Society

JTA drafts rules for setting minpaku business holidays

Sep 10 (Japan Times) - The Japan Tourism Agency is considering asking municipalities to designate periods during which minpaku (private lodging services) must be shut in their regions.

Municipalities would be free to set their own minpaku business holidays, according to the agency's draft guidelines on the new type of lodging.

The agency plans to finalize the guidelines, seen Friday, by the end of March. The guidelines will encourage municipalities to set their own rules under ordinances designed to localize the suitability of minpaku services.

The draft guidelines gave examples of places and periods suitable for closure, such as areas near schools and nurseries on weekdays, and mountain settlements during the viewing season for autumn leaves and other periods of heavy traffic.

Do Bears Prefer Acorns or Berries?

Bear sightings across Japan have already climbed to nearly twice the level recorded during the same period last year, prompting entry bans in mountain areas behind Kyoto’s Ninna-ji Temple and the cancellation of hiking events in Kansai, while new research suggests that the key to reducing encounters may lie in understanding what bears eat in each region.

Copper Thieves Target Japanese Shrines

Copper roofing panels were stolen from several shrines in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, including a city-designated cultural property, in the latest case amid a nationwide surge in copper thefts targeting shrines and temples across Japan, where soaring metal prices have fueled crimes that leave historic religious buildings damaged, exposed to the elements, and facing repair costs of millions of yen.

1200-Year-Old Temple on Miyajima Reduced to Ashes

Flames broke out on the morning of May 20th on Miyajima Island in Hiroshima Prefecture, home to one of Japan's World Heritage sites, destroying Reikado Hall near the summit of Mount Misen.

From Bento Boxes to Garbage Bags, Rising Costs Hitting Daily Life Across Japan

Uncertainty surrounding the situation in the Middle East is beginning to affect daily life in Japan, as concerns over crude oil supplies spread to restaurants, cleaning services and even household garbage disposal systems across the Kansai region.

Tochigi Robbery-Murder Suspect’s Wife Posted Dance Videos on Social Media

A 25-year-old woman arrested as a suspected ringleader in a robbery-murder case in Tochigi Prefecture once posted cheerful dance videos on social media and was remembered by those who knew her as an energetic and outgoing young woman.

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