Japan - August 14, 2024

Japan's Pacific coastal regions have seen a surge of hotel reservation cancellations and event postponements after a quake of 7.1 magnitude on Aug. 8 prompted the country to issue a megaquake alert along the Nankai Trough.

Shimoda, a popular resort town situated at the southeastern end of the Izu Peninsula, has seen over 500 hotel reservation cancellations since the megaquake alert was issued.

A time-honored hot-spring hotel in Shimoda, which usually sees a surge of reservations during Japan's traditional Obon Festival holiday from Aug. 13 to 16, has now had to contend with the cancellation of rooms that were fully reserved two months in advance.

As events are also being canceled or postponed in areas located close to the sea, the megaquake warning has also impacted the operations of beach rest areas, with group travelers canceling their reservations one after another.

Other prefectures that have received the megaquake warning have also seen a surge in hotel reservation cancellations.

In some coastal areas, scheduled fireworks festivals were postponed or cancelled in response to the alert.

On Tuesday, the Cabinet Office said the one-week "alert period" for a potential megaquake is expected to conclude on Thursday if no abnormal seismic activities or crustal changes are detected.

The Japan Meteorological Agency also announced on Wednesday afternoon that while no abnormal seismic activities or crustal changes have been observed in the anticipated epicenter zone, the threat of a large-scale earthquake remains higher compared to normal conditions.

Chinese tourists who have booked tours to Japan have now chosen to change or cancel their travel plans in the wake of the country's megaquake warning.

Summer vacation is traditionally the peak season for China's outbound tourism, and Japan is one of the main destinations for Chinese travelers.

Many Chinese airlines have announced their refund policies for flights affected by Japan's potential megaquake.

Shotlist:
Japan - Aug 14, 2024:
1. Various of trees, buildings, vehicles;
2. Trees, traffic, gate to hotel;
3. Various of hotel interior, facilities, decorations;
4. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) resident (name not given):
"Although I don't live by the sea, a megaquake is still scary.";
5. Gate to hotel;
6. Various of hotel interior, facilities;
7. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) hot-spring hotel manager (name not given):
"Following the issuance of a Nankai Trough megaquake alert on Aug. 8, customers have begun to cancel their reservations the following day. Of the 70 rooms that had been booked for between Aug. 9 and 31, 10 rooms have been cancelled.";
8. Various of beach, tourists, rest areas;
9. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) staff member, beach, Shizuoka Prefecture (starting with shot 8) (name not given):
"Since the megaquake alert was issued, two tour groups, one with 30 people and the other with 15 people, totaling 45 people, have cancelled their reservations. The Obon Festival holiday season has seen a dramatic drop in tourist numbers, with only around half the usual visitors compared to the previous years.";
10. Various of beach, tourists, rest areas;
Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province, south China - Recent
11. Various of passengers at airport, advertisements for Japan tour;
12. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhao Qibin, market manager, travel agency (ending with shot 13):
"Tourists who had originally planned to visit Japan may now adopt a 'wait and see' approach and postpone their trips, or they may redirect their flights to nearby destinations, such as South Korea and Southeast Asia.";
13. Various of passengers at airport, border check area;
14. Various of advertisements for Japan tour.

[Restriction - No access Chinese mainland]