Golden Week holidays get under way in Japan

tokyo
The Golden Week holidays got under way across Japan over the weekend with many people traveling abroad or returning to their hometowns to visit their families and attend festivals.

Airports were crowded on Saturday and Sunday. Narita airport officials said about 397,000 people were expected to go overseas during Golden Week which runs until next Sunday, an increase of 9.5% over 2016, Fuji TV reported.

Travel agents said Southeast Asian destinations and Hawaii were the most popular.

Meanwhile, JR East and JR West said shinansen trains leaving Tokyo on Saturday and Sunday were running at 100% capacity.

This year, many people are taking Monday and Tuesday off, although they are not holidays, adding them to the “second half" of Golden Week – May 3-5, which are holidays -- giving them a nine-day break.

One of the most colorful sights during Golden Week are colorful carp streamers which are raised across Japan in April ahead of “Kodomo no hi” (Children’s Day, May 5). The vibrant streamers are put up to honor children in the hope they will grow up healthy and strong.

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