From April 2020 to October 2022, Japan closed off its borders to all foreign tourists as part of it’s Covid-19 policy.
Going from almost 32 million foreign visitors [source: JETRO] to zero was incredibly harsh on the Japanese hospitality industry. Kyoto perhaps suffered the most, as it depended much more on tourism than cities like Tokyo or Osaka. Without the large crowds, many businesses had to either close or downsize, making the 2023 Kyoto much different than the 2019 one.
Thankfully, the country has finally reopened now. And thanks to a historically low yen [source: Nikkei], tourism is quickly recovering. Not back to the 2019 levels yet, but the days of visiting a site like Kinkaku-ji without going through huge crowds are pretty much gone.
People are excited to visit, and businesses are ready to receive, but there is a problem. After more than two years of isolation, a lot of the information in English has become obsolete, as many places closed or relocated.
Well, what about sites like TripAdvisor, they must be helpful, right? About that… These sites are not really used by locals, so recommendations skew heavily into tourist-focused places. Nothing wrong with that, but if you go just by them, you’ll miss much of the genuine experiences that make Kyoto special.
As someone that recently moved here and is keen on exploring the local scene, I hope to share some of these local gems that as a tourist you might miss. Japanese restaurants and shops can be intimidating to enter, especially those off the beaten track, but with just a bit of previous knowledge and maybe a couple easy phrases, you will be able to enjoy fantastic experiences.