News of Taiwan’s “unqualified travelers” spreads back to Japan; Japanese netizens ask: Are they really Taiwanese?

▲A Kyoto youth hostel owner suffers heavy losses from mass cancellations by Taiwanese guests; news of Taiwan’s “unqualified travelers” hits Japanese media on the 12th. (Image / Screenshot from Japan’s Yahoo News)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

The Kyoto youth hostel“Nishijin Hayashiya,” which has only 10 beds, suffered heavy losses due to frequent mass cancellations by Taiwanese guests, prompting the owner, in an interview with ETtoday EBC News, to exclaim: “Are Taiwanese trying to put my hostel out of business?” The report was cited and published by Japan’s Yahoo News on the 12th, and its sensational headline attracted nearly 300 comments from netizens in heated discussion.

Japan’s Yahoo News reported on the evening of the 12th under the headline“‘Are Taiwanese trying to kill us?’ — The cry of a Kyoto inn constantly hit by cancellations”, with the full article quoting a previous report from ETtoday EBC News. Although the headline and wording were quite strong, Japanese netizens reacted rationally, with some even expressing disbelief after reading the article: “Is this really true? Aren’t they mainlanders pretending to be Taiwanese?” Some Japanese netizens also sarcastically remarked: “Taiwanese are becoming more and more like mainlanders!”

▲%Most reactions on Japanese news site focus on rationality despite the provocative headline (Image / Screenshot from Japan’s Yahoo News)

Some netizens felt that the wording in the article was a bit too harsh, andsuggested that if the hostel wanted to prevent such issues by collecting deposits, it should apply the policy equally to all guests, not just target Taiwanese. “Sometimes it might also be a system issue—blaming everything on Taiwanese isn’t very fair, is it?”

However, some netizens agreed that the situation of Taiwan’s “unqualified travelers” is indeed on the rise. While most Taiwanese are still very good, they hope that the behavior of a minority who cancel en masse or make reservations but don’t show up can be improved.

Some netizens also spoke from the perspective of travelers, pointing out that it’s not just Taiwanese—many people have the mindset of “book it first, then cancel if something better comes along.” Instead of blaming it on human behavior or system issues, they suggested thinking about human nature instead.