The Hidden Side of Little Edo: Exploring the Chaotic Deep Town of Kawagoe City Saitama Prefecture

The explosion of foreign tourists and the perplexity of local residents

In the central area of Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture, the “kura-zukuri” (storehouse-style) townscape, typical of Edo-era merchant houses, still remains. This area, which has the Shingashi River connected to the Sumida River, flourished as a key point for transporting goods to Edo, and has long been affectionately called “Little Edo.”

About a 20-minute walk from JR Kawagoe Station brings you to black-plastered buildings that evoke the lively atmosphere of the past. After a major fire in the mid-Meiji period, fire-resistant kura-zukuri structures were built in the town’s reconstruction, which laid the foundation for the current landscape.

Recognizing this asset, Kawagoe City has been conducting urban development in cooperation with both the public and private sectors for about 30 years, transforming “Little Edo” into a major tourist destination.

Kawagoe City, which attracts over 7 million tourists annually, has seen a dramatic increase in foreign visitors in recent years. In 2022, it was estimated that about 100,000 foreign tourists visited the city. That number surged to around 610,000 in 2023, six times higher. According to the city’s tourism department, “The number is expected to be similar in 2024.” Kawagoe is designated by the Tourism Agency as a leading model area for the “Overtourism Prevention and Sustainable Tourism Promotion” project in Kanto, alongside places like Asakusa, Kamakura, and Fujisawa.

However, local residents are struggling to adjust to the rapidly increasing number of foreign tourists. In Kawagoe, residential areas are located just one alley away from the tourist spots.

When walking around the city, many complaints are heard, such as “Foreign tourists are littering everywhere,” “Many tourists are leaning against fences of houses,” and “We are tired of the noise during the day.” Traffic congestion is also a serious problem.

“In recent years, there has been chronic traffic congestion. Most of the city’s streets are one lane in each direction. Tourists walking on the sidewalks and blocking the lanes are causing congestion. On weekends, it becomes stressful just to go out for shopping by car because of the traffic,” says a local shop owner.

In the “Ichibangai” shopping street, tourists’ cars are driving back and forth looking for parking, and large tour buses also arrive. Tourists crossing the street to get to their destination cause dangerous situations that could result in accidents, contributing to the congestion.

The city is not ignoring the issue. In the June 2023 council meeting, the city allocated around 12 million yen for overtourism measures. The tourism department says, “We are conducting traffic volume surveys, traffic simulations, and considering appropriate traffic regulations, as well as implementing various measures to raise awareness about manners among tourists.” However, the situation has not yet improved.