New Year's royal greeting won't require lottery

Dec 01, 2023 | News On Japan

TOKYO - The Imperial Household Agency has announced that the New Year's public greeting, scheduled for January 2nd next year, will be held without a lottery system and will return to almost its pre-pandemic state for the first time in four years.

The New Year's public greeting is an event where Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress, along with other members of the Imperial Family, appear on the palace balcony to thank the people for their well-wishes. This year, for the first time in three years, the event was held with a limited number of participants, selected through a lottery based on prior applications, restricting each session to about 1,500 people.

For next year's event, the Imperial Household Agency has announced that there will be no lottery. The event will be held three times in the morning and twice in the afternoon. The number of visitors per session will be approximately 20,000, about thirteen times this year's figure, marking a return to the nearly pre-pandemic conditions for the first time in four years.

The Agency is also considering adding more sessions if there is a high turnout and is calling for cooperation with baggage inspections and staff directions upon entry.

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