How might coronavirus impact a vacation to Japan?
February 21, 2020 10:40 AM Subscribe
I am planning an April trip to Japan from NYC. Will coronavirus likely have any impact on a vacation to Japan, at that time?
We are two Americans who will be spending about two weeks in Tokyo, and other cities. We aren't concerned about coronavirus itself, but the ways it might interfere with a vacation.
I know that no one can predict the future, but some questions we have:
1) Are there likely to be any travel restrictions within Japan during that time?
2) Are any tourist areas, markets, attractions and other public areas likely to be closed because of coronavirus?
3) Is it possible there would be some kind of quarantine period coming to Japan, or coming back to the US?
4) We are looking for flights that do not have a stop-over in China. Is there any other advice regarding travel to and from Japan?
Is there anything to know regarding coronavirus before making plans to visit Japan?
We are two Americans who will be spending about two weeks in Tokyo, and other cities. We aren't concerned about coronavirus itself, but the ways it might interfere with a vacation.
I know that no one can predict the future, but some questions we have:
1) Are there likely to be any travel restrictions within Japan during that time?
2) Are any tourist areas, markets, attractions and other public areas likely to be closed because of coronavirus?
3) Is it possible there would be some kind of quarantine period coming to Japan, or coming back to the US?
4) We are looking for flights that do not have a stop-over in China. Is there any other advice regarding travel to and from Japan?
Is there anything to know regarding coronavirus before making plans to visit Japan?
I'm going about a month before you and have similar questions. I think this is one where you have to watch and wait. Also, before you book anything, buy travel insurance and make sure the policy covers this (I have travel insurance but don't yet know if this kind of cancellation would be covered!). Sign up for the State Department travel alerts about Japan, too.
I think the other questions are really un-answerable and are more about reading the tea leaves. If you don't have plane tickets already, though, in general I'd say that the early days of a new virus are maybe not the best time to book a vacation to a region--not necessarily because you'll be exposed but because the travel issues around all this might get complicated.
posted by bluedaisy at 11:15 AM on February 21, 2020
I think the other questions are really un-answerable and are more about reading the tea leaves. If you don't have plane tickets already, though, in general I'd say that the early days of a new virus are maybe not the best time to book a vacation to a region--not necessarily because you'll be exposed but because the travel issues around all this might get complicated.
posted by bluedaisy at 11:15 AM on February 21, 2020
(I bought my tickets last year. If I hadn't bought them already, this is not the trip I'd be booking now. And I'm a pretty adventurous traveler who lived in one country during a new flu outbreak.)
posted by bluedaisy at 11:17 AM on February 21, 2020
posted by bluedaisy at 11:17 AM on February 21, 2020
I am going to allegedly coronavirus-free Indonesia during the same time and if I hadn't already bought my flights, I also would not be buying them now either. That said, I did pay the extra $5/night or whatever when booking my hotels the other day to get the refundable-til-a-day-or-two-before-my-stay option.
posted by Grither at 11:45 AM on February 21, 2020
posted by Grither at 11:45 AM on February 21, 2020
I just came back to the US from two weeks in Japan with friends. Our racial makeup was white and East Asian. We did not encounter any direct restrictions on travel or facility access. I noticed one bar with a sign out front saying they were barring access to foreigners "until the new pneumonia is over", but I didn't see anything else like that. There does seem to be a lot of tension under the surface, though, given how many people you see wearing face masks (there was a recent news story where somebody pushed the emergency stop button on a train because somebody was coughing without a face mask), so you may not attract much sympathy if you're visibly ill.
Definitely avoid traveling through China if you can help it. Before I could check in for my return flight, I had to talk to an interviewer who asked if I had been to China recently.
As far as travel restrictions getting back, I don't think it's possible to predict what will happen. In a sane world, I'd say you have nothing to worry about, but unfortunately, American foreign policy is currently decided by a certain senile, impulsive, and vindictive man whose beliefs about Japan haven't changed since the 1980s.
posted by J.K. Seazer at 12:28 PM on February 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
Definitely avoid traveling through China if you can help it. Before I could check in for my return flight, I had to talk to an interviewer who asked if I had been to China recently.
As far as travel restrictions getting back, I don't think it's possible to predict what will happen. In a sane world, I'd say you have nothing to worry about, but unfortunately, American foreign policy is currently decided by a certain senile, impulsive, and vindictive man whose beliefs about Japan haven't changed since the 1980s.
posted by J.K. Seazer at 12:28 PM on February 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
Currently in the same situation - we have a trip scheduled to Tokyo/Kyoto at the end of March (coming from the US) and are just watching it closely. We do not have trip insurance that covers this situation, so if we were to cancel, we would be out a lot of dollars at this point, which is not ideal. Similarly, we are not concerned about getting sick ourselves, but what the impact might be if the US decides to restrict folks who come into the country or our return flights get canceled while we are there.
A friend who is traveling with us is flying from SFO through TPE and her TPE-->NRT flight is currently in question. Apparently her airline canceled almost all their flights between TPE and JPN and so she is trying to figure out if her flight will be canceled as well (right now its only showing 20 days out, and we are traveling in 30 days).
At this point just going to keep watching and following to see what might happen. This is kind of a dream trip for us so really hoping that it happens. We are also visiting friends who live there and as of a few days ago, they indicated that it was business as usual - more people were wearing masks but that because of the Olympics and the tourist implications, they are trying to keep things calm and not cause panic (for better or for worse?).
The last thing I will say is that the Japan Travel subreddit has been kind of helpful in following the situation - they have a pinned post where the moderators are updating with new information and its helpful to read accounts of folks who have just been there (although I definitely take everything I read there with a grain of salt).
posted by something_witty at 12:46 PM on February 21, 2020
A friend who is traveling with us is flying from SFO through TPE and her TPE-->NRT flight is currently in question. Apparently her airline canceled almost all their flights between TPE and JPN and so she is trying to figure out if her flight will be canceled as well (right now its only showing 20 days out, and we are traveling in 30 days).
At this point just going to keep watching and following to see what might happen. This is kind of a dream trip for us so really hoping that it happens. We are also visiting friends who live there and as of a few days ago, they indicated that it was business as usual - more people were wearing masks but that because of the Olympics and the tourist implications, they are trying to keep things calm and not cause panic (for better or for worse?).
The last thing I will say is that the Japan Travel subreddit has been kind of helpful in following the situation - they have a pinned post where the moderators are updating with new information and its helpful to read accounts of folks who have just been there (although I definitely take everything I read there with a grain of salt).
posted by something_witty at 12:46 PM on February 21, 2020
I am pretty sure my parents just cancelled their annual business trip to Tokyo in May.
They are confident, experienced travelers, but they noped right out of this.
posted by wenestvedt at 1:29 PM on February 21, 2020
They are confident, experienced travelers, but they noped right out of this.
posted by wenestvedt at 1:29 PM on February 21, 2020
The Tokyo marathon, a major international marathon and Japan’s largest race, was just cancelled due to Coronavirus concerns (except for the pro runner/Olympic trial bits). That would have been held Marich 1. While it’s not a guarantee that smaller touristy things will be impacted, it does indicate that they are prepared to shut things down for the sake of public health.
(I follow someone on social media whose flights to the Tokyo marathon from the US were cancelled by the airlines a week or so before the race itself was cancelled, so travel may be a problem as well. I’m fairly certain her flights were through China, though.)
posted by okayokayigive at 3:20 PM on February 21, 2020
(I follow someone on social media whose flights to the Tokyo marathon from the US were cancelled by the airlines a week or so before the race itself was cancelled, so travel may be a problem as well. I’m fairly certain her flights were through China, though.)
posted by okayokayigive at 3:20 PM on February 21, 2020
Just to put things in perspective, simply saying that "Japan currently has the 3rd most Covid-19 cases in the world" is incredibly misleading. The country with the most cases has 76,288, nearly three orders of magnitude higher than Japan's total of 109. That's 109 cases in a country of 126 million. You're probably hundreds of times more likely to catch and die from influenza than to catch coronavirus.
As for specific questions:
1) I very much doubt that there will be any travel restrictions within the country.
2) I think it's unlikely that there will be any significant closings of tourist sites. You'll probably see more hand disinfectant dispensers than usual.
3) Inbound traffic from the US is unlikely to be affected by quarantine. I suppose there's a chance of quarantine going back to the US in the unlikely event that there's an extreme outbreak in Japan during the time you're in Japan, but that would be the case anywhere in the world you might travel.
4) As for travel advice, I don't know, maybe don't stop off in South Korea.
I'd say enjoy your trip. This may be best time ever to see popular tourist sites with reduced crowds.
posted by Umami Dearest at 8:26 PM on February 21, 2020 [3 favorites]
As for specific questions:
1) I very much doubt that there will be any travel restrictions within the country.
2) I think it's unlikely that there will be any significant closings of tourist sites. You'll probably see more hand disinfectant dispensers than usual.
3) Inbound traffic from the US is unlikely to be affected by quarantine. I suppose there's a chance of quarantine going back to the US in the unlikely event that there's an extreme outbreak in Japan during the time you're in Japan, but that would be the case anywhere in the world you might travel.
4) As for travel advice, I don't know, maybe don't stop off in South Korea.
I'd say enjoy your trip. This may be best time ever to see popular tourist sites with reduced crowds.
posted by Umami Dearest at 8:26 PM on February 21, 2020 [3 favorites]
I'm also in the same situation - we're planning a trip to Kyushu in early April and bought travel insurance last weekend, just in case.
posted by mogget at 8:35 PM on February 21, 2020
posted by mogget at 8:35 PM on February 21, 2020
I believe the current CDC advice is not to change travel plan unless you're a higher risk demographic, but recommend getting travelers insurance, and bring masks, alcohol wipes etc since it's hard to find that stuff locally in Japan now.
Teaching a few English classes in Japan, I have one doctor as a student, so have been picking his brain on the topic. He says we should have a clearer picture a week or two from now. Currently the spreading has been relatively contained in Japan, but since it has spread a little bit, we'll probably see soon if the spreading begins multiplying quickly or spreading at the same slow rate until the warmer spring weather. We've also had a warm winter, so it may be helping a bit.
I did cancel one daytrip to Kyoto tomorrow, but otherwise have tried to just keep good hygiene habits without worrying too much.
posted by p3t3 at 10:18 PM on February 21, 2020
Teaching a few English classes in Japan, I have one doctor as a student, so have been picking his brain on the topic. He says we should have a clearer picture a week or two from now. Currently the spreading has been relatively contained in Japan, but since it has spread a little bit, we'll probably see soon if the spreading begins multiplying quickly or spreading at the same slow rate until the warmer spring weather. We've also had a warm winter, so it may be helping a bit.
I did cancel one daytrip to Kyoto tomorrow, but otherwise have tried to just keep good hygiene habits without worrying too much.
posted by p3t3 at 10:18 PM on February 21, 2020
Same situation, same timeframe! (Man, should there be a MeFi Meetup over hand sanitizer shooters or something?) We were originally supposed to go to China as part of this trip, so I am STEEPED in virus updates (and have had to block my mother, who has started messaging me with the frequency of an unstable ex over this).
At this point, we're watching and waiting. Seconding to check out the Japan Travel subreddit. We didn't cancel the China leg of our trip until the places we were visiting shut down and our flights were issued waivers by our airlines. Most travel insurance doesn't cover epidemics as reason for cancellation, so it didn't make sense to cancel before then. We'd be out thousands of dollars if we cancelled at this point.
As I watched happen a few weeks ago with China tourism, things changed very quickly. I will say that our airline did not give us any problems dealing with cancellation/changes using their waiver policy, nor did the large hotels we had planned to stay at in Shanghai. As of right now, there are no (US) travel warnings for Japan. We are hoping to visit Disneyland, so I'm watching the Sanrio Puroland closure and keeping an eye on day-over-day infection increases. Things will either get much worse very quickly, as they did in South Korea, or they will level off a bit. I'm keeping my fingers crossed so hard. Best case scenario is that we get to enjoy slightly lower crowds!
But also, yeah, it sucks and I'm right there with you. I try not to whine in public because first world problems, but I have a lot riding on this trip, emotionally speaking.
Oh, and pack hand sanitizer, soap sheets and a little hand towel. Not just because of coronavirus, but because a lot of public bathrooms don't have soap. Also you'll want a hand towel if you visit shrines and don't fancy wiping your hands on your pants.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 7:55 AM on February 22, 2020
At this point, we're watching and waiting. Seconding to check out the Japan Travel subreddit. We didn't cancel the China leg of our trip until the places we were visiting shut down and our flights were issued waivers by our airlines. Most travel insurance doesn't cover epidemics as reason for cancellation, so it didn't make sense to cancel before then. We'd be out thousands of dollars if we cancelled at this point.
As I watched happen a few weeks ago with China tourism, things changed very quickly. I will say that our airline did not give us any problems dealing with cancellation/changes using their waiver policy, nor did the large hotels we had planned to stay at in Shanghai. As of right now, there are no (US) travel warnings for Japan. We are hoping to visit Disneyland, so I'm watching the Sanrio Puroland closure and keeping an eye on day-over-day infection increases. Things will either get much worse very quickly, as they did in South Korea, or they will level off a bit. I'm keeping my fingers crossed so hard. Best case scenario is that we get to enjoy slightly lower crowds!
But also, yeah, it sucks and I'm right there with you. I try not to whine in public because first world problems, but I have a lot riding on this trip, emotionally speaking.
Oh, and pack hand sanitizer, soap sheets and a little hand towel. Not just because of coronavirus, but because a lot of public bathrooms don't have soap. Also you'll want a hand towel if you visit shrines and don't fancy wiping your hands on your pants.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 7:55 AM on February 22, 2020
Oh yeah, on the subject of hand sanitizer: we weren't able to find dedicated hand sanitizer bottles to purchase at convenience stores or drug stores, so we improvised one with a small perfume spray bottle and rubbing alcohol. So, that is an option in case you forget to pack some.
posted by J.K. Seazer at 4:45 PM on February 22, 2020
posted by J.K. Seazer at 4:45 PM on February 22, 2020
Bluedaisy, blech! Boo! (I know it's not your fault, but bummer!)
For anyone else following the thread, I'm also keeping an eye on the CDC country page in addition to the State one that bluedaisy linked. I also recommend bookmarking your airline's travel notice/alert page, as that was how I determined when to pull the trigger on cancelling my China trip.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 7:41 AM on February 24, 2020
For anyone else following the thread, I'm also keeping an eye on the CDC country page in addition to the State one that bluedaisy linked. I also recommend bookmarking your airline's travel notice/alert page, as that was how I determined when to pull the trigger on cancelling my China trip.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 7:41 AM on February 24, 2020
Looks like the Japanese government will be releasing some guidelines on coronavirus prevention tomorrow (Tuesday). Might be worth seeing what that's all about.
posted by bluedaisy at 12:36 PM on February 24, 2020
posted by bluedaisy at 12:36 PM on February 24, 2020
We just got back from Japan. Many tourist sites are now closed — Disneyland, Studio Ghibli, the government observatory. I expect many more to close. Sports events are going on but many are excluding attendance, so the teams play to empty stadiums. Literally completely empty.
I’d be worried about getting infected. No one seems to know how to properly use a mask. It’s an epidemic; why would you think you are special and won’t get infected? No it’s not a sure thing but neither is non-infection a sure thing.
You could well face restrictions on travel coming home. Flights are already being cancelled. United has cut flights there. When we flew home we were repeatedly asked if we had been to or flown through China. My kid’s part-boarding high school seriously considered not letting her back into class for two weeks. One of her classmates who was also in Japan won’t be allowed to stay in the dorm for two weeks so he’ll be staying with us.
I loved Japan and am so glad we went. I would cancel any trips there in the next three months. It’s getting worse by the day. I started out being completely nonchalant. Now I’m so glad our trip didn’t last a single day longer.
I am not paranoid. The last trip we took was to Beirut during the revolution. This virus is unknown enough that it’s worth being very cautious. Japan will be there later. You don’t want to be the person who brings covid to your town. Flights can usually be rescheduled for a change fee which may be high but it’s a hell of a lot cheaper than a day in the ICU.
posted by Capri at 7:26 AM on March 1, 2020
I’d be worried about getting infected. No one seems to know how to properly use a mask. It’s an epidemic; why would you think you are special and won’t get infected? No it’s not a sure thing but neither is non-infection a sure thing.
You could well face restrictions on travel coming home. Flights are already being cancelled. United has cut flights there. When we flew home we were repeatedly asked if we had been to or flown through China. My kid’s part-boarding high school seriously considered not letting her back into class for two weeks. One of her classmates who was also in Japan won’t be allowed to stay in the dorm for two weeks so he’ll be staying with us.
I loved Japan and am so glad we went. I would cancel any trips there in the next three months. It’s getting worse by the day. I started out being completely nonchalant. Now I’m so glad our trip didn’t last a single day longer.
I am not paranoid. The last trip we took was to Beirut during the revolution. This virus is unknown enough that it’s worth being very cautious. Japan will be there later. You don’t want to be the person who brings covid to your town. Flights can usually be rescheduled for a change fee which may be high but it’s a hell of a lot cheaper than a day in the ICU.
posted by Capri at 7:26 AM on March 1, 2020
Update for anyone still following this thread and for posterity: as of today, our April trip is cancelled. My husband's company issued a policy this morning prohibiting travel to Japan. Hotels have been relatively easy to recover money from, but I'm not looking forward to the time I'm going to have to spend on the phone with the airline. They were great to deal with when we had to cancel the China leg of our trip but I think tunes have changed now that all the airlines are getting really cash-strapped. Good luck to everyone dealing with this. I'm hoping we can try again in November. I'm watching my company's national conference, which starts Saturday, start to fall apart around our ears so I think even domestic travel is going to get really sketchy over the next few days/weeks.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 8:30 AM on March 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by bowtiesarecool at 8:30 AM on March 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
Japan Air is offering a full refund now for tickets booked before February 28 for flights leaving up to March 18. I suspect this second date will keep getting pushed out. If you are going to cancel and not rebook, and your airline isn't yet offering a refund, I'd suggesting waiting until it's closer to your departure date.
posted by bluedaisy at 12:59 PM on March 5, 2020
posted by bluedaisy at 12:59 PM on March 5, 2020
Bluedaisy, thanks for that info! I'm way too busy to call for the next week (we have a huge national conference at work! Starting Saturday! How is that a good idea?) but I figure I'll try calling and pleading my case, and if that doesn't work, I'll keep waiting and hoping for a waiver change.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 2:11 PM on March 5, 2020
posted by bowtiesarecool at 2:11 PM on March 5, 2020
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posted by pazazygeek at 11:04 AM on February 21, 2020