Visitors Drawn to Spectacular Diamond Fuji

A woman believed to be a foreign visitor has drawn criticism after posting images on social media showing herself climbing and posing on an ancient camphor tree more than 800 years old at Onamuchi Shrine in Hioki, Kagoshima Prefecture, where climbing the protected tree is prohibited.

Bear sightings are increasing across Japan as the animals become more active during their summer breeding season, with encounters reported near major tourist destinations, campsites and fishing areas, including an attack that left a man injured in Gunma Prefecture.

The return rush at Kansai International Airport peaked on August 14 as travelers who spent the Obon holiday overseas arrived back in Japan, with 39,300 international passengers expected to land at the airport during the day.

A male employee in his 60s was injured after being attacked by a bear while working on the grounds of a garden center in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, at around 8:30 a.m. on August 13.

Japan is often introduced to first-time travellers through Tokyo, but the country’s appeal extends far beyond its futuristic capital.

All Nippon Airways said on August 12 that it will lower fuel surcharges added to international airfares for tickets issued from September, following a temporary easing in fuel prices after a sharp rise linked to worsening conditions in the Middle East.

A 23-year-old Mexican national has been arrested on suspicion of attempting to smuggle endangered lizards into Japan after customs officers at Haneda Airport discovered about 200 reptiles concealed inside 22 pairs of socks.

A mysterious red light stretching vertically across the night sky over Kanagawa Prefecture has been identified as a rare "sprite," a brief luminous phenomenon that occurs high above thunderclouds at roughly the same time as powerful lightning strikes.