Tokyo - Tokyo cruise loop

[lasekeye]

Hi,

we are visiting many Japanese ports with 1 in South Korea.

My question is, will there be extensive customs port checks at each of the Japanese ports?

I read of long 1 hr waits for customs control just to visit a port (maybe because the cruise didn’t start in Japan?), with some of our port days being short and lots to see, I’d like to know ahead of time if this is generally the way things work….not like the Caribbean, where there isn’t any customs control when getting off in port.

[BruceMuzz]

Many Japan ports have Immigration checks (not Customs) when ships arrive and again when they depart.

These checks are usually very quick and efficient.

[bennybear]

4 hours ago, lasekeye said:

Hi,

we are visiting many Japanese ports with 1 in South Korea.

My question is, will there be extensive customs port checks at each of the Japanese ports?

I read of long 1 hr waits for customs control just to visit a port (maybe because the cruise didn’t start in Japan?), with some of our port days being short and lots to see, I’d like to know ahead of time if this is generally the way things work….not like the Caribbean, where there isn’t any customs control when getting off in port.

We waited a long time after leaving Japan and returning on the cruise after a stop in Vladivostok on our circumnavigation of Japan.  Long line ups of around and hour.  If you look at the report from this year by Hiltner I think they encountered the same waits after stopping in Korea. 

[ROCruiser]

When we cruised from Singapore to Yokohama this past March, our first Japan port was Ishigaki. Spent hours on the ship waiting to clear immigration and left with two hours to see the town. Then we took the 9-Day Princess cruise around Japan. Re-entering Japan after a stop at Jeju, Korea. No problem at the first port in Nagasaki, no delays. 

[shecritic]

For cruises that start and end in Japan, the customs and immigration procedures are usually completed before passengers board the ship. This means that once you're on the ship, you won't typically encounter customs checks at each Japanese port. This is similar to how embarkation and disembarkation work for flights, where you clear customs and immigration at the airport before departing.

[RetiredandTravel]

When we re-entered Japan from Korea the customs check was on the ship and very very slow.  I don't recall any Japanese customs when going from port to port in Japan.  If there were it wasn't memorable, maybe just showing the passport.   In Japan tourists are required to have passports on them at all times, its the law.

[BruceMuzz]

6 hours ago, shecritic said:

For cruises that start and end in Japan, the customs and immigration procedures are usually completed before passengers board the ship. This means that once you're on the ship, you won't typically encounter customs checks at each Japanese port. This is similar to how embarkation and disembarkation work for flights, where you clear customs and immigration at the airport before departing.

Uhhh, not quite correct.

Customs and Immigration procedures vary dramatically from port to port in Japan.

I have worked on ships sailing in Japan for 3 decades. On some voyages, the procedures are as you explained above, but on a growing number of cruises in Japan, Immigration insists on processing everyone upon arrival at a port and once again before departure from the port.

I speak Japanese and have many times tried to get an explanation from the local Immigration Officials as to why it varies so much.

So far, they refuse to give an answer.

 

Japanese Flag cruise ships, carrying mostly Japanese Citizens, are not subject to the Japanese Cabotage laws, and so are not required to call at a foreign port during a Japan Domestic Cruise. Even so, they are often required to undergo Customs and Immigration checks in some Japanese ports.

All "other" flagged ships must leave Japan and visit at least one foreign port (usually Korea) during a Japan-Japan cruise. This procedure only complicates the legalities with Japanese Customs and Immigration.

[shecritic]

Thank you for the detailed clarification. I appreciate your expertise on this matter, and I apologize for any inaccuracies in my previous responses. It's evident that the customs and immigration procedures for cruise ships in Japan can indeed be quite complex and can vary significantly from port to port. 

[Hlitner]

On our recent visit to Japan (including about 4 weeks cruising in Japanese waters) we had to clear Japanese immigration everytime we returned from a foreign port (i.e. Korea, Taiwan, etc).  Their immigration folks always insisted on a face-to-face every time we re-entered or departed Japanese waters.  The procedure on our cruise (with about 2000 passengers) usually took about 2-3 hours (both on entering and leaving).  Procedures varied from Japanese officials coming aboard and working in the theater to having us go ashore and clear immigration in a port building.  

 

At one port (when we reentered from Korea) it was almost comical when DW and I had our Passports checked 5 times (within a few minutes) by 5 different officials.  When we got to the 5th official (who was on the pier as we left the ship) I quietly said, "Five!."  He smiled and asked me if we had really had our Passports checked 5 times, and after my response apologized (which got a small bow from me).   The Japanese officials (and we met plenty) were always polite/respectful but are somewhat obsessive about following "procedure."

 

Hank

[clkelley]

I've got a question about meds when visiting Japan by cruise ship. Found a cruise that starts in Australia, has several port visits in Japan, and then transpacific to USA. Our goal is to visit Japan, but spouses' prescription meds and all the rules seem daunting if we were to fly into Japan and stay/travel there. If we leave the meds on board the ship at the Japan ports, will we have to deal with all the forms and requests to import (pain meds)?

[BruceMuzz]

8 hours ago, clkelley said:

I've got a question about meds when visiting Japan by cruise ship. Found a cruise that starts in Australia, has several port visits in Japan, and then transpacific to USA. Our goal is to visit Japan, but spouses' prescription meds and all the rules seem daunting if we were to fly into Japan and stay/travel there. If we leave the meds on board the ship at the Japan ports, will we have to deal with all the forms and requests to import (pain meds)?

Every month or so, someone on CC obsesses about the very strict Japanese laws about importing controlled substances into Japan.

Yes, those laws are in the books, They are designed to deter illegal drug smuggling and distribution in Japan. They are not used to hassle a tourist from Alabama with Prescription Meds. Unless you are carrying large quantities of a controlled substnace, you have nothing to worry about.

Currently in Alabama:

It is illegal to carry an ice cream cone in your back pocket while walking on a street.

If you have a lantern attached to the front of your vehicle, you can drive the wrong way down a one-way street.

Bear wrestling matches are illegal and are a Class B felony.

[Reisdawg]

Was the Bear wrestling law put in place to avoid conflicts with the previous football coach?😝