Aug 16, 2024
Is your locale suffering from overtourism or is it...crickets?
I've lived on the periphery of Tokyo, commuted in for some years, and finally pulled back. Is the city or region you live in crowded with tourists from abroad or is it an off-the-beaten track location? Do the claims of "overtourism" ring true to you or do you think it's overblown?
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on Aug 17
I don't think our area is prone to overtourism since we're in the countryside, but I do see an uptick in visitors at certain times of the year. For instance, at the moment the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale is on, and I do think it draws more people to Niigata. The other timeframe is ski season, but neither feels unmanageable because it's not like we were all hustle and bustle here to start with. I think a lot of regional areas really want tourists, so I think the overtourism thing is concentrated to the areas that get almost every traveler (Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka). I did actually see an article that people were canceling trips after the megaquake warning, so I wonder if that will see a drop in overall numbers for at least a little while.
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on Aug 26
Over-tourism is real in Kawagoe! Its become a real problem this year, but its building for years. I first noticed it last year when my "secret" parking spaces that were always a safe bet were all full on a weekday. And for the last year you can't just "walk" down the street, you have to shuffle at a snail's pace behind all the tourists! Its got so bad that we never ever go to the tourist area of Kawagoe on a weekend and even on a weekday I'll only go early morning or after dusk!
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on Aug 26
@BigfamJapan I've visited Kawagoe in the last 12 months...And it was crazy crowded on the main street, but on the back streets up to Kawagoe Goten, the palace, it was quiet. In the early evening, I walked over to the kura storehouse streets and the crowd had thinned out, but still dense with foreign tourists. Also in the last year, I've been to Ashikaga, Tochigi, and Sakura (the one next to Narita) and no crowds. Unless there is an event on, these places are not getting visitors from abroad. Another place I visited last year, Odawara, is worth a visit for the castle and villas but again, virtually no visitors from abroad when I was there. However, getting through Odawara Station was stressful because it's jammed with foregin visitors headed for Hakone.
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on Sep 4
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on Sep 4
@Eli My impression is that interesting places within the 23 wards aren't suffering overtourism at all. I often take visitors from abroad to Katsushika Ward to see Mizumoto Park and Shibamata where we seldom encounter other foreign visitors. The locations appeal to visitors interested in slow tourism, history, urban landscapes, etc. May I ask, which ward/city you're in?
5 Answers