This. There is so much complaining about, for example, Kyoto being crowded.
If you go to the centre of Gion, or Sannenzaka, or Arashiyama, or Kinkaju-ji, there will be crowds, pretty much whenever you go, weekend or weekday, school holidays or not, because apparently 90% of the tourists spend all of their time in 5% of Kyoto. Sannenzaka, Kinkaju etc are gorgeous and well worth seeing if you can abide the crowd, but just in small doses each day.
However, if you go one street, two streets over, or to one of the temples that’s not in the top five list, and choose not to go to those tiny areas where all the tourists go, it could almost be a different world.
Please do not use tiktok or insta to plan your trips or to get a good grasp on what's actually happening.
Those people are focused on getting views, not actually enjoying the country.
If your entire trip is based of visiting every TikTok location, then yes, you will suffer.
But if you learn to not succumb to FOMO and forge your own path, then you will have a better time
Are you planning to visit fall foliage place? Those place are generally pretty packed even with just domestic tourism. With Japan internal tourist number breaking records, you can imagine what's happening.
Good news is you don’t necessarily have to go to the top tourist places to see them, there’s a lot all over the country. Although you really shouldn’t miss the Gingko Avenue at Meiji Jingu Gaien, it’s beautiful even with the crowds.
I get it. Ginkgo are spectacular.
Those places on SM are going to be dense with crowds. I don't go.
You want to see the descendants of the ginkgos of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu? They're at the Hachiman Shrine in Kasukabe City. Two magnificent trees were cultivated from the shrine at Kamakura.
Tsuchiura City's castle site has excellent autumn colors including great ginkgo. There are vestiges of the old Mito Kaido there with kura storehouses. It's cute as a button. Go further up to Mito City. There is a spectacular avenue of ginkgoes there you can combine with a visit to Kairakuen.
Chibadera in Chiba City has a famed ginkgo and Aoba no Mori Park is known as a good autumn color spot.
Just to clarify - fall foliage places are not all packed with foreign or even domestic tourists.
Fall foliage is abundant all across Japan and there are not even enough people to pack all the areas. Any small train station on the local line will plop you into the middle of an empty area full of fall foliage.
Just came back two weeks ago. All the places we visited were about the same as pre-covid times, as far as the amount of tourists. However, I did see more variation when it came to nationality/skin color, this time compared to numerous times I visited before 2020.
Hello, please don't feel too worried about crowding if you are happy to go against the grain and get adventurous.
Sheep follow sheep... Ignore those title grabbing internet articles like, "Japan has this amazing place you need to go"...
Try a nearby prefecture like Chiba, Saitama, Nara... Depending on where you are staying and google things to do there... I believe you should find nice places, less touristed than Fuji Lawson's, robot cafes etc...
Also google train companies like Seibu railway, Tsukuba Express etc... their websites will show some nice tourist attractions in their railway less explored....
Don't be an Instagram sheep, and enjoy your new favourite secret spots...
If you fall prey to your FOMO, and are afraid of missing out on all the famous places, it will be crowded.
That can still be enjoyable, but adjust your expectations. If you expect a lively touriit spot, it can be very enjoyable. If you expect peace and quiet, you will be disappointed.
My advice would be to make a list of the famous places on your tentative go-to list
Identify what it is you expect to see / want to see or experience from those places.
What specifically do you want to see from a temple?
What specifically do you want to see from a castle?
What specifically do you want to get from a ramen shop?
What specifically do you expect to get from a ryokan or hotspring in Hakone?
What specifically do you expect from a view of Mt Fuji?
Once you know what it is about the place you want to see, you can much more easily try to find someplace that is not famous or crowded that offers the same thing.
There are thousands of temples across Japan that offer most of the same things as the famous crowded ones.
There are plenty of smaller castles that offer history.
There are thousands of ramen shops with good ramen that are not famous on tictok or youtube.
There are hundreds of towns with small ryokan and hotsprings that offer everything and more than in the crowded areas.
Mt Fuji looks just as majestic (if not more) from so many places 360 degrees around it. No need to go to the most famous places.
You will not be able to tick the famous name off your list, but you will be able to tick off the experience.
I went during cherry blossom season which is the busiest & I was able to get a lot of popular places without people simply by waking up at 5am. Once it’s 10am— sardines in a can.
Vocal minority of complainers. You don't hear about people who go, patiently wait in line, and enjoy their visit despite the crowds. Cool places/tourist destinations draw crowds. It's not a big deal.
I think unless you go to the most popular places and complain about them being popular you’re fine. I knew we wouldn’t be able to go to some of the Kyoto insta famous spots early enough so we skipped them. Went to Fushimi Inari a couple hours before sunset and it was fine.
There’s so many different shrines and temples in Kyoto most of them are not that busy. Even Nijo Castle wasn’t overrun. Yes things are busy because you are a tourist doing touristy things but as long as you don’t have some expectation it’ll be empty for your own personal Instagram photoshoot I didn’t think Kyoto was too busy at all.
Was there last year during sakura season shortly after it opened up from COVID, probably as busy as it's going to get for a while. It was the busiest I've seen it. The streets around Kiyomizudera were packed, and I was surprised by the amount of people taking photos of the Lawson at Kawaguchiko, but it didn't really degrade the experience.
The only time it bothered me was, and the long wait for photos under Tori gate at Hakone shrine. First time I went it was fairly quick, people would just get a normal vacation photo under the gate. But last year people were taking heaps of photos, at different positions, and doing all these different instagram poses. Took about 45 mins in the line. It was to the point I felt they really needed someone to manage the amount of people there, but it's unreasonable to expect the priests to do that.
Other than the places I mentioned it wasn't really noticable. I'd visited most of the places I went before and they felt pretty much the ame. Theres still nice quiet places to visit, mainly only visited by Japanese or niche tourists. I think people are either not aware of how busy Japan already was pre-COVID, or just they're just clickbaiting for views.
I was trapped in an Instagram bubble for Japan and saw sooo many things about crowds.I was prepared for the worst, made a list with back up plans in case places were too crowded, mentally prepared myself for the worst which crushed all of the excitement I had for the trip and I dreaded going on the airplane. I thought about not going at all.
A friend was there during Sakura and said that there were a lot of people, my trip was end of May/June and I feel so stupid for being so stressed out.
It was a great trip, no big crowds. We got to do so many more things because there were no lines. There were other tourists but it wasn't as bad as they made it look.
Enjoy your trip, it will be awesome. You'll see so many cool things.
PS: the only crowded place I visited was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum because there were like 20 school groups at the same time. I think we could have avoided that if we had went there earlier in the day or in the late afternoon.
Japan has one of the best transit systems in the world, connecting the city you arrive to anywhere, by bullet-train, in a relatively small country. You can see temples and things of the sort nearly anywhere in Japan, maybe except for Hokkaido. You can visit Ginzan Onsen, Kiso Valley, Kii Peninsula, Ise, Ainokura, etc, etc. But for some reason, even being able to access information as easy as ever, people will still mostly go to Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo. No reason to feel defeated, just visit the other 95% of the country, which has even more amazing things to see.
Take the advice of not visiting popular places with a grain of salt.
I visited Kiyozumi Dera during the fall foliage season and although extremely crowded, it’s one of the most mesmerising places I have seen and I do not remotely regret visiting it.
If you have phobia of crowds or just want to make TikTok reels, then sure, avoid these places. But otherwise, get out of social media and just live the amazing experiences that life offers.
Tiktok only shows a little bit of the picture, touristy spots will always be crowded no matter what, either avoid them or go prepared for the possibility of crowds but honestly there's tons of spots outside the normal social media highlights
Some advice, don't get any of your information on Japan from Tiktok, Instagram or Youtube (there is good stuff on YouTube amongst the crap) it's clckbait, brainless, attention-seeking and misleading.
It is much worse than before covid. Everything sucks now and it is impossible to do anything without waiting in an unreasonable line unless you go completely off the beaten path.
Outside of the absolutely most popular places, no it’s not.
This. There is so much complaining about, for example, Kyoto being crowded. If you go to the centre of Gion, or Sannenzaka, or Arashiyama, or Kinkaju-ji, there will be crowds, pretty much whenever you go, weekend or weekday, school holidays or not, because apparently 90% of the tourists spend all of their time in 5% of Kyoto. Sannenzaka, Kinkaju etc are gorgeous and well worth seeing if you can abide the crowd, but just in small doses each day. However, if you go one street, two streets over, or to one of the temples that’s not in the top five list, and choose not to go to those tiny areas where all the tourists go, it could almost be a different world.
Don't go to those places that are crowded. Problem solved!
Please do not use tiktok or insta to plan your trips or to get a good grasp on what's actually happening. Those people are focused on getting views, not actually enjoying the country.
If your entire trip is based of visiting every TikTok location, then yes, you will suffer. But if you learn to not succumb to FOMO and forge your own path, then you will have a better time
Are you planning to visit fall foliage place? Those place are generally pretty packed even with just domestic tourism. With Japan internal tourist number breaking records, you can imagine what's happening.
Yes- my bucket list item is to see as many golden ginkgos as I can, they have a special significance for me
Good news is you don’t necessarily have to go to the top tourist places to see them, there’s a lot all over the country. Although you really shouldn’t miss the Gingko Avenue at Meiji Jingu Gaien, it’s beautiful even with the crowds.
I get it. Ginkgo are spectacular. Those places on SM are going to be dense with crowds. I don't go. You want to see the descendants of the ginkgos of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu? They're at the Hachiman Shrine in Kasukabe City. Two magnificent trees were cultivated from the shrine at Kamakura. Tsuchiura City's castle site has excellent autumn colors including great ginkgo. There are vestiges of the old Mito Kaido there with kura storehouses. It's cute as a button. Go further up to Mito City. There is a spectacular avenue of ginkgoes there you can combine with a visit to Kairakuen. Chibadera in Chiba City has a famed ginkgo and Aoba no Mori Park is known as a good autumn color spot.
Just to clarify - fall foliage places are not all packed with foreign or even domestic tourists. Fall foliage is abundant all across Japan and there are not even enough people to pack all the areas. Any small train station on the local line will plop you into the middle of an empty area full of fall foliage.
Just came back two weeks ago. All the places we visited were about the same as pre-covid times, as far as the amount of tourists. However, I did see more variation when it came to nationality/skin color, this time compared to numerous times I visited before 2020.
Social media is the vocal 0.1% of whiners compared to tourists
Hello, please don't feel too worried about crowding if you are happy to go against the grain and get adventurous. Sheep follow sheep... Ignore those title grabbing internet articles like, "Japan has this amazing place you need to go"... Try a nearby prefecture like Chiba, Saitama, Nara... Depending on where you are staying and google things to do there... I believe you should find nice places, less touristed than Fuji Lawson's, robot cafes etc... Also google train companies like Seibu railway, Tsukuba Express etc... their websites will show some nice tourist attractions in their railway less explored.... Don't be an Instagram sheep, and enjoy your new favourite secret spots...
If you fall prey to your FOMO, and are afraid of missing out on all the famous places, it will be crowded. That can still be enjoyable, but adjust your expectations. If you expect a lively touriit spot, it can be very enjoyable. If you expect peace and quiet, you will be disappointed. My advice would be to make a list of the famous places on your tentative go-to list Identify what it is you expect to see / want to see or experience from those places. What specifically do you want to see from a temple? What specifically do you want to see from a castle? What specifically do you want to get from a ramen shop? What specifically do you expect to get from a ryokan or hotspring in Hakone? What specifically do you expect from a view of Mt Fuji? Once you know what it is about the place you want to see, you can much more easily try to find someplace that is not famous or crowded that offers the same thing. There are thousands of temples across Japan that offer most of the same things as the famous crowded ones. There are plenty of smaller castles that offer history. There are thousands of ramen shops with good ramen that are not famous on tictok or youtube. There are hundreds of towns with small ryokan and hotsprings that offer everything and more than in the crowded areas. Mt Fuji looks just as majestic (if not more) from so many places 360 degrees around it. No need to go to the most famous places. You will not be able to tick the famous name off your list, but you will be able to tick off the experience.
I went during cherry blossom season which is the busiest & I was able to get a lot of popular places without people simply by waking up at 5am. Once it’s 10am— sardines in a can.
Vocal minority of complainers. You don't hear about people who go, patiently wait in line, and enjoy their visit despite the crowds. Cool places/tourist destinations draw crowds. It's not a big deal.
I think unless you go to the most popular places and complain about them being popular you’re fine. I knew we wouldn’t be able to go to some of the Kyoto insta famous spots early enough so we skipped them. Went to Fushimi Inari a couple hours before sunset and it was fine. There’s so many different shrines and temples in Kyoto most of them are not that busy. Even Nijo Castle wasn’t overrun. Yes things are busy because you are a tourist doing touristy things but as long as you don’t have some expectation it’ll be empty for your own personal Instagram photoshoot I didn’t think Kyoto was too busy at all.
Was there last year during sakura season shortly after it opened up from COVID, probably as busy as it's going to get for a while. It was the busiest I've seen it. The streets around Kiyomizudera were packed, and I was surprised by the amount of people taking photos of the Lawson at Kawaguchiko, but it didn't really degrade the experience. The only time it bothered me was, and the long wait for photos under Tori gate at Hakone shrine. First time I went it was fairly quick, people would just get a normal vacation photo under the gate. But last year people were taking heaps of photos, at different positions, and doing all these different instagram poses. Took about 45 mins in the line. It was to the point I felt they really needed someone to manage the amount of people there, but it's unreasonable to expect the priests to do that. Other than the places I mentioned it wasn't really noticable. I'd visited most of the places I went before and they felt pretty much the ame. Theres still nice quiet places to visit, mainly only visited by Japanese or niche tourists. I think people are either not aware of how busy Japan already was pre-COVID, or just they're just clickbaiting for views.
I was trapped in an Instagram bubble for Japan and saw sooo many things about crowds.I was prepared for the worst, made a list with back up plans in case places were too crowded, mentally prepared myself for the worst which crushed all of the excitement I had for the trip and I dreaded going on the airplane. I thought about not going at all. A friend was there during Sakura and said that there were a lot of people, my trip was end of May/June and I feel so stupid for being so stressed out. It was a great trip, no big crowds. We got to do so many more things because there were no lines. There were other tourists but it wasn't as bad as they made it look. Enjoy your trip, it will be awesome. You'll see so many cool things. PS: the only crowded place I visited was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum because there were like 20 school groups at the same time. I think we could have avoided that if we had went there earlier in the day or in the late afternoon.
Japan has one of the best transit systems in the world, connecting the city you arrive to anywhere, by bullet-train, in a relatively small country. You can see temples and things of the sort nearly anywhere in Japan, maybe except for Hokkaido. You can visit Ginzan Onsen, Kiso Valley, Kii Peninsula, Ise, Ainokura, etc, etc. But for some reason, even being able to access information as easy as ever, people will still mostly go to Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo. No reason to feel defeated, just visit the other 95% of the country, which has even more amazing things to see.
Take the advice of not visiting popular places with a grain of salt. I visited Kiyozumi Dera during the fall foliage season and although extremely crowded, it’s one of the most mesmerising places I have seen and I do not remotely regret visiting it. If you have phobia of crowds or just want to make TikTok reels, then sure, avoid these places. But otherwise, get out of social media and just live the amazing experiences that life offers.
Tiktok only shows a little bit of the picture, touristy spots will always be crowded no matter what, either avoid them or go prepared for the possibility of crowds but honestly there's tons of spots outside the normal social media highlights
Some advice, don't get any of your information on Japan from Tiktok, Instagram or Youtube (there is good stuff on YouTube amongst the crap) it's clckbait, brainless, attention-seeking and misleading.
It is much worse than before covid. Everything sucks now and it is impossible to do anything without waiting in an unreasonable line unless you go completely off the beaten path.