As COVID fears ebb, Japan readies for tourists from abroad

By YURI KAGEYAMA
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan is bracing for a return of tourists from abroad, as border controls to curb the spread of coronavirus infections are gradually loosened. After two long years, Yusuke Otomo, who owns a kimono rental shop, can barely contain his excitement. Hopes are running high at such businesses catering to foreign tourists, who numbered more than 30 million people a year before the pandemic. For now, foreign tourists are allowed in limited numbers and only on group tours. Visas are being given only to certain countries, including Thailand and the U.S., that are deemed to pose a minimal health risk, so people can enter without a quarantine.