Image source, Maitri Sanghvi
Seeing others' vacation snaps of Japan connected societal media made Maitri Sanghvi privation to spell there
As I unfastened up Instagram, I spot different idiosyncratic successful their late-20s has been to Japan.
It shouldn't travel arsenic a astonishment immoderate more.
"I cannot scroll done TikTok oregon Instagram without seeing videos of radical successful [convenience store] 7-11 and trying each the antithetic skincare and trying each the snacks and the viral sandwiches and the viral drinks and going to each the viral restaurants," says Alex Baker, who has been to Japan 3 times.
There's been increasing hype astir Japan arsenic a question destination among young British people.
Data from the Japanese National Tourism Organization, external shows that 483,157 British tourists visited Japan successful 2025, up 24.8% connected 2024 and up 40.8% connected 2019, the benchmark twelvemonth utilized by question companies to comparison with pre-pandemic trends. Provisional information for 2026 suggests numbers are continuing to grow.
This reflects the roar successful full tourism to Japan since the pandemic, with a grounds fig of overseas visitors successful 2025.
The Brits successful their 20s and 30s I spoke to gave a agelong database of reasons for wanting to spell to Japan - the cityscapes, food, anime, nature, history, gaming, temples. But they mostly agreed that societal media was the main driving unit down truthful galore young radical heading there.
When Maitri Sanghvi scrolled done TikTok, "Japan conscionable kept popping up," she says.
It was a large crushed wherefore Maitri, 24, and her fellow went for 3 weeks earlier this year. "Seeing [Japan] connected societal media restarted my impulse of wanting to go," she says.
Search #japantravel connected TikTok oregon Instagram and you'll spot countless videos of Mount Fuji, bowls of steaming ramen, itinerary suggestions, tiny villages successful the Japanese Alps, the Fushimi Inari torii gates successful Kyoto, the neon lights of Osaka's Dotonbori, and the chaos of Shibuya Crossing.
"Seeing different people's Japan videos decidedly influenced my determination to go," says Aden Ibrahim, 29.
Image source, Aden Ibrahim
Aden says the societal media buzz astir Japan made him privation to go
Since helium went with friends past July, Aden has posted dozens of TikToks of his trip, and he's inactive uploading them much than a twelvemonth later. One captioned "Japan made it retired the radical chat" has 1.1 cardinal views.
Travelling to Japan isn't inexpensive - instrumentality off-peak flights with a layover successful China commencement astatine astir £450 with a fund airline. But the yen is weakening, making it cheaper for tourists erstwhile they're really retired determination - adjacent arsenic rising prices deed residents. In July, the yen fell to a 40-year low.
"You tin virtually get a vessel of life-changing ramen for £3/£4 compared to a rubbish 1 present for similar £20," says Faye Jawad, 26, who reviews restaurants connected TikTok and visited Japan past year.
Image source, Faye Jawad
Faye says eating retired successful Japan was amazingly affordable
"When the yen was weakening, I thought 'actually this is simply a bully clip to go, things are going to beryllium cheap'," says Vivek Haria, 26, who has a travel planned for this autumn. His involvement successful Japanese civilization means he's wanted to sojourn for years - helium has been learning the connection and adjacent sings successful the UK-Japan Choir - but helium says the worth of the yen made it adjacent much attractive.
The debased prices person led to galore tourists splashing retired connected souvenirs erstwhile they're retired there. Videos of radical showing disconnected their Japan "haul" of flavoured KitKats, stationery and apparel person go fashionable connected societal media.
When Sam Corbett, 23, was successful Japan successful May helium bought truthful galore souvenirs - including snacks, matcha, apparel and skincare - that helium had to bargain an other suitcase, which helium stuffed full. Everything was "really affordable," helium says.
Image source, Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP via Getty Images
Many visitors speech astir being entranced by Japan's convenience stores
Almost each the Brits I spoke to had stuck to the aforesaid way known arsenic the Golden Route: Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, often with time trips to adjacent destinations similar Nara, Hiroshima and Mount Fuji.
It's casual to spot wherefore truthful galore tourists prime this route. These cities are casual to question betwixt and packed with immoderate of Japan's biggest attractions.
But complaints astir badly-behaved tourists are sparking statement astir overtourism.
Chiyuki Izumii, a circuit usher for the Japan Guide Agency, feels tourer behaviour has got worse successful caller years. She says that portion her customers are respectful, she's seen different tourists jumping queues for buses, blocking abstraction connected committee with large suitcases, carving their initials connected trees successful Kyoto's bamboo forest, speaking successful large voices astatine nighttime and entering restricted areas to instrumentality pictures.
Some authorities are cracking down. Fujikawaguchiko, a municipality adjacent Mount Fuji, cancelled this year's cherry blossom festival aft repeated issues with misbehaving tourists, portion Tokyo's Shibuya ward, location to the celebrated Shibuya Crossing, started issuing on-the-spot fines for littering successful June.
In July, Japan accrued its international tourer tax, external - typically incorporated into formation and vessel tickets for radical leaving Japan - from 1,000 yen (£4.60) to 3,000 yen, which it says volition beryllium spent connected things similar improving nationalist transport and restoring historical sites.
Image source, Shawn Goldberg/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Overtourism is simply a large taxable of treatment successful cities similar Kyoto
Some visitors were amazed conscionable however crowded large cities successful Japan were.
"I was prepared for it to beryllium engaged but I didn't expect it to beryllium arsenic engaged arsenic it was," says Millie Dring, a immense anime instrumentality who went successful November with a person to observe her 21st birthday.
The DisneySea taxable parkland adjacent Tokyo was truthful engaged that Millie and her person lone went connected 1 ride, which had a three-hour queue, and felt overwhelmed by the crowds.
Image source, Millie Dring
Millie says cities similar Tokyo were adjacent busier than she expected
Sam blames immoderate of the crowds astatine tourer hotspots connected societal media hype and helium says helium regrets going to immoderate places conscionable due to the fact that they were fashionable online. One dessert spot helium went to successful Kyoto aft seeing it "all implicit societal media" was precise engaged "and determination wasn't a azygous section idiosyncratic successful the queue," helium says.
Sites similar the Hakone torii gates and Arashiyama bamboo wood had immense crowds of radical trying to get Instagram-perfect photos, helium says.
But for immoderate visitors, the hustle and bustle of the tourer destinations are each portion of the attraction.
"I deliberation there's a snobbiness astir being a tourer implicit the past mates of years wherever radical privation to debar looking similar one," says Laura McGregor, 29, who's spending 2 weeks successful Tokyo and Osaka successful November for her honeymoon. Her plans see going to Disney and Universal, attending a sumo event, visiting Fuji and Hiroshima, and hiring go-karts to thrust astir Tokyo.
"Of people I privation to acquisition an authentic broadside of Japan but I'm excited to clasp the tourer broadside excessively and spell on with it," she says.
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