Rethinking going to Japan... just talking out loud... Thoughts?

[LovesTimone]

A re-entry permit is required if he is not a Japanese national. Spouses are not exempt from this requirement. He doesn't have a re-entry permit unless he resides in Japan & left before April 2nd for a defined temporary period. Additionally, EVERYONE entering the country from the US, even if they have the right visa & re-entry permit, must immediately quarantine for two weeks and not use public transportation. Their quarantine location will be registered & monitored by the government. They will not be able to visit family unless they defy the quarantine & risk arrest. What do they plan to do, assuming the husband is even allowed to land, which it sounds like he won't be?

The Delta information is not correct. Delta is allowing changes & cancellations of any flight from the US departing on or before September 30, with no fees. This went into effect on April 17. I know this because we are almost sure we will be rescheduling a September trip to Europe. You can also see here: https://www.delta.com/us/en/advisories/coronavirus-travel/cancel-change-requirements

I get updates from my parents & friends and try not to check the news too often. My parents haven't gone out at all as my father has medical issues that would make it too dangerous right now. They are getting everything delivered. He also needs to see a cardiologist but went to a video appointment & that was fine for him. The doctor told him there was no need to come in, though. I'm so sorry about your friend's mom. It makes sense that she is hesitant to go out, but going out shopping is much different than seeking medical treatment. With that kind of thing, you do have to bite the bullet. I hope she will go in soon.

People who need the treatments you mentioned have no problem getting them. The government is busy finding ways to stop people from getting tested so that they can keep the numbers low. You can get pretty much whatever you need as long as it isn't a virus test. This is another reason I'm annoyed.

Those people are crazy. Reopening too soon exacerbates the problem. Everyone calling for that & saying "it doesn't affect me" is being willfully ignorant of the fact that it is not only concern for their own health, but the health of others, that mandates these closures. Sure, a young & healthy person might not get sick. Great. That does not give them carte blanche to go about their lives & potentially infect someone who is elderly or medically fragile. Elderly people are not expendable. This attitude has come up often lately when I watch US news and it is extremely disturbing.

Hope you & yours are staying, and will stay, healthy.

Like DH said when I talked to him, whatever they decide is up to them whether they go or not... I do know that they own apartment, so if they let him in, they do have a home to go to for the 2 weeks...

With Delta, this took effect on Friday the 17th... I'm not sure what day last week she talk with them, as I talked to her on Saturday... I forwarded the link to her last night... For us this makes no difference to us as our trip is not till mid November.

Your are lucky in the way that people that need treatments, such as chemo, radiation, and dialysis can get treatment...here there are people losing the fight with cancer because they can't get the treatments that they need...or ending up in ICU because they can't get dialysis... I have a cousin that has Cron's disease and has to have some type of infusions, and shots... as well this is considered non-essential.... so she is in the hospital since last week...

If you are watching the news here... stop... it is all being politically driven at this point... every day, every hours, every update that they are giving, makes no sense what so ever... they all contradict what they just reported.... just change the channel, and you will get something completely different... You honestly can't believe anything that they are saying... all they are doing is spreading fear, and more fear ... that's why people are hoarding... they are basically reporting that if you get the virus you will die... they give you a bunch of fancy words with all of it, but if you take all that out this is what they are selling... which is not the case, as in like 97 to 99.75 percent of people recover and it is actually consider a mild illness... Instead of reporting what is really happening, how to protect oneself, look out for the elderly, people who are in medically in need or compromised... they are fear monkering... all in the guise of reporting the news...
Just last week they reported that in NYC that they add like 4000 deaths into the number even though those people either tested negative or had not been tested at all... they reported that they thought they might be false positive or more than likely probable which is just another word for they are guessing... ... How do you get a true reading of what is really happening when they are padding the numbers, playing the guessing game is not how science works? The news is just trying to sensationalize what is happening... They did a news cast saying that there were thousands of people down at the convention center trying to get tested... and that they were turning people away. DH was down right behind were the testing center was working ( he works in essential services) and could see the testing center... and he was like there are people in their cars, but not even a steady stream... and that they had a line if you did not have the symptoms that they directed you out... and if you had symptoms or were compromise you went another way.... so in a way they are being selective here as well on who they test...

I hope that you are your DH are doing well... and staying safe... peace, love and pixie dust...

 

[LovesTimone]

OP here...

I was talking to my neighbor last night for a bit... she was telling me that the couple that I have talked about on here, that live in Shibuya, her mom is going in late June into July ( 3 weeks) to see them, and was wanting my friend to join her, and couple of other ladies... for a girls trip...

My neighbor declined the trip, as she will be most likely watching her grandkids this summer... Plus she was just there in Nov. of last year...

My neighbor went on to tell me that the couple said that things are about the same, as before.... she is working from home, he goes to the office during the week on the trains... they are still going to the park, and most stores that they normally go to are open, as well as with restaurants that they frequent, in and around their neighborhood... and that everyone is still wearing mask and gloves everywhere except when eating... and that they are doing well... and excited about her mom coming over there...

I got to thinking about the 2 week quarantine and called her back and asked about it.. she said her friend did not mention anything about it... so I started looking around on line...so what I found is... is really not much of nothing... I must be looking in the wrong places... If someone could share a link or suggest a site that can look at that would be super helpful.... the only thing that I really found... said you might be required to quarantine for 2 weeks... So any suggestions on where to look for this info would be helpful...

We are still planning... and hoping that we will be able to go...

 

[nono]

This page is recommended as the go to place by the US Embassy in Tokyo.

It starts with this:
1. Areas subjected to entry ban

Foreign nationals categorized below are denied permission to enter Japan for the time being, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

(1) Foreign nationals who have stayed in any of the areas listed in the following table within 14 days prior to the application for landing.

And US and Canada are listed as areas...

And this was published awhile ago: Narita Cardboard Hotel.

 

[LovesTimone]

This page is recommended as the go to place by the US Embassy in Tokyo.

It starts with this:
1. Areas subjected to entry ban

Foreign nationals categorized below are denied permission to enter Japan for the time being, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

(1) Foreign nationals who have stayed in any of the areas listed in the following table within 14 days prior to the application for landing.

And US and Canada are listed as areas...

And this was published awhile ago: Narita Cardboard Hotel.

Thanks so much... I will keep checking it to see how things are going...

I hope you and your family are doing well during this time...

 

[MKTokyo]

OP here...

I was talking to my neighbor last night for a bit... she was telling me that the couple that I have talked about on here, that live in Shibuya, her mom is going in late June into July ( 3 weeks) to see them, and was wanting my friend to join her, and couple of other ladies... for a girls trip...

My neighbor declined the trip, as she will be most likely watching her grandkids this summer... Plus she was just there in Nov. of last year...

My neighbor went on to tell me that the couple said that things are about the same, as before.... she is working from home, he goes to the office during the week on the trains... they are still going to the park, and most stores that they normally go to are open, as well as with restaurants that they frequent, in and around their neighborhood... and that everyone is still wearing mask and gloves everywhere except when eating... and that they are doing well... and excited about her mom coming over there...

I got to thinking about the 2 week quarantine and called her back and asked about it.. she said her friend did not mention anything about it... so I started looking around on line...so what I found is... is really not much of nothing... I must be looking in the wrong places... If someone could share a link or suggest a site that can look at that would be super helpful.... the only thing that I really found... said you might be required to quarantine for 2 weeks... So any suggestions on where to look for this info would be helpful...

We are still planning... and hoping that we will be able to go...

To clarify, as I mentioned earlier, the quarantine is not an option for most people. Only Japanese nationals & those who have re-entry permits in conjunction with certain visa types are allowed to enter the country. For everyone else, there is denial of landing permission; the authorities will put them on the next plane back to their country of origin at their own expense. The information in the link posted by @nono is correct. You can also read the statement from the Immigration Services Agency here on the website of the Ministry of Justice: http://www.moj.go.jp/EN/nyuukokukanri/kouhou/m_nyuukokukanri01_00003.html

 

[wishing4PA]

I don't want to get in trouble with the DIS gods, and I don't remember all the rules, so instead of posting the link I'll just tell you how I got there.

EDIT: I see that while I was typing this, someone else applied with the more relevant info about the denial of entry. Anyhow, if that changes, and one does get into Japan in the first place, below is how I found the info specific to the quarantine.

First I went to the US State Department travel advisories.
Then I selected those specific to Japan.
Somewhere down there (I wish I had been writing this as I went along), there was a link to the "Japan National Tourism Organization website", so I clicked on it.
Within that Japan National Tourism org site, in section 2, it says to check the following page, so I did.

Here's some of the relevant info on the last page, thanks to Google translate:


Q1 You can't go out after waiting at the place designated by the quarantine station director for 14 days from the day after entering Japan. What is the designated place?
　It is supposed to be a domestic residence such as your home. When traveling, please do not use public transportation such as trains, buses, taxis, aircraft (domestic flights), and passenger ships.

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Question 2 Where do you wait if you do not have a residence in Japan?
　It is assumed that you will specify the accommodation facilities that you have secured yourself before leaving the country, such as hotels and inns. You will be responsible for the cost of accommodation. When traveling, please do not use public transportation such as trains, buses, taxis, aircraft (domestic flights), and passenger ships. If you arrive from an area subject to immigration restrictions based on the Immigration Control Act, you can stay at your home or other domestic location if you can move without using public transportation until you get the inspection results. Or, you will have to wait at the facility etc. designated by the quarantine station (until you confirm the inspection result, there is an opportunity to contact an unspecified person, accommodations such as hotels and inns secured by yourself Currently, the number of people who are temporarily inspected is rapidly increasing due to the expansion of immigration restrictions under the Immigration Control Act, and it takes a few hours from arrival to immigration at the airport etc. We have been waiting for about a day. For more details, please check question 1 of "1 Quarantine".)


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Q3 What should I do if I do not have a residence in Japan and I could not secure a place to stay before departure?
　Please secure it before leaving Japan. (If you do not have it, you will have to search for it at the airport.) If you arrive from an area subject to immigration restrictions based on the Immigration Control Act, move without using public transportation until you get the inspection result. If you can do so, you will have to wait at a domestic residence such as your home, or if you cannot move, at an airport space or a facility designated by the quarantine station (until the test results are known, you will have the opportunity to contact an unspecified person. It is not possible to move to accommodation facilities such as hotels, inns, etc. that you have secured by yourself.Currently, the number of people who are temporarily subject to inspection is rapidly increasing due to the expansion of immigration restriction areas under the Immigration Control Act. , in airports, etc., a few hours until the immigration from the arrival, the result is a situation where if waiting about 1 day to 2 days has continued to found. Please check the question 1 "About 1 quarantine" for more details.)

 

[Ceilidhscot]

Given Japan’s quarantine and entry ban for those entering the country, how realistic does people think that these will be lifted by the end of 2020?

Have booked family holiday for March 2021. At the moment we’ve paid the deposit for the land only part. Travel agent has been furloughed and no flights have been booked yet. I know it’s a long way out but one of our party will be nearly 80 (and another 11) so not sure whether to continue with the booking and get them to book flights etc or ask if they can push it back till 2022 and potentially lose the deposit.

 

[LovesTimone]

OP here...

I am really feeling pretty down in the dumps...

I called Delta yesterday, to see if they have any thing more to offer... and I was told, the same basic verbiage.... nothing yet about our time frame... and that most likely we will be issued vouchers...at that time for flights in the future...and that they will put our sky-miles back on our accounts... then she said hopefully... I used our sky-miles to upgrade to 1st class on the domestic portions of the trip... what does hopefully mean, she said that if I cancel on my own, that we will lose the sky-miles, if they move out the dates from the Sept. 30 time frame as of right now to include our dates then, I should be able to get my sky-miles back... ?

I sorta pushed a bit, in a nice manner... when they would be making a decision about our time frame Mid November... the response I got... was something like this.... summer.... later on in the summer...

then she said, it was like she was going off script... in a much lower voice...
" October, November, and December from what I am seeing is still all a go" ... and that all the new cleaning measure's would be in place... I don't see anything that would make me think that flights there will be cancelled... now entry into most international countries is where it might get tricky... " any where in Asia could be a issue as there is always issues with travel to Asia.... I would look at Europe... " the back to her regular voice, Thanks for Calling Delta...

So I really don't know what that was all about...

Anyone have any thoughts on this...

 

[LovesTimone]

OP here,

I talked to my neighbor last night, and she said she had just gotten off the phone with her friend with the couple that live in Shibuya... She said that her friend said that they are putting off the girls trip until whenever this mess stops..
As far as the couple he is working from home 3 days a week and going to office 2 days a week, which was not his call, their re-location person made the call, and said it was for a over abundance of caution... they said that pretty much some restaurants/stores are opening some days, then will be closed, and that other restaurants/stores that are closed will just open up for a few days then close again... and that they are going to the park pretty much everyday... they are going stir crazy... just to get out of the house... my friend went on to say that his contract is coming up for renewal, it will be another 5 years if they sign back on and apparently they had planned to stay 10 years and now they are rethinking this whole expat thing... and trying to decide if they want to go to another country, or just come home to the US... the biggest thing is all this with the virus... who knows when they would be allowed to move out of the country, and how moving to another country or even back here will look like... so now they are in limbo and are kinda stuck for right now...

So that were they are at the moment... just wanted to update you guys...

We have decided that at the end of June we are going to make some kind of decision on what we are going to do about our trip...

 

[ejdmomma]

OP here,



We have decided that at the end of June we are going to make some kind of decision on what we are going to do about our trip...

We're flying Delta and they have extended the cancellation without fees to include our date - Sept. 28th. The deciding factor for us will be if the park has opened back up by August. Even if it's open, if most of the entertainment is not running, we will postpone our trip.

We made the decision to move our Belize trip to 2021. That trip was supposed to take place next month. I just don't see international travel being open yet.

 

[LovesTimone]

We're flying Delta and they have extended the cancellation without fees to include our date - Sept. 28th. The deciding factor for us will be if the park has opened back up by August. Even if it's open, if most of the entertainment is not running, we will postpone our trip.

We made the decision to move our Belize trip to 2021. That trip was supposed to take place next month. I just don't see international travel being open yet.

Since our flight with Delta is not until Nov. We are just in the wait and see game...

I know a person that is a travel agent, I had used her a few times for some day tours on other trips and info, and referred several people to her and I had ask her for some info on a couple of places and couple of quotes for day tours for Japan...
She called me yesterday, and I am still puzzled, confused and shocked with what she had to say, and where she got the info, which she just said this is what we are being told from our partners abroad...

Then she went on to say that no way will we be going to Japan in Nov. or even next year... she said that tourist travel to Japan most likely will not resume for 3 years, possibly up to 5 years... She also went on to say that pretty much travel into that region of the world China, Hong Kong, anywhere in Southeast Asia, as well as India, and the middle east... is done.... that we would be better off looking at somewhere in Europe.. or just checking out somewhere here in the US... She said she forward the info, and it just basic info...as the tour companies are bailing out and cancelling everything on tours pushing dates back, and another issue is that they are not refunding money, and only wanted to give credit for a later date... and then went on to say, don't book anything, even hotel rooms as most likely you are not going to be able to get your money back... even with the guarantees that some are giving... at best you might get a credit to use later on... with restrictions... If you need anymore help let me know I will be happy to help you... I said Thanks ...

I really don't know what to think or do really... Any thoughts?

 

[ejdmomma]

Since our flight with Delta is not until Nov. We are just in the wait and see game...

I know a person that is a travel agent, I had used her a few times for some day tours on other trips and info, and referred several people to her and I had ask her for some info on a couple of places and couple of quotes for day tours for Japan...
She called me yesterday, and I am still puzzled, confused and shocked with what she had to say, and where she got the info, which she just said this is what we are being told from our partners abroad...

Then she went on to say that no way will we be going to Japan in Nov. or even next year... she said that tourist travel to Japan most likely will not resume for 3 years, possibly up to 5 years... She also went on to say that pretty much travel into that region of the world China, Hong Kong, anywhere in Southeast Asia, as well as India, and the middle east... is done.... that we would be better off looking at somewhere in Europe.. or just checking out somewhere here in the US... She said she forward the info, and it just basic info...as the tour companies are bailing out and cancelling everything on tours pushing dates back, and another issue is that they are not refunding money, and only wanted to give credit for a later date... and then went on to say, don't book anything, even hotel rooms as most likely you are not going to be able to get your money back... even with the guarantees that some are giving... at best you might get a credit to use later on... with restrictions... If you need anymore help let me know I will be happy to help you... I said Thanks ...

I really don't know what to think or do really... Any thoughts?

I do know that local (US) travel is being recommended for 2020. I can't see that they would restrict or close travel to the Asia Pacific region for the 3 years or more. I can't see how Europe would be any safer than anywhere else International. They were hit just as hard as any other region globally.

I think it's hard to predict for this year, even fall, since many areas and countries still have stay at home restictions. Also with the experts saying that there will be a resurgence in the fall/winter, there may be restrictions on travel outside of your country as a preventative measure. I am hopeful that by this time next year we will understand the virus better...vaccine, treatment, prevention. So I'm hopeful that the trips we had planned for this year will go on as planned next year! Also I would assume if the Olympics take place next year that they will open tourism to Japan.

 

[Ceilidhscot]

Since our flight with Delta is not until Nov. We are just in the wait and see game...

I know a person that is a travel agent, I had used her a few times for some day tours on other trips and info, and referred several people to her and I had ask her for some info on a couple of places and couple of quotes for day tours for Japan...
She called me yesterday, and I am still puzzled, confused and shocked with what she had to say, and where she got the info, which she just said this is what we are being told from our partners abroad...

Then she went on to say that no way will we be going to Japan in Nov. or even next year... she said that tourist travel to Japan most likely will not resume for 3 years, possibly up to 5 years... She also went on to say that pretty much travel into that region of the world China, Hong Kong, anywhere in Southeast Asia, as well as India, and the middle east... is done.... that we would be better off looking at somewhere in Europe.. or just checking out somewhere here in the US... She said she forward the info, and it just basic info...as the tour companies are bailing out and cancelling everything on tours pushing dates back, and another issue is that they are not refunding money, and only wanted to give credit for a later date... and then went on to say, don't book anything, even hotel rooms as most likely you are not going to be able to get your money back... even with the guarantees that some are giving... at best you might get a credit to use later on... with restrictions... If you need anymore help let me know I will be happy to help you... I said Thanks ...

I really don't know what to think or do really... Any thoughts?

Oh dear, that does not sound good at all and I really hope that’s not the case as would essentially end my families trip to Japan next spring. My Mum is coming up for 80 and this was a trip of a lifetime for her after my Dad died so pushing it back 5 years would probably mean she wouldn’t be able to go and us losing over £3000 if we cancelled (the amount we’ve paid to date). Feel like I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place atm and can’t even speak to our travel agent as she’s on furlough and not due back till end of June to get her views.

 

[nono]

No one knows what the future may bring. That is true all the time, but more obvious now. The credibility of defacto no tourist travel to Japan for 5 years is suspect. Japan's contribution of travel and tourism to its GDP was in USD $367.7 billion in 2018. What's that total? $1.8 trillion USD loss over 5 years? (check my math) I'm not thinking that would go unnoticed and they'd be willing to dump that now. So much can change.

 

[ejdmomma]

Oh dear, that does not sound good at all and I really hope that’s not the case as would essentially end my families trip to Japan next spring. My Mum is coming up for 80 and this was a trip of a lifetime for her after my Dad died so pushing it back 5 years would probably mean she wouldn’t be able to go and us losing over £3000 if we cancelled (the amount we’ve paid to date). Feel like I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place atm and can’t even speak to our travel agent as she’s on furlough and not due back till end of June to get her views.

Try not to worry! It's hard to predict what next year will look like. So many scientists around the world are working on vaccines and treatments. In addition people are more mindful about steps each individual needs to take to help prevent the spread. Hopefully by next spring we will be better positioned to travel globally.

 

[LovesTimone]

OP here,

I was at the neighbors house, and her friend was there, we were all going walking... the friend with the Son and Daughter in law that live in Shibuya... So it just so happened that her son called and she lets us all talk to him and his wife... they were so excited to talk to us.... So I asked him about shortages... He said that they had not experienced any shortages around where they live...and that no-one would ever hoard anything if anything they would share with you if you needed it... He went on to say that he listens and get the US news, and he said it is being blown way out of proportion... he said from talking to his counterparts here in the US, and comparing to what is happening in Japan and that it's about the same, that things are improving, and that people are getting out, shopping, and eating in restaurants... and he said that he noticed alot more people using the trains in the last 2 weeks, and that some people are not wearing mask, where several weeks ago everyone was wearing a mask.... He said in his office, they are not wearing mask while working in the office anymore... they only put them on when in the common areas, of the building... he did say that he has noticed the smoking areas in most common places are closed, at least around where they frequent... He said that they walk to the park almost daily now, his wife said she can't take it anymore... and that they are planning a trip out of the city to little place to relax since the weather is improving in the next few weeks... My neighbor ask him about is there anything about lifting the 2 week isolation, he said that people are wanting to return to normal, and that the economy needs the tourist, and that people there are like people here, wanting to work and take care of their families... and sadly nothing yet about it being lifted... he did tell us if they see or hear anything that they will let his mom know...

So again this is just their view and opinion on what is happening around them...

We are in a holding pattern still... We are waiting on Delta move the travel time to include November... so that we can keep our points and get a refund or credit... without any penalty...