Japan saw record-breaking inbound tourism, but the boom has also put new strains on popular destinations. One such place is Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, home to the anime Slam Dunk’s famous railway crossing.
The spot has become both a magnet for fans and a flashpoint for problems. Restrooms at the station have been shut down after vandalism. Crowds spill onto roads to take photos, and a nearby temple reports littering and even public urination. As complaints mount, Kamakura City says it may be forced to adopt tougher measures to protect the community.
Increase in inbound tourists
In 2024, Japan welcomed about 36.87 million international visitors. The number rose 47.1% from the previous year and beat the pre-pandemic record of 31.88 million in 2019.
According to the latest data, Japan recorded 3,428,000 international visitors in August 2025. The figure rose 16.9% from the same month last year. It surpassed the previous August record of 2,933,381 set in 2024 by more than 490,000. For the first time, arrivals in August also topped 3 million.
Inbound tourism is also rising in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture. The city’s tourist information center served 71,133 international visitors in fiscal 2023. The number jumped to 100,830 in fiscal 2024, marking an increase of about 42% in just one year.
Kamakura is just one spot in Japan benefiting from a surge in anime-based tourism. Many travelers come to Japan explicitly to visit locations they’ve seen featured in their favorite manga and anime.
Station restrooms shut down after vandalism
With this surge in visitors, however, Kamakura has also faced new challenges. The area has struggled with overtourism since Japan re-opened for visitors in 2023. Since then, conditions have steadily deteriorated.
The problems start at Kamakura High School Mae Station. On the crowded platform of Enoshima Electric Railway’s Kamakura Station, an announcement reminds passengers, “There is no restroom at Kamakura High School Mae Station. Please use the facilities here.” The message plays in Japanese, followed by English, Chinese, and Korean.
The station did have restrooms until late April this year, but they were shut down after repeated vandalism. Officials said people damaged the facilities by flushing improper items.
The railway crossing near Kamakura High School Mae Station shows both the appeal and the strain of tourism. The Enoden crossing, made famous by the anime Slam Dunk, draws fans from Japan and abroad every day. The spot sits about 100 meters from the station and appears in the anime’s iconic opening scene, where the protagonist and his teammates walk against the ocean backdrop. That has made it a pilgrimage site for fans, and as many as 200 tourists often gather there.
A man in his 20s from Hong Kong called it “a wonderful place” and said he felt happy to visit. A man in his 40s from Taiwan came with his family of four, wearing a yellow basketball jersey, and said, “It’s amazing.”
Not all visitors come for Slam Dunk. Many want photos of the retro green train passing in front of the glittering sea at sunset. Crowds spill into the road to capture the scene, and some even cross despite oncoming cars. Security staff are often forced to shout “Stop!” to maintain order.
The location first gained attention more than a decade ago, when foreign visitors came mainly for wedding photos. The situation changed just before the pandemic as inbound tourism surged. With the rise came problems. Trash such as empty bottles and lunch boxes was left behind, and some visitors even used a water tap meant for grave buckets to wash sand off their feet after visiting the nearby beach.
Temple priest sounds alarm over tourist misbehavior and public urination
The pressure is not limited to the crossing. At Kenshoji Temple near Kamakura High School Mae Station, chief priest Nobukiyo Hiroaki says foreign tourists’ manners have worsened. The temple has posted more than ten signs in foreign languages at its entrance with messages such as “No entry except for staff” and “Do not litter.”
What angers the priest most is public urination in the bushes at the edge of the grounds. “They do not recognize that a temple is a sacred place,” he said, adding that some tourists even reacted with hostility when confronted. The problem continues, and he has also found plastic bottles filled with urine, known as “golden bottles,” left inside the temple grounds.
Drivers often use bottles to relieve themselves in cars and throw them away, and highway operators warn that in summer the urine ferments, gas builds up, and bottles can burst, spreading a strong stench. The issue is not limited to bottles, as some people tie up plastic bags filled with urine and dump them at the temple.
Kamakura City confirms that public urination and discarded urine bottles have appeared in other areas, and officials say residents complained that strangers entered private property to leave bottles. Some residents felt so distressed that they said, “We can’t live here anymore.”
Kamakura weighs tougher measures on tourists
Faced with mounting complaints, Kamakura City says it may have to act. Officials describe the current period as a “transitional stage,” using signs and posters to urge inbound tourists to follow basic manners.
The city had previously installed cameras near the Slam Dunk spot to deter tourists from standing in the middle of traffic. However, they warn that even tougher measures may be needed if behavior doesn’t improve.
Similar problems have appeared elsewhere, such as in Fujikawaguchiko Town in Yamanashi Prefecture, where tourists crowded outside a Lawson convenience store to photograph Mount Fuji over the roof, prompting the mayor to install a black curtain to block the view.
A Kamakura official said the city may take a similar step. “We could make spots where tourists gather less photogenic. That would damage the coastal scenery we have long been proud of, and locals would not welcome it. But residents feel so much stress that we may have no choice,” the official explained.
In a separate move, Kamakura High School Mae Station reopened its toilets at the end of August on a limited schedule from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with security guards now posted in front of the facilities.
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Sources
鎌倉「黄金のペットボトル」を寺に放置で住職は怒り インバウンドの「トイレ」問題をどう改善するか AREA DIGITAL
Japan breaks tourism records in 2024 TRAVEL WEEKLY ASIA
訪日外客数（2025 年 8 月推計値） JNTO 日本政府観光局
