Tokyo, Japan – When Paul Christie began leading tours on Japan’s Nakasendo, an ancient trade route along the post towns of Nagano Prefecture’s Kiso Valley, few travelers frequented the trail.
Christie, who has lived in Japan on and off since the late 1980s, saw the route as a great opportunity for tourists to experience a more authentic side of Japan, allowing them to explore the history, culture and culture on foot. nature and geography of the country.
Since taking charge of tour operator Walk Japan in 2002, Christie has made it her mission to distribute tourists more evenly across the archipelago.
“We’ve been doing this for 20 years and we tend to go to places that aren’t touristy, so we show off the interesting parts of Japan,” the UK native told Al Jazeera.
“This responds to the problems of “overtourism” that Japan is experiencing. »
“Overtourism” was a common topic of discussion in the Japanese tourism industry before the COVID-19 pandemic.
After eight consecutive years of growth in admissions, Japan received a record 32 million visitors in 2019.
But the rising tide hasn’t lifted all boats. Most travelers flocked to the Gold Road, running from Tokyo through the Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe metropolitan area, putting strain on historic districts, Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples and popular museums.
From Japan lifted border restrictions amid pandemic In October last year, concerns about unsustainable tourism returned.
Visitors returned in droves: 2.3 million foreign tourists arrived in July, the highest figure since 2019.
China’s decision last month to lift its three-year ban on group travel to Japan is expected to lead to a further surge in arrivals.
In 2019, 9.2 million Chinese tourists visited Japan, accounting for nearly a third of all visitors, spending 1.8 trillion yen ($12.2 billion) in the process.
“Our headquarters is located in the center of Kyoto and we believe there are as many tourists as before COVID,” Hiroshi Kawaguchi, general manager of tour operator Oku Japan, told Al Jazeera.
“This is a similar situation where major tourist sites are overcrowded and public buses have queues.”
Although Kawaguchi says his company’s vision is not focused on reducing overtourism, Oku Japan’s business model is tailored to those concerns.
“Most of our itineraries are off the beaten track,” Kawaguchi told Al Jazeera.
“Most importantly, every tour we offer includes an element of community interactions…We call these fureai experiences, and this is particularly important not only for the enjoyment of guests but also the local community.”
Tour operators focused on less explored regions also believe in the power of tourism to positively impact rural communities and spur chiho-sosei, or regional revitalization.
In 2007, Walk Japan launched the community project to revitalize two neighboring valleys on the Kunisaki Peninsula, where the company is based.
In addition to organizing group tours in the region, Walk Japan runs development projects, ranging from helping local farmers grow rice and shiitake mushrooms, to teaching English to schoolchildren and renovation of old buildings.
Revitalization is “part of the company’s DNA,” Christie said.
“We want to set an example of what is possible and perhaps inspire others. »
As Japan’s population ages, many small villages are on the brink of extinction. For these communities, tourism can be a welcome and much-needed force of rejuvenation.
“With the right support, some communities actually want (tourists) to experience their local hospitality and way of life and discover their area, provided they are not overwhelmed by visitors and the quality of life is not degraded,” Alex Bradshaw, founder and chief consultant of travel and tourism consultancy Gotoku, told Al Jazeera.
“Even if a village doesn’t survive into the future, the fact that someone remembers it is incredibly powerful; that people lived here and that they had this lifestyle and that we shared some time together. This kind of human interaction is very important.
Overtourism is not limited to urban areas of Japan.
Rural World Heritage sites, subtropical islands, popular hiking trails and national parks have also been affected.
Fuji-Hakone-Izu, for example, hosts almost half of all visitors to Japan’s national parks, due to its proximity to Tokyo and the site of Mount Fuji.
Michelle Lyons, founder of Point North, a specialist branding company that supports businesses passionate about Japanese culture, is working on a campaign to spread tourism – and its economic benefits – more equitably among Japan’s 34 national parks.
“I wanted to find a way to promote all the parks as if they were a network of destinations all equal to each other,” Lyons told Al Jazeera.
“And by presenting them in this way, I hope that the more popular parks will help raise the profile of the less popular parks.”
Lyons is developing collectible pins and patches for each park as well as a trading card game. She wants these collectible memorabilia to highlight the individual merits of each park and serve as educational tools.
“Park management is really fragmented, so it’s difficult for them to coordinate their efforts… You need a series of different solutions that create value for the unique groups involved; a blanket approach will not work,” she said.
“In terms of increasing spending in parks, gift shops could play an important role if they are more strategic in what they sell and think about what tourists actually want and find appealing.”
Stereotypical images
It’s a common refrain in the industry that Japan doesn’t know how to market itself to foreign travelers, but Bradshaw believes Western media is also wrong to present stereotypical images of the country.
“I see how Japan is presented and it leaves me a little confused. I’m just wondering what part of Japan this is because they rely on kitsch, weirdness or cultural tropes… It’s just maid cafes, geishas, tea ceremonies and ninjas,” he said.
“I hope people will discover a deeper side of Japan. But I also understand why this is difficult for the tourism industry. When you have to prioritize what sells rather than what is authentic and necessarily good for the territories.”
Some regions have implemented initiatives aimed specifically at combating overpopulation.
Kyoto, known as Japan’s cultural capital, is set to scrap its one-day bus pass for tourists, with sales ceasing in October.
Iriomote, widely considered the most beautiful of the Ryukyu Islands, has limited the number of daily visitors to 1,200.
In Yamanashi Prefecture, the local government has considered limiting the number of hikers on Mount Fuji’s Yoshida Trail if it becomes too crowded.
Last month, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that the government would develop nationwide countermeasures this fall to mitigate overtourism.
Kumi Kato, a tourism professor at Wakayama and Musashino universities, said the government had taken steps in the right direction – such as holding inter-ministerial meetings on spreading the benefits of tourism – but much more needed to be done. .
“Well-being at the destination should be the goal and the reference concept,” Kato told Al Jazeera.
“Promoting the nighttime and early morning economy as well as secondary destinations will disperse tourism to regional areas, but this alone cannot lead to successful regional tourism.”
“It is essential that the objective is clearly set… We often talk about high-end tourists, or rich tourists, but we should not misunderstand that only rich tourists have value,” he said. Kato added.
“Value should be added to high-quality products and authentic experiences (which will increase) visitor spending rather than visitor numbers. The government certainly sets a target for stay (number of days) and spending per visitor, but strategically, “what type of tourists” should be clearer. »
