91²Ö¿â

Tag - travel

 
 

TRAVEL

At a plenary session on Friday, the House of Councilors passed a bill cutting application fees for 10-year passports to ?8,900 for online applications and to ?9,300 for in-person applications.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2026
Japanese passport fees going down to ?9,000 in July
Under the revised passport law, which takes effect on July 1, adult Japanese nationals aged at least 18 can apply for passports valid for 10 years only.
Under the new rules, each passenger will be allowed to bring no more than two power banks in their carry-on baggage, each with a capacity of 160 watt-hours or less. Using the devices aboard planes will be prohibited.
JAPAN
Apr 14, 2026
Japan to restrict power banks on flights from April 24
Charging the batteries and using them to charge electronic devices such as smartphones during flights will be prohibited.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby speaks during a media event in Los Angeles on March 24.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 14, 2026
United Airlines CEO pitched American Airlines tie-up in meeting with Trump, sources say
A combination of two of the largest U.S. network carriers would be the most consequential consolidation since the last wave of big airline mergers ?ended more than a decade ago.
In recent years, the combination of a surge in tourism to Hokkaido and the operations of the Rapidus semiconductor plant has led to congestion at New Chitose Airport¡¯s train station and on express trains.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Apr 13, 2026
Amid travel boom, Hokkaido struggles to improve airport rail link
Express trains arriving at and departing from New Chitose Airport are congested, creating concern.
An airplane of VietJet Airline taxis in front of the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines airplane, at Noi Bai International Airport, in Hanoi on May 28.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 7, 2026
Asian airlines trim schedules and carry extra fuel as supplies tighten
European carriers are bracing for similar disruption after Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz cut off nearly 21% of global seaborne jet fuel supply.
New and old long-distance hiking trails hope to draw tourists from crowded cities to unhurried rural regions.
LIFE / Travel
Apr 4, 2026
¡®If you walk, you will see¡¯: National parks bet on trekking tourists
Multiday hikes through 91²Ö¿â most rural stretches aim to benefit locals and visitors alike.
A JTB survey shows outbound travel from Japan during Golden Week will rise 8.5% to 572,000 people.
JAPAN
Apr 3, 2026
Some 570,000 Japanese plan to travel abroad during Golden Week
The average spending per person on overseas trips during the April 25 to May 7 period is estimated at ?329,000, the highest figure since comparable data became available in 1996.
A Japan Airlines airplane flies past an oil refinery as it approaches to land at Tokyo's Haneda Airport, as seen from a park in the Keihin Industrial Zone in Kawasaki, on March 17.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 1, 2026
Japan¡¯s international flights to get pricier due to hike in fuel surcharge
Fuel surcharges are expected to rise up to double their current rates due to the ongoing Iran conflict.
Zhao Bin, a Chinese business traveler, speaks to the media after checking in for a flight to Pyongyang on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 30, 2026
Why are Chinese flights to North Korea resuming now?
Before both countries closed their borders due to COVID-19, North Korea received an estimated 300,000 foreign visitors in 2019, 90% of them Chinese.
Travelers wait in line at a TSA checkpoint at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, on Thursday.
WORLD
Mar 27, 2026
Trump orders government to pay airport security workers
Nearly 500 airport security officers ?have quit since the start of a partial government shutdown in February.
Stranded passengers wait at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport after flights to Dubai and Bahrain were cancelled in Dhaka on March 1.
WORLD
Mar 26, 2026
Gulf airspace closures leave Asia-to-Europe travelers stranded and bleeding cash
About 90,000 passengers a day typically transit through Gulf airport hubs on Emirates, Qatar and Etihad.
An Air Canada Express jet that collided with a fire truck on a runway on Sunday remains at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on Tuesday.
WORLD
Mar 25, 2026
Safety system failed to alert LaGuardia tower before crash
An Air Canada Express jet collided with a fire truck late Sunday evening, killing the two pilots.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said grounding planes due to a shortage of jet fuel brought on by the war in Iran is a "distinct possibility."
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 25, 2026
Philippines says grounding planes is a ¡®distinct possibility¡¯
Because the Philippines relies heavily on imported crude, it's more exposed than other nations to energy shortages and spiraling domestic fuel prices.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents patrol as passengers wait in line at a TSA checkpoint, after hundreds of ICE agents were deployed to airports to help fill TSA staffing gaps, at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in Carolina, Puerto Rico, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 25, 2026
TSA says 460 airport officers quit as standoff poses major security risks
The funding stalemate has forced 50,000 airport security officers to go without pay has caused delays at airports and is posing major security risks.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 23, 2026
¡®Alone in Japan¡¯ travels towns in decline and talks to the people left
While 91²Ö¿â depopulation is a much discussed issue, Tom Feiling's book "Alone in Japan" tackles the topic face to face as he travels to remote parts of Japan.
A Transportation Security Administration agent at New York's LaGuardia airport on Sunday
WORLD
Mar 23, 2026
Staff absences soar at some U.S. airports as ICE agents prepare to screen travelers
Over a third of Transportation Security Administration staff at major U.S. airports were absent amid a partial shutdown, with immigration enforcement agents set to fill in.
An Emirates Boeing 777 aircraft prepares for landing as a smoke plume rises from an ongoing fire near Dubai International Airport in Dubai on Monday.
WORLD
Mar 17, 2026
Emirates flying near-empty jets to Dubai as locals depart
While passenger demand is slim, the company is also loading cargo into its aircraft, providing another stream of revenue.
A mother kisses her child after they returned from Dubai amid the U.S. and Israel's conflict with Iran in Mumbai, India, on March 3.
BUSINESS
Mar 16, 2026
¡®Dream holidays¡¯ in disarray as travelers count cost of Iran war
The conflict has already closed much of the Middle East¡¯s airspace, leading to tens of thousands of flight cancellations, reroutings and schedule changes worldwide.
A passenger checks her flight status on an airport arrivals and departures board in Krakow, Poland, on March 5.
BUSINESS
Mar 12, 2026
¡®Horrendously high¡¯ fares and bomb fears upend spring travel
The widening war with Iran that¡¯s roiled global travel is hitting Asia-Europe routes especially hard, leaving travelers facing record prices.
Cathay Pacific Airways aircraft on the tarmac at Hong Kong International Airport
BUSINESS
Mar 10, 2026
Asian airlines raise fares and mull groundings as fuel crunch looms
Carriers in the region aren¡¯t as well hedged against high oil prices as rivals in Europe or the U.S., making them more vulnerable to sudden surges in jet fuel prices.

Longform

Projects like the BuddhaBot aim to re-create dialogue once lost to time, raising questions about whether AI can extend the teachings of Buddha or merely simulate them.
Can AI replace a priest? Japan¡¯s temples and shrines are testing the limits.

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN