Overview
- Officials ended the decade-old Arakurayama Sengen Park festival after complaints of trespassing, littering and sanitation abuses, including defecation in private yards.
- Mayor Shigeru Horiuchi said residents’ quiet lives and dignity are being threatened by congestion and nuisance behavior.
- The festival drew about 200,000 visitors annually, with peak days above 10,000, surpassing what local infrastructure can handle.
- The park remains open to the public, so authorities expect heavy footfall this spring and will deploy security staff, traffic control and temporary facilities.
- City leaders cite a weak yen and viral social media as demand drivers, placing the move within broader efforts in Japan to manage overcrowded hotspots near Mount Fuji and beyond.