# Dopers in Japan: how are foreign visitors being treated these days?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-in-japan-how-are-foreign-visitors-being-treated-these-days/972313>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [September 27, 2022, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-in-japan-how-are-foreign-visitors-being-treated-these-days/972313 "2022-09-27T12:30:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\
**Post date:** [September 27, 2022, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-in-japan-how-are-foreign-visitors-being-treated-these-days/972313/1 "2022-09-27T12:30:02Z")

</div>

Japan recently announced they will be throwing open the doors to foreign tourists on October 11 - no daily quotas, no visa required, no quarantine, no travel agency involvement required.

> **[\[UPDATED\] Travel guide to Japan’s reopening: visa-free travel, valid...](https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/guide-to-japans-reopening-for-tourism-visa-free-travel-valid-vaccines-pcr-tests-and-more-092722)**
>
> Tourist visa, accepted Covid-19 vaccines and other border rules for tourists visiting Japan – effective October 11

Currently contemplating a visit in the near future, as Japan is coming down off of its horrendous omicron wave. But I’m wondering how foreign tourists are being treated by local Japanese folks these days. I imagine if you operate a souvenir shop in a tourist area then you welcome foreign visitors and the revenue they bring, but what about other folks? Will I be shunned as a plague vector? Will I get dirty looks for not wearing a mask outdoors? Or is everyone fairly mellow about COVID now, and crowding izakayas and shopping arcades like the good old days?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\
**Post date:** [September 27, 2022, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-in-japan-how-are-foreign-visitors-being-treated-these-days/972313/2 "2022-09-27T12:52:57Z")

</div>

I’m very interested in this because Japan is a place I really want to visit! I’m thinking of seriously studying the language.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\
**Post date:** [September 27, 2022, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-in-japan-how-are-foreign-visitors-being-treated-these-days/972313/3 "2022-09-27T16:37:01Z")

</div>

Moving this to IMHO since it’s more a question about travel than about the coronavirus.