Tag - tourism

 
 

TOURISM

Californians Ben and Ariella Jacoby, who married with Mount Fuji as their backdrop, are part of a growing trend of inbound weddings in Japan.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 8, 2026
Foreign couples are turning Japan into a wedding destination
Personal and cultural connections, as well as a weak yen, are driving more foreign couples to choose Japan to mark major life events.
A woman swims in a pool at the Anantara The Palm Dubai Resort in Dubai on Saturday.
WORLD
Jun 7, 2026
Dubai luxury hotels woo staycationers as tourists flee
The clientele is driven by hotels offering residents-only deals that have become a lifeline for Dubai’s luxury tourism.
Tourists in Nara Park in March
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 7, 2026
Benefits for foreign tourists spark debate in Japan
Some facilities stopped offering discounts amid criticism of preferential treatment for foreigners.
The body of James "Weston" Higginbotham ‌was discovered in a mountainous area ​by a volunteer search-and-rescue group, his mother, Nancy Higginbotham, wrote Saturday on Facebook.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 7, 2026
Missing U.S. student found dead near Kyoto, mother says
The body of James Higginbotham, ‌20, ‌was discovered in a mountainous area ​by a volunteer search-and-rescue group, Nancy Higginbotham wrote.
On the 41st floor of the Akasaka Trust Tower, the Panoramic Tower Studio Suite at 1 Hotel Tokyo offers stunning views while keeping sight of the hotel's sustainable, down-home core.
LIFE / Travel
Jun 6, 2026
At 1 Hotel Tokyo, luxury is a zero-waste journey
Open from March, the brand’s first outpost in Japan stays true to its sustainable roots.
James "Weston" Higginbotham was last seen in Kyoto on May 29.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 4, 2026
Kyoto police search for missing American tourist
James Higginbotham, who also goes by Weston, was last seen in the Kyoto area on Friday last week.
While the total number of visitors to Japan have wavered as the Middle East conflict hurts travel demand, tourists from places like Taiwan, South Korea and Southeast Asia have been increasing this year and the weak yen is encouraging them to spend.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 2, 2026
Japan’s duty-free sales climb in May as tourism boom endures
Japanese department stores are rebounding from a shaky start to the year as lingering political tensions kept many Chinese tourists away.
A guestroom at an APA Hotel in Tokyo. APA built its name in Japan on a standardized formula: a long list of amenities packed into tight rooms engineered for efficiency.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 1, 2026
Billionaire behind Japan’s tiny-room hotel empire bets on U.S.
APA Hotels has grown into one of Japan’s most recognizable hotel operators, with more than 1,100 hotels and nearly 150,000 rooms across its global network.
The Yaima Maru ferry, which will operate between Taiwan and Ishigaki Island in Okinawa Prefecture, is docked in Keelung, Taiwan, Thursday.
JAPAN
May 28, 2026
New Taiwan-Japan ferry service debuts on ship that has war evacuation role
The Yaima Maru is among vessels to be used to evacuate residents on southern Japanese islands to mainland Japan in times of crisis.
Hitomi is seen working at the At-Home Cafe in the Akihabara district of Tokyo.
LIFE / Travel
May 28, 2026
‘Geek’ hangout to tourist draw: Japan’s maid cafes
Once niche “otaku” spaces, Japan’s maid cafes now attract tourists, couples and families seeking playful escapist entertainment.
Visitors queue outside the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum.
JAPAN
May 26, 2026
Hiroshima atomic bomb museum to be reservation-only from Aug. 8 to 16
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which documents the world’s first atomic bombing in August 1945, will start accepting online reservations as early as this month.
Pilgrims perform umrah around the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque ahead of the start of hajj in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday.
WORLD
May 24, 2026
Pilgrims from the West flock to hajj despite Mideast war
For many, the chance to perform the sacrosanct Muslim rite has taken precedence over the fears of instability caused by the war against Iran.
Japan Tourism Agency chief Shigeki Murata has emphasized that the government will work on implementing "strategic promotions to attract visitors from more countries and regions."
JAPAN
May 20, 2026
Visitors to Japan down 5.5% in April
Visitors from eight Middle East nations dropped 21.4% to 22,300, reflecting flight cancellations and reductions.
Tourists relax along Patong Beach on the southern Thai island of Phuket in 2024. Thailand is drastically cutting the length of visa-free stays for tourists from more than 90 countries in an effort to curb crime involving foreign nationals, officials said on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 20, 2026
Thailand cuts visa-free stays, citing crime by foreigners
Tourism is vital to the Southeast Asian nation’s economy, but foreign arrivals have yet to return to their pre-COVID highs.
A multilingual system in a Lawson store
BUSINESS / Tech
May 19, 2026
Lawson testing new multilingual system to help tourists make purchases
The trial run was launched on March 24 and will continue until the end of this month at three of their stores in Tokyo.
A booklet released by the Foreign Ministry in partnership with the Globe-Trotter Travel Guidebook
JAPAN
May 18, 2026
Japan taps popular travel guide to promote overseas development assistance
The newly released booklet shows bridges and railways built with Japan’s contributions as well as historic World Heritage Sites preserved and restored with such support.
A passenger aircraft operated by Deutsche Lufthansa in Frankfurt, Germany, on April 13. The airline group — Europe’s largest — said it’s scrapping 20,000 uneconomic short-haul flights in the region this summer.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 13, 2026
How a jet fuel supply crunch threatens summer flights
Faced with higher fuel costs and lower supply, airlines have axed thousands of flights, grounded less-efficient aircraft and raised airfares.
Penguins are seen on an iceberg as scientists investigate the impact of climate change on Antarctica's penguin colonies, on the northern side of the Antarctic peninsula in 2022.
JAPAN
May 12, 2026
Emperor penguins in focus as Antarctic talks start in Japan
Officials from the nearly 60 countries signatory to the Antarctic Treaty are meeting in Hiroshima for annual discussions on protecting and managing the fragile region.
A convoy of ambulances believed to be carrying at least one of the passengers from the cruise ship MV Hondius believed to be infected with hantavirus is escorted by Dutch police on motorcycles as it arrives near Leiden University Medical Center in Leiden, Netherlands, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Science & Health
May 7, 2026
Hantavirus ship passenger: ‘They didn’t take it seriously enough’
The Turkish travel vlogger, who has since disembarked, said life on board the vessel carried on as usual even after the first death was announced.
A person in a hazmat suit is escorted to an ambulance from a medical aircraft allegedly carrying some of the passengers from the cruise ship MV Hondius believed to be infected with the hantavirus, at Schiphol airport near Amsterdam on Wednesday.
WORLD
May 7, 2026
Countries scramble to track passengers of virus-hit cruise ship
Three people have died in the outbreak on the luxury cruise ship, and a total of eight people are suspected to have contracted the virus.

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival