The Japan Tourism Agency has asked the country’s hot springs and spa operators once again to relax strict rules banning customers sporting tattoos.
The state agency is to propose a set of guidelines for spa operators to allow entry for more foreign guests.
It wants to introduce seals to conceal tattoos and set up certain times for tattooed visitors to use facilities.
The number of foreign visitors using hot springs is growing but so is the number of complaints as many tattooed guests are turned away.
In Japan tattoos are still synonymous with Yakuza gangster culture while there is limited understanding in the country about the significance of tattoos for fashion or religious reasons overseas.
"We want to seek the understanding of facility operators, as well as users," said Japan Tourism Agency Commissioner Akihiko Tamura.
