Scam in Japan

I'm heading there soon. Thanks for the info! It's definitely very new. Those scammers didn’t pick the right target. Clearly, they don’t know VoyageForum 😁😂

Hi there,

I spent a few days in Japan and absolutely loved it! Regarding the welcome for foreigners, especially Westerners, I’ve seen on other travel forums that in some cities like Kyoto, Nara, or Osaka, the reception can sometimes feel a bit distant. But it’s important to keep things in perspective... everyone has their own experience, and situations can vary a lot from one person to another. Sometimes, you just run into someone who’s having a bad day, and it’d be a shame to judge an entire city based on that. Anyway, my trip was a wonderful experience! !

Hello, I’ve been traveling to Japan for 15 years, about 2 or 3 times a year, so I really love the country. But when things go wrong, it’s important to talk about it. There’s been a toxic atmosphere toward tourists since the post-COVID recovery. I often speak to locals, and they admit it themselves—they don’t want tourists in their country. This aligns with a survey an ex-Prime Minister commissioned, where the majority of residents said they wanted to stop attracting tourists. Some Japanese people are on edge; the economic crisis is hitting them hard now too. My friend was attacked in a Donki with a shopping cart for no reason. In a previous post, I mentioned four of our friends who called us in the middle of the night in France after being assaulted by eight guys in Akihabara—resulting in stolen phones and 30,000¥. According to an embassy delegate who helped them at the police station, there’s been a surge in violent assaults and thefts against tourists. The government has even started distributing flyers on Air France flights to Tokyo and Osaka to warn travelers. The Americans are doing the same. The worst part? The police do nothing and try to cover up the incidents, even blaming the victims. It’s outrageous. I love Japan, but not like this.

Hi,

It’s pretty sad and problematic… and Osaka comes up a lot. I hope the current government will do something to change this. Anyway, thanks for sharing.

according to an embassy delegate who came to help the police, there’s been a surge in assaults and violent thefts against tourists. It’s now reached government level, and they’re handing out flyers on Air France flights to Tokyo and Osaka to warn travelers

It’s surprising there’s no information about this—neither on France Diplomatie nor on the French Embassy in Japan’s website. When I went there last week, they weren’t aware of it at all (at least in the consular section). No specific info on ANA flights between Paris and Tokyo either.

Hello,

I'm surprised by your response, which seems to imply that what I wrote is false or something like that. I’m just sharing what actually happened to our friends in Tokyo last month—we were in Osaka at the time. The consular service did step in regarding this assault and violent theft because the police refused to do anything. In fact, things were turning against them. In the end, they were told they could get their stolen phones and the 30,000 yen back *if* they dropped their complaint, which they refused to do. They did recover their belongings but left the country with a note on their record. I don’t know what ANA does; I’m talking about Air France.

I’m also surprised by people who defend a country by making it seem like everything is perfect and nothing violent ever happens. The reality is quite different, unfortunately. I’ve been coming to Japan for 15 years, two or three times a year, and I’ve seen violence against tourists increase every year. A lot of things are changing, like cleanliness in hotels, for example, or even outside. There’s growing poverty, with quite a few homeless people of all ages—something I didn’t see before, or at least not as much. And elderly people being placed in hotels with tourists because there’s no room in facilities meant for them. But maybe it’s not good to talk about these things? Reality always catches up eventually. That doesn’t stop me from loving this country and its people, though.

I'm surprised by your response, which seems to imply that what I wrote is false or I don't know what else.

Allow me to have my doubts. When you share such important information, especially in the age of fake news, you take care to cite sources.

I follow Japanese news and I've never heard of a resurgence of attacks against tourists or any government paper distributed on planes. But since we're talking about Japan, a country where nationals > tourists, maybe that's normal. However, when searching on the French side about this resurgence of attacks or the "government flyer on AF flights," I found nothing either: no mention on official government websites, no press articles, no testimonies. Even among YouTubers and other Japan influencers who jump on this kind of topic, there's absolutely nothing. I'm lucky to have a fairly large community of travelers in Japan, and people who took Air France in recent weeks/months (testimonies from May to late November) didn't receive the paper you're talking about... That's still weird.

I'm only telling what actually happened to our friends in Tokyo last month. We're in Osaka, and the consular service did intervene in this assault and violent theft case because the police didn't want to do anything. Worse, it was turning against them—to get their stolen phones and the 30,000 yen back, they had to withdraw their complaint, which they refused to do. They still got their belongings back but left the country with an observation. I don't know what ANA does; I'm talking about Air France.

I'm not questioning their testimony at all. What I find strange is this flyer story.

I'm also surprised by people who defend a country by making it seem like everything is perfect and nothing violent ever happens. The reality is unfortunately quite different.

Learn to tell the difference between defending a country and questioning an unsourced testimony that no one else is talking about (except you).

I've been coming to Japan for 15 years, 2 to 3 times a year

Here we go—the contest of who has the biggest (experience). Unfortunately, the number of years or trips doesn't mean anything. Otherwise, with my 20 years of traveling to Japan, including 12 years living there, plus working in tourism, my testimony would have more credibility than yours, which of course isn't the case.

Yes, the number of malicious acts against tourists is increasing. We talked about it in another thread—it's no secret.

Anyway, we're waiting for your sources about the flyer.

Hello,

Listening and watching YouTube isn't my concern—I'm talking about reality for my friends, not newspapers or whatever. You're one of those people who's more royalist than the king. I've known Japan for 20 years, I work in tourism, blah blah blah, you're too funny deep down. You're right, everything's perfect in Japan, nothing to criticize, and shhh!!!!!!! No problems, it's paradise. Latest crime statistics in Japan: Is it still a safe country? | Nippon.com – Japan News And then you're more Japanese than a Japanese person, no? LOL. Next....

Hi everyone, I just got back from Japan, direct flight CDG-Tokyo with Air France on the way there, and returning via Korea (so if it was about frequent flyer miles, it would have been on the outbound flight, of course). No warnings, no flyers handed out on the plane. A second-hand account should always be cross-checked to avoid misunderstandings. I’d love to get my hands on that flyer—something like that is a real collector’s item for a destination like Japan. For the record, I’ve never felt as safe in any other country as I did there (the United Arab Emirates is another one, where I’d leave my car running outside while doing groceries...). So, without any ranting or controversy, I’m also interested in more details about this scam in Japan, and especially about those flyers. Long live our forum!

Hi So, some bad info I was given about those AF warnings—I got back from Japan this morning, but not on Air France, and I’m heading back in April for 2 months. Regarding security issues, even though there’s been a 30% increase (2024 figure) in crimes and offenses compared to 2023, it’s still safe. That said, in Osaka where I’m staying, there are more and more homeless people and public drunkenness every year—something I really don’t get is the number of elderly people with minor psychological issues placed in tourist hotels. In my hotel, two floors were reserved for them because there’s no space in the institutions meant for that. But hey, nothing’s perfect in this world.

Thanks for the info. Another ESTA! Just a way to make money off tourists! I’m thinking of staying 2 nights there in transit, in March.

Hi there,

Keep an eye out—nothing’s been done about it so far. If things don’t change, you can visit the following site before your departure to get your QR codes and skip the line when you arrive. Visit Japan Web | Digital Agency Services