JNTO News Updates June 2 2011, 8:56pm via japanskiexperience.com

News updates from the Japan National Tourist Organisation.

International relief support and Japan’s resilience & hard-work have enabled the country to recover infrastructure and commercial activities at a surprisingly fast pace.

Following the British and Canadian governments’ ease on travel restrictions to Japan, on April 14, the US Department of State has reduced the travel alert to Japan only to the 50 miles radius of the Fukushima nuclear power plant, which excludes major cities such as Tokyo and Yokohama, and Tokyo’s Narita and Haneda airports.

The JNTO has also announced today that the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has lowered the travel advice for Japan to level 1 (Be alert to your own security), the lowest level of caution available.

You can view Japan today through live cameras and You Tube videos.

Can We Visit Japan Today? – YES!
The majority of regions in Japan including popular leisure travel destinations, are outside the areas affected by tsunami, earthquake and radiation, and received no disruption to infrastructure. Everything in these areas continues to operate as usual. The greater Tokyo area has already retrieved the usual condition, and there are no more periodical blackouts. The other regions are unharmed, and safe and normal as before.

How is the Radiation Level? – NOT DANGEROUS!
Except for the proximate areas near the nuclear power plants, there is no dangerous level of radiation detected in Japan. Tokyo is not within radiation contamination concern area, located over 200km (124 miles) away from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant facilities. The radiation level in Tokyo is similar to that of New York City. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and other international organizations confirm that the radiation level in the atmosphere is within a reasonable safety level to human health.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) estimates the amount of radiation released to the atmosphere is a mere 10% of the Chernobyl accident.

In addition, please see the daily updates on radiation level in major cities in Japan here.

Are Food and Water Safe? – YES!
There is no shortage of food or water, and products distributed to the public are all safe.

Is Public Transportation Working? – YES!
Japan’s sophisticated public transportation systems have been recovered to the regular service levels everywhere, except for the tsunami-affected regions.

We would recommend watching this video by Beth Reiber, author of the renowned Frommer’s Travel Guides Japan and Tokyo. She recently visited Japan and will stay in Tokyo until late June to update Frommer’s Tokyo. This video was taken on May 31 in Yurakucho, Tokyo.

Daily Updates
Since the 3.11 earthquake, Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) continues to release updates on its website, including radiation conditions, transportation, events and other travel-related information.