[Josh Grisdale]

Hi,

I have been interested in cruises a bit lately and would be interested in trying my first one out in Japan.

Unfortunately, since I work in a Japanese office, getting more than 2 days off is hard to do. Combining it with a weekend, I could do 4 days total.

Are there any cruises in Japan (preferably the south like Okinawa) that are 3-4 days long?

[heather-hopkins-clement]

Right now, only the three Japanese domestic cruise ships are calling on Japanese ports with only Japanese passengers.

Japan’s strict COVID-19 immigration policy for non-Japanese makes cruising impossible for now. There are committee working to get things restarted, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. I’m heard rumors of a *possible* restart in the fall, but I think realistically we’re looking at 2022, I’m afraid.

Many international cruise lines are redeploying ships away from Asia closer to the US which makes up 40%+ of cruise passenger market. So, who knows what the Japan cruise market will look like when the dust settles. There are still too many unknowns at this point.

[Josh Grisdale]

I see – hope I didn’t miss my chance!

Out of curiosity, before the Covid-19 troubles, were there short cruises? Or are most of them 5+ days in general?

[heather-hopkins-clement]

Typically the shorter cruises you describe WERE reserved for ships that targeted Asian passengers. That is not to say that Westerners were prohibited from them, but that is the demographic those ships catered to. The cruise lines tend to market itineraries of 1 week or more to “Westerners”. You might find a “one off” itinerary that is repositioning from one Japanese home port in Kanto to another Japanese port in Kansai, but they would be few and far between. If you find one, chances are that most passengers board will be Japanese. Westerners typically don’t want to “fly and cruise” around Japan just for 5 days.

With that said, EVERYTHING about travel is changing now, so we cannot assume the previous models will apply in the future. Time will tell, so we just have to wait for now.

[Josh Grisdale]

I see, and can totally understand both reasons.

But, hopefully things will open up with more options in the future!

Thank you for everything!

[heather-hopkins-clement]

Yes, Japan has a lot to offer cruisers with over 100 ports–more than any other country in the world. It’s a great way to explore the various regions of Japan and to see its diversity.

[wilgo]

Hi,

Japan domestic cruises are getting back from suspension caused by COVID-19. Unfortunately, no cruising plans are available from Tokyo/Yokohama to Okinawa. as I can check the plan list of ASUKA II ( no English pages are available)

However, several plans leaving from Yokohama offer 3-4 days cruises, both returning to same port and one way to other port where you need to come back to Tokyo by air or Shinkansen.

The website tells that accessible rooms are available, but some restriction may apply to one on a powered wheelchair. In any cases. contacting to the operator in advance is required.

Additionally, Yusen Travel offers several cruising tour with several vessels including ASUKA II. but no English pages are available, sorry to say.