Visitor arrivals continue to increase in Hawaiʻi — and the pace of tourism is also picking up in many parts of the Asia Pacific. China is still closed to most foreign travelers — and so is another destination popular with many local residents.
It’s still a little early to make any travel plans to Japan.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a news conference Friday “there are no specific timelines” for the country to welcome back international tourists.
Japan has gradually loosened some of its entry restrictions — now allowing a total of up to 10,000 people a day to come into the country.
But it’s still not open to general tourism. Those who are eligible to enter include Japanese citizens and returning foreign residents, business travelers and students.
Prime Minister Kishida says a broader re-opening depends in part on the rate of infections across the country, where case numbers are climbing.
Japan’s seven-day average of new cases is around 47,000 — compared to about 29,000 in the United States.
In Tokyo, the age cohort with the most cases is people in their 20s.
The city government says roughly a quarter of that group now have booster shots — about half the rate for Tokyo’s overall population.
With the notable exception of China, most countries in the Asia Pacific have re-opened to international tourism — or made plans to do so.
Kishida says Japan’s government will also watch developments in other countries and then make its own “appropriate judgment.”
