From illegal parking to defecating in other people’s backyards, the residents of Fujiyoshida are fed up with tourists and have canceled the famous cherry blossom festival.
Authorities in a small town near Mount Fuji in Japan have canceled this year’s cherry blossom festival, saying it is impossible for local residents. manage peak tourist numbers.
The flow of visitors to the city of Fujiyoshida generates garbage and congestion chronic. Some residents claim to have observed tourists trespassing or defecating in private gardens.
The region is a popular destination in spring, when the world-famous Japanese cherry trees bloom. reach peak flowering and can be admired with Mount Fuji in the background.
But Fujiyoshida’s picturesque landscape threatens “the calm lives of its citizens,” as the city’s mayor explains: “We have a strong sense of crisis“.
“To protect the dignity and housing conditions of our citizens, we decided to suspend the festival, which was carried out 10 years ago“, declared the mayor of Fujiyoshida, Shigeru Horiuchi, when making the announcement on Tuesday (3/2).
In April 2016, authorities announced the opening of the gates of Arakurayama Sengen Park to tourists during the sakura (cherry blossom, in Japanese) season.
The park offers a panoramic view of the city from its pagoda, with several “Instagrammable” spotsperfect for photographing.
Fujiyoshida authorities have begun holding the annual event at Arakurayama Sengen Park, hoping to promote the area’s attractions and increase visitor numbers by creating a “dynamic atmosphere there.”
But the municipal government claims that the number of visitors in recent years “increased exponentiallyexceeding the city’s capacity to receive them and resulting in excessive tourism, with serious impacts on the housing conditions of local inhabitants”.
Currently, 10,000 visitors head to the city daily during the peak cherry blossom season, according to authorities in Fujiyoshida, which has an estimated population of 44,000.
The increase “is due to factors such as the cheap yen and explosion of popularity fueled by social media.”
Municipal authorities report that tourists “opened the doors of private homes without permission to use the bathroom”. They also invaded, dirty and “defecated in private backyardscreating an uproar when residents complained.”
The festival will not take place, but the city is preparing for an increase in the number of visitors in April and May.
This is not the first time that Japanese authorities have needed to take action regarding photo-hungry tourists.
In 2024, the local government blocked one of Japan’s most iconic spots in the city of Fujikawaguchiko with a great dark barrierto try to stop those trying to record the privileged image of Mount Fuji.
Residents of Fujikawaguchiko accused foreign tourists of throwing rubbish and non-local illegal parkingwhile searching for the perfect image.
And Japan is not the only country trying to stop crowds caused by tourists.
On Monday, Italy began to charge a fee of 2 euros for access to the observation area of the symbolic Trevi Fountain, in Rome.
Visiting the fountain was free, but authorities say the ticket will help control the number of tourists, as well as generate funds for the maintenance of the monument.
In Venice, also in Italy, day visitors who wish to visit the city on certain days between April and June will need to pay 5 euros if they book in advance, or 10 euros if they do not have a reservation.
