Kyoto is not a theme park': Tourists told to stay away from the ancient city's famous geisha district
The Japanese city will stop visitors from passing through a number of streets in the picturesque geisha district.
Japan’s ancient capital of Kyoto has long been a popular destination for tourists - but now it’s fighting back against overtourism.
The city has announced it’s closing off some private-property alleys in its famous geisha district because of complaints about misbehaving visitors.
Local district official Isokazu Ota says tourists crowd the narrow, quaint streets of the Gion area, often following tour guides around.
“We are going to put up signs in April that tell tourists to stay out of our private streets,” he told news agency The Associated Press.
The sign, in both Japanese and English, will read: “This is a private road, so you are not allowed to drive through it.”
However, the keep-out warning is aimed mainly at pedestrians, not cars, as the Japanese wording refers to generically “passing through”
.
“There will be a fine of 10,000 yen,” the sign adds - which comes to about €62 under recent currency conversion rates.
The ban covers just several blocks of Gion. The district's public streets will remain open to tourists, so the area and the rest of Kyoto will still be teeming with visitors, both from Japan and around the world.
Source: https://www.euronews.com/travel/2024/03/08/kyoto-is-not-a-theme-park-tourists-told-to-stay-away-from-ancient-citys-famous-geisha-dist |