Covid-19 requirements for joining our tours

Last updated October 11th 2022

What tours are Adventure Hokkaido currently operating?

All of our tours are operational and open to both domestic and international travellers.

After a long two-and-a-half years, we are excited to say that we can host overseas travellers on both our guided and self-guided tours from October 11 2022. The government dropped the requirement to be on a complete package tour, so you are now also free to include our tours as part of a longer trip to Japan.

Our Covid-19 travel guarantee

We want you to have peace of mind when booking a tour in these unsettled times. All bookings are covered by our flexible Covid-19 Travel Guarantee which includes lifetime deposits and free date changes or refunds in the event of Covid-19-enforced cancellations.

We also guarantee free date changes or refunds if Japan’s border restrictions change after you book and you are no longer able to enter the country.

Vaccination Requirements

Guests on any of our tours must have received at least two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine that meets the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s requirements. We have made this decision to reduce the risks and provide peace of mind for all guests, our team and the communities we will be travelling through. For guests coming from overseas, being vaccinated also makes the immigration process significantly smoother.

At the time of booking, we ask you to show us a copy of the certificate issued in your country. Please have your certificate ready to share with us, and let us know if you have any medical reason not to receive vaccination against Covid-19.

Why do we require guests to be vaccinated?

Although our new border measures only require vaccine certificates if you don’t get a pre-departure test, we believe the vaccination is the best safeguard for you, other guests, and for our hosts, who are often older than ourselves and living in rural areas of Hokkaido.

Over the past two years, we’ve also seen rural farming & fishing communities of Hokkaido suffer with Covid-19 clusters. These communities are often far from emergency care and have limited medical facilities. This rural setting is the ideal place for nature & adventure tours, but being hospitalised with covid symptoms, or even managing self-isolation, in such an environment will pose great difficulties to everyone involved.

As Japan’s borders have been tightly shut to inbound travels for the last two years, the medical institutions and local health authorities have little experience in handling international covid patients. For these reasons, we feel it is prudent to reduce the risks as much as possible. We appreciate your understanding on this matter.

On Tour

Once we depart, we require guests to follow the latest Covid-19 guidelines, your guide will explain them at the time. Currently masks need to be worn while indoors and in vehicles, but you are free to remove your mask outdoors provided we maintain a suitable distance.

What happens if I get ill on tour?

We are on hand if you develop covid symptoms while travelling with us. We will contact the local health authority on your behalf, arrange for a covid-19 test and help you isolate while we wait for your test results. If the local health authority confirms that you need to be admitted to hospital, our staff will make the necessary arrangements to assist you with transport and the language barrier.

You won’t be able to continue with the rest of the itinerary if you are required to self-isolate. In this case, we will refund you for the remainder of the tour, however, you will be responsible for paying for accommodation while you are self-isolating and for your return travel afterwards. The current immigration rules require you to have travel insurance that covers medical costs associated with covid-19, so double-check your policy and make sure you are covered.