Travel and Tourism Taking a Hit in Japan

Airlines don't want to fly there, some hotels don't want to open, and it's hard to get around by car.

In fact, Japanese citizens are buying tickets in droves to leave the country

Asian and European carriers and travelers are being the most cautious. Deutsche Lufthansa said it was diverting flights away from Tokyo to Osaka and Nagoya, at least until the weekend. It said planes returning from Tokyo on Monday were not contaminated.

Air China said it had canceled flights to Tokyo from Beijing and Shanghai, mainly due to lack of operational capacity at some airports. Taiwan's EVA Airways said it would cancel flights to Tokyo and Sapporo until the end of March.

Online travel company Expedia said it saw "significant increases" in tickets sold from Japan to the United States, even as sales of tickets into Japan fell.

U.S. airlines reported no significant changes to their flight schedules to Japan, but U.S. aviation authorities said they were prepared to take action, including rerouting flights, if the nuclear crisis worsened.

Other governments, including Britain, Italy, and the Netherlands, issued travel warnings.

There are many reports of travelers canceled trips or rebooked on flights to avoid layovers in Tokyo, where low levels of radiation have been detected.

"There's definitely cancellation of trips. And if not cancellations of trips, in some cases people wanting a backup or an alternative," said John Henry, senior vice president with Uniglobe Travel International in Vancouver, British Columbia.

"We're getting a lot of reports of this happening," he said, adding that he had changed his own travel plans to avoid changing planes in Tokyo.

The Japanese government has imposed restrictions to keep civilian flights away from the Fukushima nuclear plant, north of Tokyo, which was damaged in the earthquake and tsunami last Friday.

Some airlines also took steps to limit staff presence in Tokyo. International companies such as SAP and Infineon are moving staff out of the capital to locations further south because of radiation concerns.
Air France-KLM, Europe's largest carrier by revenue, moved all of its crew out of Tokyo to Osaka on Monday, KLM spokeswoman Gedi Schrijver said.

More changes are expected as conditions continue to go downhill.

Japan Also Issues Travel Alert for Europe

Japan's Foreign Ministry issued a travel alert on Monday for Japanese nationals living or travelling in Europe, warning of "possible terrorist attacks" by al-Qaeda and affiliated groups.

The warning followed an alert from Washington to Americans, which said attackers may use "a variety of means and weapons and target both official and private interests" in Europe.

France and Britain immediately voiced support for the US security statement, which said "current information suggests that al-Qaeda and affiliated organisations continue to plan terrorist attacks."

The Japanese alert urges its citizens living or travelling in Europe to exercise full caution at possible attack targets, such as government and police facilities, public transport systems and tourist spots.

The US alert - which the State Department issued regarding specific events, and is one step down from a full travel warning - followed intelligence reports that suggested an al-Qaeda attack could be imminent.

To sum up, if you are in Europe, stay alert.