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PaperclipPerfector  4mo ago (text post)   2977 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for November 15, 2024

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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FWIW, the last 1-2 years has been a nightmare of overtourism. I've been living and traveling here for over a decade and it's never been this bad in Tokyo. So maybe visit somewhere else and come back after the boom is over. Don't worry, the yen is probably permanently ruined so it'll stay cheap.

It's probably never getting better. Global airline passengers per year has increased at a rate of roughly 5% per year since WWII. And of course China is on Japan's doorstep and is just discovering international travel. God help us if Indians ever start traveling in mass.

That said, I've really enjoyed traveling in Europe by visiting second-tier cities which get many fewer tourists.

Are there equivalent places in Japan which are fun to visit that actually might benefit from some American tourist buxx?

I believe the answer to this is basically anywhere other than Tokyo, Kyoto and Okinawa.

If you can deal with cold, I had friends recently visit Hokkaido (Sapporo for sure, think other places as well) and they reported it was comparatively bereft of tourists.

For warmer climes, I've generally heard that Kyushu isn't as flooded with foreign tourists as Honshu while still having plenty of impressive natural and historical sites.

Shikoku in particular should also satisfy @jeroboam. I'd hazard a guess that it's probably the main Japanese island that sees least tourists. In terms of places to see, there's quite a bit; perhaps visiting a handful out of the 88 temples on the Shikoku pilgrimage route might appeal. There's also Dogo Onsen, the oldest operating onsen in Japan, and Kochi Castle, an actually non-tourist-trap Japanese castle - many of the extant structures were rebuilt last in the 1700s and it is considered one of the last twelve original castles in Japan with an intact main keep. Much more authentic than the ever-so-famous Osaka Castle, I'd say.

I do genuinely feel bad for the people who have to live close to the over-touristed sites in Japan. A lot of the temples and neighbourhoods that get traffic are places where people actually live and work, and I can't imagine living in, say, Kyoto and getting exposed to this absolute bullshit. Even as a tourist I hate it, I wouldn't be able to handle it in my day-to-day.

If I'm ever going to Japan, I'm almost certainly picking somewhere out of the way, like Koyasan and their Shingon Buddhist temples. Too much of Japan suffers issues with overtourism, and it just kills the vibe of these places which are ostensibly supposed to feel quiet and calm.

I remember the same feeling walking through the alleys and courtyards of Venice. Couldn't imagine what it would be like to step outside your door every day and have someone speak indecipherable gibberish to you while waving a camera.

FWIW, the last 1-2 years has been a nightmare of overtourism. I've been living and traveling here for over a decade and it's never been this bad in Tokyo.

My siblings have been insisting on a Japan trip and I've been reluctant because of this

Don't worry, the yen is probably permanently ruined so it'll stay cheap.

I think the risk/concern here is that it eventually enters an inflationary spiral like Argentina/Turkey. It doesn't seem likely, but if people on the inside don't trust the currency...

I think the BOJ has been far more concerned with deflation than inflation over the last several decades. And it's not that people don't trust the currency, it's that the BOJ prefers a gradual, managed decline that preserves pensions and lifelong employment to any sort of economic dynamism, so a weak yen is fine to them as long as the largest voting blocs ("old people" and "very old people") can still push paper around for a mediocre wage/receive their pensions and can afford to buy rice, tofu, vegetables, and cigarettes.

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