henkybaby

Is it too soon for jokes about how she likes her Martinis?

dpark74

Assuming things don't get worse with some additional disaster, I still want to go. One concern though is that our travel insurance may not be valid if there is a travel warning still in place. I think that only applies to Tokyo though (and the disaster zone itself, which we are obviously not going anywhere near).

itsmeitisss

I've seen reports from New Zealand that people have cancelled trips there because of the Christchurch earthquake even though the effects are around one city and its environs. The best support that we can give is to not treat the countries as a no - go area when it is considered safe to travel there.

origin

That country is now back on CNN. You knwo when things are bad when they start reporting things again.

origin

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-...0656A5.tomcat1

Thats the UK travel advice. Its not as bad as I had thought, maybe the tv news got things wrong.

soco

OT, but thought this analysis on why not to be worried about the nuclear reactor situation might be of interest to some FTers - just saw it posted on a friend's facebook.

Why I am not worried about Japan’s nuclear reactors.

chucko

I'd go elsewhere. The aftershocks are continuing, and are likely to, with the possibility that one or more of them will be a real doozy. Comms and transport links are strained (especially with having to shift a few hundred thousand survivors out of the worst-affected areas), energy supplies have been disrupted to the point that rolling blackouts are going on, and there's always the problem of one or more of the nuke plants going pear-shaped. I wouldn't count on a big improvement in the situation within the next couple of weeks.

origin

For me the issues of not going apart from the nuclear situation. The power cuts are an issue. Bu I just think that the people need to find their friends and family and grieve for them.

Having said that some people over there are in good spirits still, considering what has happened. It all depends on what you want to achieve in going there.

LTN Phobia

I would urge you to reconsider your plans.

Disruption is likely to continue for some time, as quite a few power stations are out of action, which means there is insufficient electricity to supply the Tokyo area. We have had scheduled rolling power outages in Tokyo, Chiba (where NRT is) etc, which is causing quite a lot of disruption.

By the way, aftershocks are continuing on a pretty frequent basis as well.

The main motorway in Tokyo has been damaged in the earthquake and there are traffic diversions in place.

Contrary to what people may believe, I think Tokyo is extremely unlikely to be back to normal in a few weeks. I have a few reasons to believe this, including the power supply issues.

There is a bit of a mess at NRT right now, as most train services from NRT have been cancelled due to scheduled power outages and Limousine Buses are on reduced timetable too. The staff members, mostly with JAL and ANA, are having difficulties reaching the airport as a result, and the airport was looking rather crowded and somewhat chaotic - despite the rather organised nature of the Japanese people. <== update on this: while they were uncertain of departure time during the blackout-affected periods when I was at the airport, they have managed to mostly depart on time today, so well done to them!

Tokyo was eerily quiet at around 11am. Again train services were severely disrupted and people were even unable to enter the stations due to crowding earlier today, even though most people were encouraged to stay home by their workplace and did so - so if everyone had turned up for work, it would have been a major chaos.

I do not expect power shortages to resolve any time soon. Nuclear power stations are not something that can be fixed overnight, especially now that some are severely damaged. They will take months to repair and test, and even those that have not exploded will need thorough checks that take a very long time. With nuclear power stations apparently supplying 30% of power in Japan, you can easily imagine what the consequences are.

There are petrol shortages, and food and drink shortages in supermarkets in Tokyo, due to distribution issues as well as fuel depots (?) having caught fire, and of course things much worse in the north east areas of Japan. I expect that the disruption will spread further west as time goes on.

To put it bluntly, the fewer tourists there are in Tokyo and elsewhere in Japan, the better for a while because then the total amount consumed will be less - and every little helps. They are struggling to supply the immediate need of residents, let alone cater for tourists. Many roads, ports and airports have been damaged, causing further distribution issues.

I will certainly go elsewhere rather than Japan for the next couple of months. The earlier you rebook, the more options you'll have in terms of somewhere else to go. So I strongly recommend you go somewhere else, and perhaps visit Japan later in the year or maybe next year. By then, foreign currencies will be appreciated. But most likely you will be a hindrance rather than help.

To be honest, I felt guilty about being here and using their supplies. I considered staying on to help in any way I can, but right now, I wouldn't be able to contribute enough to justify whatever I have to consume to be here. I am planning to return in a few weeks if I can make an official arrangement to do so to ensure that I can definitely contribute, but I would not be coming to Japan as a tourist until they have overcome the emergency phase of this terrible event. The Japanese people are very hospitable and try to make you feel welcome even if they do not really feel like it - and I would hate to impose upon them while the country is grieving and trying to battle the current situation - which I have to say is far worse than reported on the western media. The western media has been mainly reporting on the areas most severely affected (which is to be expected), but even outside those areas there are major disruptions (e.g. Tokyo).

Also, besides everything else, when disruptions happen, it's tough even for Japanese speakers to manage them well, e.g. so that they do not miss their flights. It will be quite hard for non-Japanese speakers to minimise the effects of them. So it has a potential, or in fact the likelihood to become a rather stressful holiday. I do not wish that on people.

origin

We hope you are okay as well.

LTN Phobia

Thanks, I've been OK - I have experienced what would normally be classified as major inconveniences but they pale in comparison to what people of Japan, especially in Tohoku region, have experienced.

malkie

This time last year I was almost on my way to NRT, and more worried about the strike action than any worries on earthquakes in Japan.

I'm very glad you are ok LTN Phobia, and hope the situation there improves for everyone very quickly.

I found the Japanese extremely helpful and friendly people, so I think they'll pull through this very testing time.

Hedwig

I was due in Tokyo and Fukushima for meetings next Tuesday, travelling on to Shanghai Wednesday morning. Our Japanese partners are still encouraging us to come for the Tokyo part of the trip so that we can continue our joint business development, but we've agreed to review through the week making a final decision on Thursday.

I'm with LTN Phobia in that I don't want to be a hindrance to any recovery efforts, but on the other hand I'm OK to spend time there if our Japanese partners really want us - the difficulty is I'm not sure whether they are just being polite

origin

A family member has business relations in the country. They are very positive considering what has happened. Their operations havent been affected with damaged caused by the two situations.

My concern is like a car crash they are still in shock. Trying to find the people will last this week at least. So they real extent of the whole situations isnt actually known.

Of course there are many who need to continue to do business. We all know that they are friendly and polite as well. So if people do go they will continue to try to be positive and helpfull.

As a side note the French have told their citizens to get out of Tokyo.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...f-capital.html

As I said earlier, you also need to ask your family if they want you to go. Whilst one might be okay, the worst thing is the concern that others have when they cant help or contact a person.

LTN Phobia

That's quite different from a holiday in Japan, and if your trading partner still really want you to be there, then you could consider going unless you feel concerned about your safety, convenience or the travel insurance aspects. I was talking about holidays and completely discretionary travel in Japan in my previous reply, rather than trip involving meetings and other business matters where you are the invited party.

However, as you say, it's difficult to tell if they are just being polite. Quite frequently the Japanese people will play down their hardship and they feel guilty about "messing you about" by telling you that it wouldn't be a good idea to come. If you were communicating in their native language, you can usually suss this out but it is not an easy task.