I just returned from a few days in a reopened Japan. It was a short trip, but honestly, it was just great to get an opportunity to enjoy the great food and hospitality. A lot of things still aren’t back to what it was pre-Covid. Getting into Japan isn’t the most straightforward either, but there are ways to make that experience a lot smoother.
Having gone through all the paperwork and arrivals process, and spent a few days doing tourist things, allow me to share a little on my experiences and how to best get through the many steps of the (pre)-arrival process.
The Pre-Arrival and On-Arrival Experience
While individual tourists are now welcome again, there’s still some requirements to meet if you’re planning a Japan holiday anytime soon. As I detailed in my earlier post when Japan reopened, visitors still need to fully vaccinated or take a pre-departure test (PDT) PCR test within 72h prior to arrival. Visitors are also required to complete a health questionnaire and complete a pledge to abide by health and safety regulations while in Japan. Besides these Covid19-related requirements, the usual arrival card for foreigners and customs declaration must also be completed.
These sound like a lot of documentation, and it is. Fortunately, there’s a way to speed these up and (mostly) sail through the arrival process. Japan offers a “fast track” of the Covid19-related arrival quarantine procedures. Currently this is done through the MySOS app, however this will be integrated into the “Visit Japan Web” portal from November 1st.
MySOS, and soon Visit Japan Web allows arrivals to pre-register their personal and arrival details, complete the health questionnaire and pledge in advance. Travellers can then upload their vaccination certificate or PDT, which will be reviewed by the Japanese authorities. Once reviewed and approved, the MySOS will turn blue and a QR code will be generated. I expect that Visit Japan Web will work similarly.
While these sound tedious, I can say from experience that completing these steps in advance pays off on arrival. My experience is limited to arriving at Osaka Kansai airport, but I believe the general process should be similar across other airports in Japan. Upon arrival, passengers were generally herded towards a central processing area.
Once there, we were split into those with blue MySOS screens, or those who did not. Since I had a blue MySOS, I was directed to move to large area with 30 or 40 desks. There plenty of staff to guide passengers along to the next available counter. At this counter, a staff scanned the MySOS QR code and checked my passport details. He then handed me the blue “Health Card” below and sent me on my way:
It is vitally important to have this Health Card in hand, at least until landside. When leaving the MySOS checkpoint, more staff members ensured passengers had been given the Health Card. Just before immigration, there was another set of counters where staff again check that arrivals passing by have the Health Card. Past this last checkpoint, it’s off to immigration, where things are just before.
Because all my forms had been completed in advance, and vaccination certificate submitted and reviewed, not once throughout the entire arrival process did I have to fill in any forms or produce documentation (other than the landing card at immigration).
How long did this entire process take? My Scoot flight touched down at 2.15pm, just after a couple of arrivals from HKG, and I was off the aircraft around 2.30pm. I was still able to make the 3pm airport bus to Umeda. That is less than 30min from plane to curb with checked baggage, mightily quick by any measure. I have to commend Kansai Airport for making the arrival process extremely efficient. It certainly helped that they had nearly every one of the 30 or so immigration counters staffed. I had also done the electronic customs declaration, which helped me avoid the queues at customs, another time-saving measure.
To sum up, I will absolutely recommend anyone travelling to Japan to complete the “Fast Track” requirements in advance. It will save time and the inconvenience of fumbling around with paperwork on arrival. It may not always give the same impressive speed I experienced at Kansai, particularly travel volume to Japan picks up, but anything that saves time and hassle after stepping off a long flight, is beneficial in my opinion.
The Tourist Experience
During this short trip, I mostly spent my time in Osaka, during which I took a day trip to Kyoto. I also had an overnight in Tokyo on my way home. I visited plenty of the usual tourists spots – Dotonbori, Arashiyama bamboo grove, Fushimi Inari Shrine, Shibuya etc. Based on my experience, here are my thoughts on holidaying in Japan right now:
1. It’s still fairly quiet….for now
Considering I arrived on the 16th, just 5 days after the reopening, this was no surprise. Most arrivals in these first few weeks are probably either people with very flexible schedules, or have gambled on a reopening around this time. The Scoot flight I was on was a little over 50% full. Around the hotels, I noticed most guests were domestic visitors. Even at the tourist sights, locals usually outnumbered foreigners.
Undoubtedly this will change soon, as year-end holidays roll around in many countries. There is a massive pent-up demand for travel to Japan. Airfare and hotel rates have already started to reflect an impending influx of foreign tourists. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that a certain nationality are still heavily restricted from travelling abroad, and they used to be the biggest source of foreign arrivals into Japan pre-Covid. I would consider it good value to travel to Japan now, for the relative peace and calm at tourist spots.
2. Transport to/from airports may be a problem
I’m a big fan of Japan’s public transport network. It’s extensive and punctual and most major airports are well-served by rail links. However with the exception of certain (semi)-dedicated lines which tend to be pricier, most rail links are also commuter lines used for everyday travel by local residents. That can get inconvenient and hectic at peak hour. Not ideal with big luggage.
That’s where the limousine bus used to come in handy. A staff member places your large bags into the bus hold, off you go on the bus in a nice comfortable seat all the way to the airport. Unfortunately, many limousine bus services were cut during Covid and have not resumed. In Tokyo for example, services to the Ginza, Shiodome, Roppongi, Tokyo Station, Marunouchi and other areas have not resumed. That’s a lot of hotels that are unserved, and there’s no timeline in sight for a resumption. In my case, I stayed at the Conrad Tokyo in Shiodome and flew in and out of Haneda. While there’s direct train access via the Toei-Asakusa/Keikyu Airport Line, and is also one stop from Hamamatsucho Monorail station, nothing beats the ease and convenience of the limousine bus.
3. It’s still challenging to get by with only English, maybe more so
I have to confess despite my fondness for Japan, I don’t speak a word of Japanese. While it’s absolutely possible to get by on a holiday without any knowledge of Japanese, dealing with F&B venues and shops can be still be challenging.
One rather comical episode occurred while waiting for the bus to Itami Airport. The staff wanted to know where I’ll be alighting so he could load my bag accordingly. He didn’t speak English, I don’t speak Japanese, so he eventually he asked “ANA or JAL?”. A more frustrating incident happened at Itami, where the language barrier contributed to the staff sending me all around the terminal just to process my check-in. Considering this started at the international connections desk, one would expect staff manning these counters to have a higher standard of English. I couldn’t help but wonder if many hospitality and travel-related companies may have lost English-speaking staff during the pandemic?
4. Health and safety measures are still present, but inconsistent
Mask wearing is still a thing in Japan, though not a legal requirement. Thankfully for the most part, I saw most foreign visitors were compliant when requested to wear a mask, such as at buffets. Speaking of buffets, it was interesting to note the differences between hotels in different cities. At the Hilton Osaka’s Executive Lounge, the staff were somewhat fanatical about the use of hand sanitiser and gloves when at the buffet. At the Conrad Tokyo’s lounge, these were present but never once mentioned by staff.
Other measures are still present as well. Many F&B outlets I went to were particular about sanitising hands when entering the premises, in every city I visited. Dividers at counter seats are commonplace, turning every dining experience Ichiran-like. Funnily enough, at one sushi place I dined at with a friend, we sat at a regular table but there was divider between us. That was just the weirdest, most pointless arrangement in my opinion.
If you’re travelling to Japan soon, be prepared to put up with these sort of health and safety measures. Feel free to disagree on the efficacy and value of such things, but please don’t be that foreigner to make things difficult for staff and remind the locals why many of them were not keen on a border reopening.
5. Japanese hospitality is still good
Despite the supposed resistance of many Japanese to a border reopening, I never felt unwelcome during my time there. Even when I struggled to Google translate a ramen joint’s vending machine, the staff was patient and happy to point me to the right button when I showed her a photo of the dish from a previous visit. All the F&B outlets I visited were very welcoming, even when language was a challenge.
The hotel staff I interacted with throughout this trip were largely fantastic too. Admittedly that’s to be expected from a Hilton and Conrad in Asia. As I briefly mentioned earlier, the only negative interaction I had with any locals was the mess during check-in at Itami.
Conclusion
Would I recommend heading there now? Absolutely. It’s still relatively quiet, autumn colours are coming, and the yen is weak.
This was a spontaneous, relatively last-minute trip for me, but I’m heading back there in about 3 weeks time for a longer trip. This upcoming trip was pre-planned many months ago. I’m expecting things to be slightly more crowded, but hopefully still relatively calm. I’ll be visiting more tourists hotspots like Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea, and the Hakone region. I’ll be sure to share my impressions from this longer trip, and see how things have evolved 1 month on from the border reopening.
Anyone been to Japan since the reopening? What were your impressions of the post-Covid travel experience?