourists and a discount for locals who show a local drivers license. As long as the difference is not onerous people don't mind. And this is for the citizens of the same country.
Doing it this way also answers the "xenophobic" claims. For instance my oldest son is a permanent resident of Japan and although he is not a native Japanese, the tax would apply to him as he can show local residency.
Japan is pretty xenophobic.... this doesn't change that one bit.
@@goofygal27 yeah? being overrun doesn't help
beside, its like being Japanese is a crime smh
This is just a greedy excuse to make more money. charging more doesn't solve any issues. Tourism is great for the economy. For example, Japan was suffering as a whole during covid due to inability for tourism. " ThEy HaVe ThE wEaK yEn"...yes which encourages more tourism which is the backbone of your economy. They already raised the JR pass, I think 70%, for no good reason other than greed. Now getting the Jr pass makes no sense which loses them money overall. If this comes to pass then the slippery slope this puts Japan on will be a grimy one. And lastly, if i'm told I have to pay more because i'm a tourist then I will gladly say " fuck you "
That's like charging different prices for different races here in the U.S.. Cities would be burned down TOMORROW if this attempted to pass as a law here. Absolutely foul
The simplest fee to implement would be a visitor fee (either during immigration or visa application process).
Here in Malaysia, tickets, entry fees and other tourist charges are charge higher for tourist vs locals. Just that some items that you buy in malaysia, you can claim back the tax at the airport otw out. I hope japan doesnt do it, but I also understand if they do. Plus with the declining economy and overtourism....It's hard for them not to...
Surcharge wont hinder. They will spent whatever amount to put foot in the country at least once. Until there are other country in Asia that can give comparable touring experience.
Promoting tourism in other parts of Japan would be a better and more fair strategy I think. So far as I can tell, the amount of tourism isn't so much the problem as the fact that they're all going to the same places. Japan has many many beautiful places to visit, that very few tourists even think to go to. Now that said, enforcing certain etiquette for tourists to follow is yet another problem, and that only gets solved when tourist that act poorly experience consequences. A small slap on the wrist for (in some cases) breaking laws isn't good enough.
yes. everyone is going to tokyo/kyoto/osaka
@@samelmudir When I went, I did it during a non-tourist period and stayed in Tokyo(Ikebukuro specifically), because I didn't know much about Japan. If I'd subscribed to a channel like Abroad in Japan before, I'd have known about other places I could've stayed and visited.
They just don't want poor people make an income requirement to get a Visa.It's what they really want. Because japan is tax free for pretty much all their luxury stores
I mean if it's reasonable, why not, like places that need extra maintenance or services that subsidized for locals, but restaurants/ travel fares should be, somewhat, monitored or regulated.
Considering I plan to live soon in Japan I can just imagine how complicated this would be if you live there. Already now some people don't reply to me in Japanese when I spoke to them in Japanese assuming I can't understand even basic Japanese. Having to explain to them your a local etc would just put more stress on everyone.
I think one of the big problems is that most tourists stick to the same location while a street next to a big populated place is only filled with a few Japanese. If tourists were to spread more by maybe providing English speakers more options it might help a bit.
"Taxing" tourists is a BAD idea because Nagatacho would waste the money (like Washington DC does). No objections to local businesses charging a "service fee" to tourists... "business is business"（スネークマンショー、Mr.大平）
This is a super interesting topic that is quite complex. I think that having a tourist tax isn't a bad idea but it's about how it is implemented. For instance, if I go into a restaurant and I am given an English menu and the prices are different than the Japanese one, I may feel like I am being discriminatee against. But for instance, if I have to pay a small fee to enter a shrine and local get in free, then that is completely fair. Implementing a system where locals can be easily identified and then check everyone would be the best route. For instance, in the US you could be expected show your ID when doing something. If you don't have this ID, you are charged a tourist fee. The biggest hurdle is going to be assuming someone isn't local but actually is.
In Canada we have a huge problem with jam-packed camping areas and wilderness parks, it's just wall-to-wall people and it's really frustrating. Not because of the over crowding, but because the solution is so simple: build more parks. We need at least double the number of parks, we have tons and tons of places to build them, and it would create tons of new jobs to build / maintain / and manage them. Building more parks is an all-win no-lose situation, but for some reason the people running things aren't even thinking about it. Over tourism is a wonderful problem to have, you just need to accept that it's happening and plan accordingly.
Put a small tax on visitors to Japan, use the money from that tax to build stuff specifically to draw the tourists away from the places where the locals don't want them. I'm not sure what the problem is other than the universal governmental ineptitude? Perhaps I'm not seeing things clearly?
I think a tourism tax is a bit arbitrary, and difficult to enforce. But a system my local favourite ramen place operated was a good solution. Instead offering a discounted price specifically to same city ward residents. It keeps the price down for locals and loyal customers, and encourages more local business. And placing the responsibility on people who want to redeem the discount by actively showing identification, rather than trying to police who is and isn't a tourist and punishing them, makes for a much more positive situation. It also avoids the problem of arbitrary discrimination between domestic vs foreign tourists. Granted this has nothing to do with taxes, this is just a way for small businesses to continue to serve their existing customers while still taking advantage of the tourism.
I love your channel. I am going to japan next week heheh
Tbh i think a fine for those who break the laws or throw trash in improper places should be more fair, as long as thoses payments are converted to investiments in the area, it should force tourists to be more mindfull about their actions since they not in their homeland.
Those things exist already. If they're not being enforced, they should be.
Similarly, there should be more trashcans to accommodate tourism so there's no excuse.
As an American, it's built into my DNA to resist taxation 😂 However, I think this makes sense. Even if it does discourage some tourism, is that really such a bad thing? After all, Japan keeping (most of) its own unique culture is part of what makes it so attractive to visit in the first place. They are just going the Bhutan route with tourism so they don't change too much with the influx of foreigners
I think this has to be done in a very disperse way. As unfortunate as it sounds, not everyone is going to win directly from the tourism, so the fairness can only be achieved after the money and taxes are collected and distributed. So - how?
First of all, reassess the transport passes. They are lovely and necessary for tourists, but if they are not the right price, then riding cheap shouldn't feel good, it should feel good to pay an amount that reflects the burden on the train system.
Hotels should be the main point. For overcrowded areas, hotels could receive a higher tax based on foreign tourists staying there, a tax that could then be used to clean up after the tourists and help fund those who don't benefit from tourism. Maybe a limit of having more than 40% tourists requiring special permits and taxes, meanwhile leaving countryside hotels without any extra burden.
Food really isn't a good way, especially because of the differences in culture, such as table charge. However, if it was targeted to say - this overcrowded branch that is causing congestion for everyone has a 'rush hour' price (even if it's a week or a month), making it so that locals might avoid those times. If the business wanted to provide an exception, they could do it via coupons that get sent in mail, or given to people during the quiet season.
That way - everyone has a fair price. If you are a local maybe you have a coupon or a friend who gives you one, if you are a foreign visitor you have an incentive to go elsewhere. There is no risk of searching for the price or reading the menu but suddenly being charged 20-40% more. There is no feeling of being marked as an 'unwanted guest'. Instead there's a premium price for those who chose a popular store or a franchise.
Again maybe instead of trying to guess the best way - if the stores received a tax that they had to pay (that plastic cup trash does begin in some store after all...) they could come up with polite or even 'obvious' measures to get the extra cash when it's due. However, unlike hotels - food places do not have your passport information so they can't make a good judgement about your taxability.
Tax free shops again ask some important questions - what is the reason for reducing taxes for foreign purchases when you are trying to tax the exact same thing? Given the few shops that have this privilege, it just seems like a benefit of the large corporations.
Also, I really like the idea of spending these taxes on the tourists so that they feel like it's not just something arbitrary. But I specifically care about the efficiency of tourism - given that any normal purchase has a 10% tax on it, and this tax goes to the government, how come this 10% is not beneficial, on top of the actual sale of goods? To me it sounds like there should be massive investment into this gap, funded by taxes on the industry. There should be a police for managing foreign tourists, there should be more waste management. Either the legislation or the companies need to take a different approach to foreign customers. They need things that Japanese people don't need and those things require money.
In regards to the images of overfilled trash bins (as much as I dislike seeing that) there is a symbolism of "you did not provide enough capacity so this is my way of protesting it" which should be stopped. As many people say - this logic does not apply to Japan, same as you wouldn't leave a coca cola can on a pyramid just because there were no trash cans up there. Yet I wanted to mention it because it might be harder to understand this behavior just from pictures.
I was in Japan for 3 months last fall. I was travelling on a really low budget and rented a room or a small studio for a month at a time through AirBnB. The places where I stayed, I just chose randomly according to what I could afford. I spent one month in a nice area somewhere out side the city center of Osaka, one month in an old Japanese house near Kyoto and one month in an old Japanese house in a small costal town in the Wakayama prefecture. None of those areas had loads of turists (I mean I saw only few other forgeiners during the whole time) and I could really get to feel the atmosphere of the Japanese life buying my foods from grocary stores, making long walks around the areas and just among the normal Japanese people living their daily lives. I had though about making a day trip to Kyoto, but then I read in the news it is full of turists so then I really did not see any point of going to go to just walk in the middle of masses of turists and not really feeling the real atmosphere of Kyoto - or maybe now--a-days it is that.. Anyway, I loved my trip and I wish to go back soon. And again I am going to avoid all the places "you have to see" and go somewhere where no-one has to go, but which can be a nice experience..
What worries me about the idea of tourism taxes is that it could be used as an excuse for discrimination, because outside of specific industries that explicitly cater to tourism like hotels and tourist attractions, there's realistically no way to distinguish between a foreign tourist and a foreign resident without seeing their paperwork, so I'd presume that the people who would be taxed or asked to provide papers are the ones who don't look Japanese enough. I think that applying such a policy opens the door to discrimination in a country that is already quite difficult to live in as an immigrant or racial minority. I would hate to be forced to show my passport or residence card at every restaurant to avoid higher prices just because I look foreign or have an accent.
I also think that the argument of the yen being weak is a really narrow-minded perspective, because whilst it is weak in comparison to currencies like the dollar or euro, Japan is definitely still seen as expensive to someone from a country like India. I find it interesting that the only tourists interviewed in this video are western tourists, because they tend to be the only ones anyone thinks about when discussing this topic.
However, the Dutch girl interviewed mentioned similar policies being applied in Amsterdam, and I've never noticed any issues in this country despite being both a foreign resident and racial minority. I could see such an idea working in Japan if it's applied specifically to non-Japanese speakers instead of foreigners, since it would be less discriminatory, and actually justify the translation/interpretation costs. Besides, I suspect that such a things would mainly be implemented in larger hot-spots like Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto, so it's not likely to affect me if I travel back to Japan anyway.
A tourist tax with 10% off coupons in hotels for cultural spots, not known so much, could be a good idea. A food menu with prices for tourist and locals is risky for business. Food courts with places to seat and eat are always welcome.
A tourist tax in most businesses sounds like a terrible idea. Fluctuating prices would be better: when more tourists are expected prices go up, when less people are expected the prices go down. If you want a tax on tourists specifically then I'd take it while entering the country. When asked at the airport how long are you planning to stay that's when you take the money.