A beautiful volcano towering above a simple, somewhat ugly grocery store. In recent years, the absurd picture has become one of the most popular Instagram spots in the world. Hundreds of holidaymakers have their photos taken here every day, causing immense crowds. Japan is fed up with this and is now taking a drastic measure to ruin the beautiful view of Mount Fuji forever. “Sorry we have to do this,” it sounds.
Posing with a big grin or in a hilarious position in front of the iconic Mount Fuji, hoping to score as many likes as possible: it is what completes the holiday of many tourists. “The hype around this ‘typical Japanese place’ has arisen on social media,” an official told the British newspaper ‘The Guardian’. The city council doesn’t want to know anything about it anymore and is now installing a hideous construction to scare away the annoying holidaymakers.
Construction of the net structure (2.5 meters high and 20 meters long) is expected to start next week, an official from Fujikawaguchiko city said. The spot where the screen will now be located is popular because the mountain rises above a grocery store of the Lawson chain, which is ubiquitous in Japan. “We are sorry that we have to take this measure, but some tourists are showing a lack of respect for the regulations,” a driver told the French news agency AFP.
Mainly non-Japanese tourists are currently causing a lot of nuisance in the parking lot of the Lawson store. They throw litter on the ground and ignore traffic rules, which regularly leads to dangerous situations.
Measures are also being taken against mass tourism in other places in the country. In March, more than three million foreign tourists visited Japan in one month for the first time.
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Extremely popular
Mount Fuji in particular has become increasingly popular with tourists in recent years. Japan’s highest mountain attracts more than 220,000 visitors every climbing season.
To calm the crowds somewhat, everyone will soon have to pay 2,000 yen (12 euros) to access the Yoshida Trail (which takes people to the volcano; ed.). The number of ‘tickets’ will be limited to 4,000 per day, access will be prohibited between 4 p.m. and 2 a.m.
“We want tourists to wear clothing suitable for the mountains and be well prepared,” said a local official. “We will also ask visitors to keep an eye on all information on social media. This way, they won’t drop off in vain if the maximum number of visitors is reached that day.”
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Tags: rid Instagram tourists Japan blocks beautiful views Mount Fuji ugly screen Bizarre
