With sakura season fast approaching, the City of Kyoto has put out a renewed series of PSAs for foreign and domestic tourists, urging respectful behaviour from sightseers. The recommendations included range from steps encouraging mindful travel, such as forgoing cumbersome luggage and avoiding single-use plastics, to warnings regarding more serious infringement, both of social etiquette, and of local laws. Some highlights to be aware of are as follows:
Photographing geiko and maiko in areas where it is not permitted, and photographing temples and shrines where taking pictures is prohibited.
Be mindful to avoid blocking the way of other pedestrians or vehicles, for example, by occupying a wide space while walking in groups on a narrow street.
Avoid eating while walking in crowded tourist areas, and in places where eating and drinking are prohibited, such as shrines and temples
City regulations prohibit everyone from smoking and littering on the streets in all areas of the city.
Trespassing on railroad tracks or bamboo groves, as well as private property such as townhouses, graffiti on cultural properties, etc. is punishable by law
For more do’s and don’t while visiting Japan, check out our etiquette page.
AloJapan.com