Japan is so vast—do you only want to go to Kyoto?

Crowded buses and gridlocked roads in Kyoto may not represent the entire picture, but they can certainly be described as everyday life in some local areas. (Photo provided by Jiuxiong Crazy Japan)

Kyoto is often the first step for many foreign travelers getting to know Japan, and it’s also the city most familiar to Taiwanese tourists. But with Japan being so vast, do you only want to go to Kyoto? As thousands of foreign tourists flood into Kyoto every year, is it still your top destination? Or are you unsure where else you could go? Or does the language barrier make choosing a travel destination more difficult? Japanese travel enthusiast “Jiuxiong Crazy Japan” explores the meaning of travel through the lens of Kyoto’s tourism boom.

Japanese travel enthusiast “Jiuxiong Crazy Japan” laments that strolling through a quiet town can also be very charming, but the question is, where are these quaint towns? (Photo provided by Jiuxiong Crazy Japan)

Today, a friend shared an article from the Asahi Shimbun Chinese edition with me. The headline was “With Traditional Atmosphere Disappearing and Buses Packed, Locals in Kyoto Cry Out Over Surge in Foreign Tourists.” The article mainly mentioned that this year, Kyoto’s Gion and Shirakawa area canceled their 27-year-old tradition of night cherry blossom light-ups, primarily due to fears that excessively large crowds would overwhelm the area beyond its capacity. The article also discussed how locals are troubled by foreign visitors taking wedding photos in the area—even queuing up to take pictures right outside residents’ homes—which affects daily life. I also asked my friend who lives in Kyoto, and while crowded buses and gridlocked roads may not be everywhere, they can definitely be considered part of everyday life in certain districts.

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Actually, I shared the Japanese version of this article on my fan page a month or two ago and also mentioned a survey conducted abroad showing that Kyoto has slightly dropped in the ranking of places foreigners most want to visit. A major reason for this is the overwhelming number of foreign tourists. I’m not singling out Kyoto or saying I dislike it. Because anywhere that gets too many tourists tends to lose its authentic Japanese charm, and if the tourists all speak a language you understand, it suddenly doesn’t feel like you’re abroad. That’s just inevitable—popular places attract everyone, and as plane tickets get cheaper, people naturally flock to the most familiar destinations.

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The only solution is to guide tourists to spread out, and not make it seem like Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka are the only good options. Travelers with the means should consider heading to other places—like Shikoku, the San’in and San’yō regions, or Tohoku—many of which are also well worth visiting. This is also part of the Japanese government’s active promotion of “regional revitalization.” In such cases, the traveler’s own skills (familiarity with transportation, language proficiency, adaptability to new environments, ability to drive, etc.) can make a huge difference. Travelers with these various skills can become pioneers in regional tourism, exploring places others haven’t been yet (currently, many bloggers serve in this role). Once a place builds up a certain level of popularity and visitor numbers, it should develop localized tourism services, such as one-day tours or unique city activities (like craft workshops), or nature-based activities like water sports or hiking—offering visitors a deeper experience of Japan’s diverse regions.

Japan offers a wide variety of travel experiences, and water activities are a special resource in certain regions. (Photo provided by Jiuxiong Crazy Japan)

Japanese travel enthusiast “Jiuxiong Crazy Japan” believes that travel is a condensed version of life because within a short period of time, you have to make many choices and then adapt accordingly. (Photo provided by Jiuxiong Crazy Japan)

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Currently, most of these localized activities don’t offer Chinese or English services, meaning they entirely rely on the traveler’s language skills—making them hard to promote and less widely accepted. But does that mean those who don’t speak Japanese can only visit big cities or stick to group tours when going to less familiar places?

Personally, I think group tours are actually a great option. These days, we’re seeing more and more unique itineraries. One company I work with a lot, Lion Travel, has launched several interesting trips that few have tried before. But if you’d rather experience Japan with your own eyes and feet, then improving your travel skills is an essential task!

Travel is really about seeing what you want to see. Some prefectures and cities in Japan provide materials in Chinese, offering at least a basic level of communication. If your trip to Japan only involves eating, shopping, and not engaging with the culture (and when I say culture, I mean not just traditional culture, but also interpersonal exchanges, technical exchanges, and even business interactions), then it remains pretty superficial—and it’s easy to feel like you’ve “done” it after one visit and can just check it off your list and move on to the next place. For example, someone might go to Sapporo once, shop, eat, and sightsee, and then say, “I’ve been to Sapporo, next time I’ll go somewhere else.” To be blunt: “That kind of travel is the same no matter where you go!”

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Personally, I believe the premise of travel is “gaining knowledge.” If we don’t know what’s there or can’t speak the local language, we’re just leaving things to chance. Such travel isn’t meaningless, but the depth of the experience might be more superficial. Therefore, if you can learn some basic language and understand a bit of the culture, you won’t just be skimming the surface or taking selfies.

So, how do you gain knowledge? And more importantly, are you willing to spend time researching: What’s there? What might you enjoy? Can your usual travel goals be met in the next destination? These are the key points.

For example, if someone loves yakiniku (grilled meat), and they already have favorite yakiniku restaurants in Tokyo and Osaka, then when setting travel goals, they can include this criterion: “I want to go to a city with great yakiniku restaurants.” Let’s say this time they choose Nagoya. They could spend some time looking up yakiniku spots in Nagoya and might find 3–5 backup options. Even if their travel dates conflict with closures, with so many choices, there’s bound to be at least one they can eat at. This way, their yakiniku craving is covered. In the end, their trip to Nagoya will include not only the originally planned Nagoya Castle, Sakae shopping district, and Atsuta Shrine—but also yakiniku. Doesn’t that make the trip even more enticing?

Is a trip just about skimming the surface and checking things off a list? How to gain knowledge, spend time researching: What’s there? What might you enjoy? Can your usual travel goals be met in the next destination? These are the real keys to travel. (Photo provided by Jiuxiong Crazy Japan)

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I don’t like calling travel “independent travel,” because travel is inherently something you design yourself. It’s a plan, a wish list—you might not follow it exactly, but you’ll generally head in the direction you want. Travel is inherently free, so why slap those two words on it?

Human travel actually serves many purposes. In ancient times, people traveled to the capital for imperial exams or visited temples to pray for a good harvest or health and safety—sometimes staying away for a whole month. That’s travel too. Nowadays, people seek self-discovery or go on working holiday programs—that’s travel. When I visit a mentor who once helped me, that’s travel as well.

Travel doesn’t have to involve luxury or indulgence. It should be about learning to enjoy the journey, appreciate the scenery around you, and accept the outcomes of your choices. That’s why many say “travel = life.” Actually, I say travel is a condensed version of life because within a short time, we have to make many choices and adapt accordingly. Travel is a period of non-routine life that teaches us a lot—so much so that it can even make you grow up overnight.

Perhaps that’s the greater meaning of traveling to more places. We’re an island nation, and cultural impact can only truly be gained through travel. Travel isn’t necessarily about pleasure—it’s a necessary process of growth. Learning to travel is better than reading a thousand theoretical books. I often feel that part of my life exists to illustrate the benefits of travel. I hope you, the reader, can gradually discover the meaning of travel for yourself. Safe travels!

※This article is published with authorization from Jiuxiong Crazy Japan, and they have agreed to the newsletter introduction and title revision.※