Words that elicit varying amounts of joy and horror depending on your work-life balance, Golden Week is one of the busiest times to travel in Japan.

While this may sound great for a second, what it actually means is crowds, rocketing ticket prices and even more crowds. If you don’t fancy paying the quadrupled plane fares and have missed booking a space on the bullet train, avoiding the crowds is often the best you can hope for.

What exactly is Golden Week?

First things first, there is no actual gold involved—except that required to get you on a flight anywhere exciting that is. Instead it received this nickname thanks to the proximity of four national holidays which take place on fixed dates (not moveable ones like Easter, for example). Known as Ogon Shukan in Japanese (黄金周) it usually refers to the following days:

April 29th: Showa Day (referring to the previous emperor’s birthday)
May 3rd: Constitution Memorial Day;
May 4th: Greenery Day
May 5th: Children’s Day

Emperor Naruhito’s Ascension

This year, however, in celebration of Emperor Naruhito’s ascension to the throne, May 1st is a one-off, extra holiday. While this seems innocuous at a glance, it turns this smattering of holidays into a 10-day mega break. This is thanks to a rule in Japan that any regular day sandwiched between two national holidays also becomes a holiday—great right? So in total, the combination of two weekends, four traditional national holidays, one bonus national holiday and a day in lieu (as Children’s Day falls on a Sunday) means ten days off! While this would be a big deal in most countries, in Japan it is quite literally causing chaos. Hospitals will close along with banks and shops (although not all of course). Many salarymen were heard complaining about the extended holidays, saying that it will hamper businesses. Even housewives were seen complaining due to expected increase in household chores which they will have to take care of, since their husbands and children will be home, instead of at work or in school.

The double-edged sword

In any case, for many professionals, this sounds like a great time to take a vacation. Doesn’t it? Sure, but that’s what everyone else is thinking as well. That means, roads, expressways, and trains meant for long-distance travel are congested; plane and bus tickets get sold out easily; hotels get fully booked quickly (and prices are high); and you can expect mega-crowds at almost every tourist spot. Many Japanese professionals are so busy that even though they have paid holidays, they either don’t or can’t really use them, so public holidays are the best chances for them to travel. Some avoid the Golden Week crowd by traveling overseas, though.

So, what do you do instead?

If you want to take the risk and go to Japan’s major tourist spots at about the same time as everyone else, by all means, go ahead—especially if this is also one of the rare times that you can travel. But if you want to enjoy Golden Week in Japan while avoiding the crowd, stay right where you are!

This might be a good time to explore major cities such as Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. Even if you’re a long-term resident, you might see a side of it that you previously hadn’t known. Perhaps you might also want to use the holidays as an excuse to try something you haven’t done before, even if it’s something as simple as visiting your neighbourhood sento (bathhouse), or spending the night at a capsule hotel.

Or if you really hate crowds, you could try to go on day trips nearby the city that you’re staying in. For example, if you are living in Kyoto, you could maybe go to nearby Miyama or Uji. Staying in cities and visiting popular tourist attractions are a no-no if you really dislike crowds. These are just small tips but you will definitely enjoy your trip nevertheless!