TOKYO, Japan — How much are tourists visiting Japan willing to pay for a bowl of noodles or a plate of sushi?
With restaurant prices soaring in popular tourist destinations, the question is no longer rhetorical.
In Niseko, a Hokkaido ski resort famous for its powdery snow, a bowl of crab ramen can cost up to 3,800 yen ($24.68) and katsu curry can cost up to 3,200 yen ($20.78) — about three times the price in nearby Sapporo, one of Japan’s gastronomic capitals.
At Toyosu Senkakubanrai, a food mall next to Tokyo’s largest seafood market, a bowl of sashimi goes for nearly 7,000 yen ($45.46) — five times what locals typically pay.
Food stalls in Tokyo’s Tsukiji Market, Kyoto’s Nishiki Market, and around Osaka’s Dotonbori are also selling food at prices far above market rate, attracting people’s attention.
As the number of tourists to Japan surges due to a weaker currency, some companies are raising fares.
The practice has even given rise to the slang term “inbound donburi,” referring to rice bowls priced with wealthy tourists in mind.
According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), approximately 17.8 million people are expected to visit Japan in the first half of 2024, beating the previous record of 16.63 million set in 2019.
Foreign tourists visit Nakamise Shopping Street in Asakusa, Tokyo on July 17, 2024. [Kimimasa Mayama/EPA-EFE]
The surge in foreign visitors to Japan has been fuelled in part by the weak yen, which is trading near its lowest level against the dollar in 40 years.
As a result, tourists are not necessarily shy about restaurant prices that are comparable to what they often pay for lower-quality meals in their home countries.
Some restaurants, concerned about losing local customers, are limiting price increases to non-local customers only.
Tamateboko, a seafood buffet restaurant in Tokyo’s Shibuya district, recently introduced a two-tiered pricing system, offering a 1,000 yen ($6.49) discount to all Japanese citizens and residents.
The cost of lunch on weekdays is 5,478 yen ($35.58) for Japanese nationals and residents and 6,578 yen ($42.72) for foreign tourists.
While it is not uncommon for restaurants to list different prices on their Japanese and English menus, Tamatebako’s decision was widely covered in international media and sparked a fierce debate about dual pricing in Japan’s hospitality industry.
Kumi Kato, a professor of tourism at Wakayama University in the Kansai region of southwest Japan, said she was concerned by the nature of the trend and warned against any policies that could be perceived as discriminatory.
“Identification of foreign guests invited by Japanese nationals or tax-paying foreign residents [at restaurants] “It will be difficult,” Kato told Al Jazeera.
“The separation of Japanese and non-Japanese will lead to unpleasant tensions and discontent… We need to be very careful about that.”
leave a bad impression
Tourism industry insiders believe Japan should take advantage of the increasing purchasing power of inbound tourists, but some are skeptical that two-tiered pricing is the way to go.
Andres Zuleta, founder of Boutique Japan, a luxury travel company that offers customized vacations, said he was “all for Japan to find ethical and creative ways to monetize its tourism boom,” but added that companies that charged different prices based on nationality were likely to face backlash.
“Discount prices for locals may make sense, but having different prices on the English and Japanese menus would irritate people. The idea of tiered pricing seems easier for locals to accept.” [tourist] “Sites and things like that,” Zuleta told Al Jazeera.
Andrew William, founder of Kyoto-based travel company Undesign, said while it was understandable to charge prices for overseas bookings that foreigners would expect to pay at home, doing so in Japan was risky.
“The two-tiered pricing looks really bad,” William, who runs a travel agency specialising in off-the-beaten-path tours of Kyoto’s ancient spiritual sites and gardens, told Al Jazeera.
“Plus, do locals have to show ID everywhere they go? It’s not that bad, but it seems awkward.”
Still, some Japanese government officials seem unfazed by foreigners’ perceptions.
Himeji Mayor Kiyomoto Hideyasu recently proposed that foreign tourists visiting Himeji Castle, Japan’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site, pay up to four times the standard entrance fee.
Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura also expressed support for the idea and suggested the possibility of using Osaka Castle as a model.
Representatives of the Hokkaido Tourism Organization also urged businesses across Japan’s northernmost island to set different prices for tourists and locals.
Among those who argue for higher fees for foreign tourists, the reasons range from covering the costs of preserving cultural heritage to training English-speaking staff.
Professor Kato of Wakayama University said managers needed to be more specific and transparent about costs.
“The preservation of cultural heritage in itself should not be a reason to charge foreigners higher fees,” she said.
“Language issues are not the responsibility of individual businesses or establishments. Government support is needed to implement multilingual interfaces and train English-speaking guides.”
The Great Torii Gate of Miyajima on December 12, 2022 [Jeremie Chanteraud/AP Content Services for Hiroshima Tourism Association]
It is not unprecedented for Japanese authorities to charge tourists higher fees than locals.
Miyajima, a popular tourist destination off the coast of Hiroshima known for its forests and the “floating torii” gates of Itsukushima Shrine, introduced a tourism tax in October 2023.
Since July, hikers hoping to scale Mount Fuji’s most popular trails have been asked to pay a 2,000 yen ($12.99) entrance fee.
Since 2019, foreign tourists have also been taxed 1,000 yen upon departure, with authorities saying they will use this to improve tourism infrastructure such as Wi-Fi and multilingual support.
Kato said Japan has a lot to offer as a travel destination, but it should be able to draw more money from tourists if the price is commensurate with the value of the experience.
“I don’t want to see a confrontational approach, like adding extra fees to everything or charging admission to go everywhere,” she said.
“Remember, tourism should always be a happy industry.”
