As we enter the transition to endemic phase, hopes of being able to travel to your favourite overseas destinations has also arise. Unfortunately, while most of the world has followed Malaysia’s footsteps by opening up their international borders, some are still quite strict in their travel policies.
Well, if you’ve always wanted to travel to the Land of the Rising Sun, we’ve got some good news for you! Japan, the dream travel destination of many, is looking to resume accepting foreign tourists in June 2022 at the earliest. This is according to a government source on 6 May, as reported by Kyodo News.
According to the source, the country may soon reverse the ban on its entry introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic, in hopes of rejuvenating the country’s struggling tourism sector.
The report also added that the Japanese government may accept a limited number of group tours on a trial basis by the end of May to see its impact on the Covid-19 situation in the country.
“During the trial phase, small groups of foreigners would be allowed to visit sightseeing spots based on fixed itineraries in order for the government to see whether it can capture their movements and how to respond if a Covid-19 case is detected,” the source states.
During Japan’s prime minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to London, he said that the country will review its Covid-19 measures “in stages” after consulting with public health experts, and bring them on par with other Group of Seven nations (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States).
The Japanese government will also consider making it compulsory that the visitors have already had booster vaccine shots before the tours.
For now, Japan allows up to 10,000 people a day to enter Japan, but they are limited to business people, technical interns and students. Fingers crossed, let’s hope that we will soon be able to travel to other beautiful countries, with necessary Covid-19 measures imposed of course!
Also Read: Going Overseas? Here’s How M’sians Can Check Whether They’re Blacklisted By Immigration
