After a Japanese city cancelled its annual cherry blossom festival citing overtourism, Alastair Donnelly, co-founder of B Corp operator Inside Travel Group, explains why the brand developed its "undertourism" strategy, and how it could be a model for heavily-touristed destinations around the world.
Alastair Donnelly is co-founder of InsideJapan parent Inside Travel Group (Credit: Inside Travel Group)
Overtourism is far from a Japan-only problem. But it’s an issue that keeps raising its head in Japan as visitor numbers rise and cultures and customs rub up against each other.
When Inside Travel Group co-founder Simon King and I lived in Toyota City in the late-90s, the picture was very different. International arrivals to Japan numbered around three million a year. Fast forward to 2025, when visitor numbers passed 40 million for the first time.
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