okinawa covid travel restrictions

• Okinawa at a Glance
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• COVID-19: Safe Travel in Okinawa

Keep up to date on infection control measures, recommendations and guidelines for a safe and secure vacation in Okinawa.

We would like to ask for the understanding and cooperation of travelers visiting Okinawa to take basic infection control measures in your trip.

Request for Foreign Tourists to Okinawa for preventing infection during your visit.

Things to be aware of while in okinawa, pay attention to heat stroke and sunburn.

Heat stroke can quickly occur when spending long hours under the hot sun or in hot rooms. We advise you to avoid direct sunlight for long periods, drink plenty of water, and take enough mineral salts. In addition, ultraviolet rays in Okinawa are powerful, so please limit skin exposure to reduce sunburn risk.

Avoid excessive alcohol consumption during your trip

Many people feel unwell due to excessive alcohol consumption, with increasing cases reported of people being rushed to emergency rooms due to alcohol intoxication. So to make your trip a pleasant memory, drink moderately.

Enjoy the sea safely

In Okinawa, you can enjoy several marine recreational activities, such as swimming, snorkeling, and diving. While most provide a harmless and wonderful experience at sea, participants can still run the risk of injury. To prevent potential hazards or emergencies, exercise water sports safety tips, such as swimming in a group, avoiding alcohol, and only entering the water when an experienced guide or lifeguard is present.

Free medical consultation line

There is a free, 24-hour medical consultation service for international visitors in case of sudden illness or injury. Resident nurses will ask you about your symptoms and offer advice and information on clinics with foreign language-speaking staff on hand.

Available languages: English, Chinese (Mandarin, Cantonese), Korean, Portuguese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Spanish, Indonesian, Thai, Nepali, French, Russian, Myanmar, Hindi, Mongolian, Persian, Taiwanese (18 languages)

For further information, please refer to the official Guide for when you are feeling ill provided by Japan National Tourism Organization.

Useful Resources

EXPLORE MORE OF OKINAWA

• Plan Your Trip

Okinawa COVID-19 Information Website

Latest updates on covid-19 in okinawa.

• 2021/06/03 特措法に基づく緊急事態措置に係る沖縄県対処方針について（令和3年6月3日変更）
• 2021/04/12 【緊急対策】飲食店従業員・無料PCR検査
• 2021/04/10 「感染防止対策・認証制度プロジェクト」について (PDF)

Details of people testing positive

• 軽症・中等症 79 persons
• Severe symptoms 4 persons
• 宿泊療養 133 persons
• 自宅療養 1687 persons
• 入院等調整中 31 persons
• Deaths 803 persons
• Discharged 509954 persons

Details of patients testing positive

Number of confirmed cases.

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Japan Travel Restrictions

Traveler's COVID-19 vaccination status

Traveling from the United States to Japan

Open for vaccinated visitors

COVID-19 testing

Not required

Not required for vaccinated visitors

Restaurants

Recommended in public spaces.

Japan entry details and exceptions

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Can I travel to Japan from the United States?

Most visitors from the United States, regardless of vaccination status, can enter Japan.

Can I travel to Japan if I am vaccinated?

Fully vaccinated visitors from the United States can enter Japan without restrictions.

Can I travel to Japan without being vaccinated?

Unvaccinated visitors from the United States can enter Japan without restrictions.

Do I need a COVID test to enter Japan?

Visitors from the United States are not required to present a negative COVID-19 PCR test or antigen result upon entering Japan.

Can I travel to Japan without quarantine?

Travelers from the United States are not required to quarantine.

Do I need to wear a mask in Japan?

Mask usage in Japan is recommended in public spaces.

Are the restaurants and bars open in Japan?

Restaurants in Japan are open. Bars in Japan are .

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Japan Traveler View

Travel health notices, vaccines and medicines, non-vaccine-preventable diseases, stay healthy and safe.

• Packing List

After Your Trip

There are no notices currently in effect for Japan.

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Check the vaccines and medicines list and visit your doctor at least a month before your trip to get vaccines or medicines you may need. If you or your doctor need help finding a location that provides certain vaccines or medicines, visit the Find a Clinic page.

Avoid contaminated water

Leptospirosis

How most people get sick (most common modes of transmission)

• Touching urine or other body fluids from an animal infected with leptospirosis
• Swimming or wading in urine-contaminated fresh water, or contact with urine-contaminated mud
• Drinking water or eating food contaminated with animal urine
• Avoid contaminated water and soil
• Avoid floodwater

Clinical Guidance

Airborne & droplet, avian/bird flu.

• Being around, touching, or working with infected poultry, such as visiting poultry farms or live-animal markets
• Avoid domestic and wild poultry
• Breathing in air or accidentally eating food contaminated with the urine, droppings, or saliva of infected rodents
• Bite from an infected rodent
• Less commonly, being around someone sick with hantavirus (only occurs with Andes virus)
• Avoid rodents and areas where they live
• Avoid sick people

Tuberculosis (TB)

• Breathe in TB bacteria that is in the air from an infected and contagious person coughing, speaking, or singing.

Learn actions you can take to stay healthy and safe on your trip. Vaccines cannot protect you from many diseases in Japan, so your behaviors are important.

Eat and drink safely

Food and water standards around the world vary based on the destination. Standards may also differ within a country and risk may change depending on activity type (e.g., hiking versus business trip). You can learn more about safe food and drink choices when traveling by accessing the resources below.

• Choose Safe Food and Drinks When Traveling
• Water Treatment Options When Hiking, Camping or Traveling
• Global Water, Sanitation and Hygiene | Healthy Water
• Avoid Contaminated Water During Travel

You can also visit the  Department of State Country Information Pages  for additional information about food and water safety.

Prevent bug bites

Although Japan is an industrialized country, bug bites here can still spread diseases. Just as you would in the United States, try to avoid bug bites while spending time outside or in wooded areas.

What can I do to prevent bug bites?

• Cover exposed skin by wearing long-sleeved shirts, long pants, and hats.
• Use an appropriate insect repellent (see below).
• Consider using permethrin-treated clothing and gear if spending a lot of time outside. Do not use permethrin directly on skin.

What type of insect repellent should I use?

• FOR PROTECTION AGAINST TICKS AND MOSQUITOES: Use a repellent that contains 20% or more DEET for protection that lasts up to several hours.
• Picaridin (also known as KBR 3023, Bayrepel, and icaridin)
• Oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) or para-menthane-diol (PMD)
• 2-undecanone
• Always use insect repellent as directed.

What should I do if I am bitten by bugs?

• Avoid scratching bug bites, and apply hydrocortisone cream or calamine lotion to reduce the itching.
• Check your entire body for ticks after outdoor activity. Be sure to remove ticks properly.

What can I do to avoid bed bugs?

Although bed bugs do not carry disease, they are an annoyance. See our information page about avoiding bug bites for some easy tips to avoid them. For more information on bed bugs, see Bed Bugs .

For more detailed information on avoiding bug bites, see Avoid Bug Bites .

Stay safe outdoors

If your travel plans in Japan include outdoor activities, take these steps to stay safe and healthy during your trip:

• Stay alert to changing weather conditions and adjust your plans if conditions become unsafe.
• Prepare for activities by wearing the right clothes and packing protective items, such as bug spray, sunscreen, and a basic first aid kit.
• Consider learning basic first aid and CPR before travel. Bring a travel health kit with items appropriate for your activities.
• If you are outside for many hours in the heat, eat salty snacks and drink water to stay hydrated and replace salt lost through sweating.
• Protect yourself from UV radiation : use sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15, wear protective clothing, and seek shade during the hottest time of day (10 a.m.–4 p.m.).
• Be especially careful during summer months and at high elevation. Because sunlight reflects off snow, sand, and water, sun exposure may be increased during activities like skiing, swimming, and sailing.
• Very cold temperatures can be dangerous. Dress in layers and cover heads, hands, and feet properly if you are visiting a cold location.

Stay safe around water

• Swim only in designated swimming areas. Obey lifeguards and warning flags on beaches.
• Do not dive into shallow water.
• Avoid swallowing water when swimming. Untreated water can carry germs that make you sick.
• Practice safe boating—follow all boating safety laws, do not drink alcohol if you are driving a boat, and always wear a life jacket.

Keep away from animals

Most animals avoid people, but they may attack if they feel threatened, are protecting their young or territory, or if they are injured or ill. Animal bites and scratches can lead to serious diseases such as rabies.

Follow these tips to protect yourself:

• Do not touch or feed any animals you do not know.
• Do not allow animals to lick open wounds, and do not get animal saliva in your eyes or mouth.
• Avoid rodents and their urine and feces.
• Traveling pets should be supervised closely and not allowed to come in contact with local animals.
• If you wake in a room with a bat, seek medical care immediately.  Bat bites may be hard to see.

All animals can pose a threat, but be extra careful around dogs, bats, monkeys, sea animals such as jellyfish, and snakes. If you are bitten or scratched by an animal, immediately:

• Wash the wound with soap and clean water.
• Go to a doctor right away.
• Tell your doctor about your injury when you get back to the United States.

Reduce your exposure to germs

Follow these tips to avoid getting sick or spreading illness to others while traveling:

• Wash your hands often, especially before eating.
• If soap and water aren’t available, clean hands with hand sanitizer (containing at least 60% alcohol).
• Don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. If you need to touch your face, make sure your hands are clean.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when coughing or sneezing.
• Try to avoid contact with people who are sick.
• If you are sick, stay home or in your hotel room, unless you need medical care.

Avoid sharing body fluids

Diseases can be spread through body fluids, such as saliva, blood, vomit, and semen.

Protect yourself:

• Use latex condoms correctly.
• Do not inject drugs.
• Limit alcohol consumption. People take more risks when intoxicated.
• Do not share needles or any devices that can break the skin. That includes needles for tattoos, piercings, and acupuncture.
• If you receive medical or dental care, make sure the equipment is disinfected or sanitized.

Know how to get medical care while traveling

Plan for how you will get health care during your trip, should the need arise:

• Carry a list of local doctors and hospitals at your destination.
• Review your health insurance plan to determine what medical services it would cover during your trip. Consider purchasing travel health and medical evacuation insurance for things your regular insurance will not cover.
• Carry a card that identifies, in the local language, your blood type, chronic conditions or serious allergies, and the generic names of any medicines you take.
• Bring copies of your prescriptions for medicine and for eye glasses and contact lenses.
• Some prescription drugs may be illegal in other countries. Call Japan’s embassy to verify that all of your prescription(s) are legal to bring with you.
• Bring all the medicines (including over-the-counter medicines) you think you might need during your trip, including extra in case of travel delays. Ask your doctor to help you get prescriptions filled early if you need to.

Many foreign hospitals and clinics are accredited by the Joint Commission International. A list of accredited facilities is available at their website ( www.jointcommissioninternational.org ).

Select safe transportation

Motor vehicle crashes are the #1 killer of healthy US citizens in foreign countries.

Be smart when you are traveling on foot.

• Use sidewalks and marked crosswalks.
• Pay attention to the traffic around you, especially in crowded areas.
• Remember, people on foot do not always have the right of way in other countries.

Riding/Driving

Choose a safe vehicle.

• Choose official taxis or public transportation, such as trains and buses.
• Make sure there are seatbelts.
• Avoid overcrowded, overloaded, top-heavy buses and minivans.
• Avoid riding on motorcycles or motorbikes, especially motorbike taxis. (Many crashes are caused by inexperienced motorbike drivers.)
• Choose newer vehicles—they may have more safety features, such as airbags, and be more reliable.
• Choose larger vehicles, which may provide more protection in crashes.

Think about the driver.

• Do not drive after drinking alcohol or ride with someone who has been drinking.
• Consider hiring a licensed, trained driver familiar with the area.
• Arrange payment before departing.

Follow basic safety tips.

• Wear a seatbelt at all times.
• Sit in the back seat of cars and taxis.
• When on motorbikes or bicycles, always wear a helmet. (Bring a helmet from home, if needed.)
• Do not use a cell phone or text while driving (illegal in many countries).
• Travel during daylight hours only, especially in rural areas.
• If you choose to drive a vehicle in Japan, learn the local traffic laws and have the proper paperwork.
• Get any driving permits and insurance you may need. Get an International Driving Permit (IDP). Carry the IDP and a US-issued driver's license at all times.
• Check with your auto insurance policy's international coverage, and get more coverage if needed. Make sure you have liability insurance.
• Avoid using local, unscheduled aircraft.
• If possible, fly on larger planes (more than 30 seats); larger airplanes are more likely to have regular safety inspections.
• Try to schedule flights during daylight hours and in good weather.

Helpful Resources

Road Safety Overseas (Information from the US Department of State): Includes tips on driving in other countries, International Driving Permits, auto insurance, and other resources.

The Association for International Road Travel has country-specific Road Travel Reports available for most countries for a minimal fee.

Traffic flows on the left side of the road in Japan.

• Always pay close attention to the flow of traffic, especially when crossing the street.
• LOOK RIGHT for approaching traffic.

Maintain personal security

Use the same common sense traveling overseas that you would at home, and always stay alert and aware of your surroundings.

Before you leave

• Research your destination(s), including local laws, customs, and culture.
• Monitor travel advisories and alerts and read travel tips from the US Department of State.
• Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) .
• Leave a copy of your itinerary, contact information, credit cards, and passport with someone at home.
• Pack as light as possible, and leave at home any item you could not replace.

While at your destination(s)

• Carry contact information for the nearest US embassy or consulate .
• Carry a photocopy of your passport and entry stamp; leave the actual passport securely in your hotel.
• Follow all local laws and social customs.
• Do not wear expensive clothing or jewelry.
• Always keep hotel doors locked, and store valuables in secure areas.
• If possible, choose hotel rooms between the 2nd and 6th floors.

Healthy Travel Packing List

Use the Healthy Travel Packing List for Japan for a list of health-related items to consider packing for your trip. Talk to your doctor about which items are most important for you.

Why does CDC recommend packing these health-related items?

It’s best to be prepared to prevent and treat common illnesses and injuries. Some supplies and medicines may be difficult to find at your destination, may have different names, or may have different ingredients than what you normally use.

If you are not feeling well after your trip, you may need to see a doctor. If you need help finding a travel medicine specialist, see Find a Clinic . Be sure to tell your doctor about your travel, including where you went and what you did on your trip. Also tell your doctor if you were bitten or scratched by an animal while traveling.

For more information on what to do if you are sick after your trip, see Getting Sick after Travel .

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Okinawa's surging COVID cases may signal another wave

Japan's COVID-19 cases are rising again, especially in the southern prefecture of Okinawa, as people enjoy normal summer activities for the first time in three years. Some doctors fear another wave is imminent, after the government downgraded the coronavirus to the same category as seasonal flu in May.

Okinawa had 157 coronavirus patients admitted to hospitals in the week through Sunday, about 1.3 times more than in the previous week.

Hospital beds exclusively for COVID-19 patients are almost full, making it difficult for many hospitals to accept new patients in their emergency departments.

At the Yuuai Medical Center in Tomigusuku City, the special coronavirus ward reached full capacity on Tuesday, but ambulance workers continue to ask it to accept patients. Medical staff said they are struggling to manage beds.

When doctors determine that a patient needs to be hospitalized, they can sometimes clear a bed by discharging another patient whose condition has relatively improved.

Yamauchi Sunao, the head of the hospital's emergency department, said that he feels that conditions are almost as serious as they were at the beginning of last summer, when the hospital was overwhelmed. He described that period as "hell," and said he regrets he could not help some patients whose lives might have been saved.

Yamauchi expressed a strong sense of crisis, saying he fears a deluge even bigger than last summer's wave. He said he hopes everyone will take preventive measures before this happens, to avoid repeating last year's situation.

Another wave "would be painful for me, for my patients and for their families," Yamauchi said.

Okinawa prefectural officials said finding hospital beds for coronavirus patients has already become difficult. They said in some cases, emergency workers have spent more than an hour finding a hospital able to accept a patient.

Tourism industry voicing concerns

Okinawa's mild climate and beautiful beaches have made it one of Japan's most popular tourist destinations. Business operators have voiced concerns about the impact of a further rise in coronavirus cases.

Summer is the peak tourist season, and hotel bookings typically begin to increase around this time of the year. But staff at a hotel in the biggest city of Naha said they have been receiving a couple of cancellations a day. They have also seen a slowdown in reservations from around last weekend, after coronavirus cases jumped.

Staff at Novotel Okinawa Naha said some of its guests with reservations have also inquired about the infection situation ahead of their stays.

They said the reservation rate for the summer vacation season is still about 10 percent lower this year than before the pandemic, and that they had been expecting more reservations in the coming weeks.

Sakamoto Kimiharu, general manager of Novotel Okinawa Naha, said that he is very worried because July and August are peak months which predict the whole year's earnings.

"If we need to revise our earnings forecast downward, the impact on our business would be huge," he said.

The hotel has kept some preventive measures even after the government downgraded the virus, including alcohol for disinfection at several locations as well as gloves for its buffet restaurant diners.

"We don't force our customers to wear masks or disinfect their hands, but we want them to enjoy Okinawa while taking measures based on their own judgement," Sakamoto said.

Medical expert: No signs cases are subsiding

Takayama Yoshihiro, a doctor at Okinawa Chubu Hospital, also serves on a health ministry expert panel. He said he thinks the virus' recent spread is likely related to the government's downgrade of its status.

He said COVID infections are spreading rapidly in Okinawa among all age groups, with no signs of subsiding. He said cases of other infectious diseases such as respiratory syncytial virus are also rising.

"Probably it's because people are becoming more active after the government's downgrade, and the spread of infectious diseases that had been suppressed by precautions has been breathtaking," Takayama said.

He said as children have resumed normal activities, more of them are becoming seriously ill from infectious diseases other than the coronavirus.

Takayama also said hospital staff are having a harder time managing beds than in previous years, as administrative officials are not as involved with hospitalization management as they were before the government's downgrade.

The Okinawan prefectural government no longer coordinates beds for coronavirus patients, who now end up at larger emergency hospitals. He said this is putting a strain on some medical institutions.

"I believe it might become necessary for the government to make arrangements when emergency workers can't find places to transport patients," Takayama said.

He said he is calling on people to take preventive measures, and stressed that anyone with coronavirus symptoms should not go to school or work.

He also said elderly people and others who are vulnerable should be aware of virus risks in their daily lives. He cautioned them to avoid crowds if possible, and refrain from taking part in gatherings and dining with others until the infection situation improves.

Security Alert May 17, 2024

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Travel Advisory January 8, 2024

Japan - level 1: exercise normal precautions.

Japan – Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions

Reissued after periodic review without changes.

Exercise normal precautions in Japan.

Read the  country information page  for additional information on travel to Japan.

If you decide to travel to Japan: 

• Enroll in the  Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP)  to receive Alerts and make it easier to locate you in an emergency.
• Follow the Department of State on  Facebook  and  Twitter .
• Follow Embassy Tokyo’s American Citizen Services section on  Facebook  and  Twitter .
• Review the  Country Security Report  for Japan.
• Visit the CDC page for the latest  Travel Health Information  related to your travel.
• Prepare a contingency plan for emergency situations. Review the  Traveler’s Checklist .

Embassy Messages

View Alerts and Messages Archive

Quick Facts

Duration of intended period of stay. Please note you cannot travel on a passport you have previously declared as lost or stolen even if you subsequently locate it

One page required for entry stamp

Amounts equivalent to ¥1,000,000 or above subject to declaration

Embassies and Consulates

U.S. Embassy Tokyo  1-10-5 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420 Japan Telephone: 81-3-3224-5000 Emergency After-Hours Telephone: 81-3-3224-5000 Fax: 81-3-3224-5856 Our Navigator Assistant will guide you to the information you need.

U.S. Consulate General Osaka-Kobe 2-11-5, Nishitenma, Kita-ku, Osaka 530-8543, Japan Telephone: 81-6-6315-5900 Emergency After-Hours Telephone: 81-3-3224-5000 Fax: 81-6-6315-5914 Our  Navigator Assistant  will guide you to the information you need.

U.S. Consulate General Naha 2-1-1 Toyama, Urasoe City, Okinawa, Japan Telephone: 81-98-876-4211 Emergency Telephone: 81-3-3224-5000 Fax: 81-98-876-4243 Our  Navigator Assistant  will guide you to the information you need.

U.S. Consulate General Sapporo Kita 1-jo Nishi 28-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 064-0821, Japan Telephone: 81-11-641-1115 Emergency After-Hours Telephone: 81-11-641-1115 Fax: 81-11-643-1283 Our Navigator Assistant will guide you to the information you need. All assistance at the Consulate General Sapporo is by appointment only.

U.S. Consulate Fukuoka 5-26 Ohori 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka 810-0052, Japan Telephone: 81-92-751-9331 Emergency After-Hours Telephone: 81-3-3224-5000 Fax: 81-92-713-9222 [email protected] Our Navigator Assistant will guide you to the information you need. Routine services are provided by appointment only.

U.S. Consulate Nagoya Nagoya International Center Bldg. 6th floor, 1-47-1 Nagono, Nakamura-ku, Nagoya 450-0001, Japan Telephone: 81-52-581-4501 Emergency After-Hours Telephone: 81-3-3224-5000 Fax: 81-52-581-3190 Our Navigator Assistant will guide you to the information you need. Emergency services are provided by U.S. Consulate General Osaka-Kobe. 

Destination Description

See the Department of State’s Fact Sheet on Japan for information on U.S-Japan relations.

Entry, Exit and Visa Requirements

Visit the  Embassy of Japan  website for the most current visa information.

There are no COVID-related entry requirements for U.S. citizens.

Entry & Exit:

• You must have a valid passport and an onward/return ticket for tourist/business "visa free" stays of up to 90 days. Your passport must be valid for the entire time you are staying in Japan.
• You cannot work on a 90-day "visa free" entry.
• "Visa free" entry status may not be changed to another visa status without departing and then re-entering Japan with the appropriate visa, such as a spouse, work, or study visa.
• Visit the Embassy of Japan website for the most current information on all visa categories.
• Japanese immigration officers may deny you entry if you appear to have no visible means of support. 
• All foreign nationals are required to provide fingerprint scans and to be photographed at the port of entry. Exceptions to this requirement include diplomatic and official visa holders, minors, and individuals covered under SOFA Article IX.2. For further information about landing procedures, please visit the  Immigration Bureau of Japan’s website . 
• Make sure your passport is valid. Note you cannot travel on a passport you have previously declared as lost or stolen even if you subsequently locate it. Japanese authorities will likely deny you entry into Japan if you attempt to do so. If you have reported your passport lost or stolen, you must apply for a new passport before travel.

Transiting Japan: 

• Ensure that your passport and visa are valid and up-to-date before you leave the United States. Passport services are not available at the airport.
• Airlines in Japan may deny you boarding for transit if you do not have the required travel documents for an onward destination in another country or if your passport does not have six months of validity remaining. For the entry requirements of the country you are traveling to, visit the  State Department's Country Specific Information  website.

Military/SOFA Travelers:  While active-duty U.S. military personnel may enter Japan under the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with proper Department of Defense (DoD) identification and travel orders, all SOFA family members, civilian employees, and contractors must have valid passports to enter Japan. Please consult the  DOD Foreign Clearance Guide  before leaving the United States.

See  the Immigration Bureau of Japan’s website  for various immigration procedures.

HIV/AIDS Restrictions:  The U.S. Department of State is unaware of any HIV/AIDS entry restrictions for visitors to or foreign residents of Japan. 

Find information on  dual nationality ,  prevention of international child abduction  and  customs regulations  on our websites.

Safety and Security

For police services in Japan, dial 110. For fire or ambulance services, dial 119.

Crime:  Crime against U.S. citizens in Japan is generally low and usually involves personal disputes, theft, or vandalism. In addition:

• Robberies committed after a victim has been drugged from a spiked drink can occur, especially in nightlife districts.
• Sexual assaults are not often reported, but they do occur, and victims may be randomly targeted.  Victim's assistance resources or shelters are difficult for foreigners to access.
• Hate-related violent crimes rarely occur, although some U.S. citizens have reported being the target of discrimination because of their nationality or their race.
• Pick pocketing can occur in crowded shopping areas, on trains, and at airports.
• Police reports must be filed before leaving Japan, as Japanese police will not accept reports filed from overseas. 
• In instances involving credit card theft or fraud, Japanese police often provide a report number rather than a police report.  You can provide this report number to your credit card company to confirm the incident with the police.

Entertainment and Nightlife Districts in Tokyo: 

• Exercise caution in all entertainment and nightlife districts throughout Japan, especially Roppongi, Kabuki-cho, Shibuya, and Ikebukuro. 
• Incidents involving U.S. citizens in these areas include physical and sexual assaults, drug overdoses, theft of purses, wallets, cash and credit cards at bars or clubs, and drugs slipped into drinks. 
• Drink spiking at bars and entertainment venues, especially in areas such as Roppongi and Kabuki-cho, near Shinjuku, has led to robbery, physical and sexual assaults, and credit card fraud.  Some victims regain consciousness in the bar or club; other victims may awaken on the street or other unfamiliar locations.
• U.S. citizens have reported being threatened with gun or knife violence in such venues so that they will pay exorbitant bar tabs or withdraw money.  U.S. citizens have also reported being beaten when they have refused to pay or hand over money.
• There have been reports of U.S. citizens being forcibly taken to ATMs and robbed, or made to withdraw funds after being unable to pay exorbitant bar tabs.
• Please be aware that Roppongi, Kabuki-cho, and other entertainment and nightlife districts have also been the scenes of violence between criminal syndicates. 

See the  Department of State  and the  FBI  pages for information on scams. 

Police reports must be filed at the nearest police station prior to departure from Japan. The Japanese police cannot accept reports filed from overseas. Report crimes to the local police at 110 and contact the U.S. Embassy at 03-3224-5000 (011-81-3-3224-5000 from overseas).  Remember that local authorities are responsible for investigating and prosecuting the crime.

See our webpage on  help for U.S. victims of crime overseas .

• help you find appropriate medical care;
• assist you in reporting a crime to the police;
• contact relatives or friends with your written consent;
• explain the local criminal justice process in general terms;
• provide a list of local attorneys;
• provide information on  victim’s compensation programs in the U.S. ;
• provide an emergency loan for repatriation to the United States and/or limited medical support in cases of destitution
• help you find accommodation and arrange flights home; and/or
• replace a stolen or lost passport.

Contacting Police, Fire and Ambulance Services:  You can reach the police throughout Japan by dialing 110. Fire and ambulance services can be contacted by dialing 119.  Note that English-speaking dispatchers may not be available. Please review advice on  “Calling for Help” on our  website . If you need assistance, you should be able to describe your address/location in Japanese or find someone who can do so, since few police officers speak English.

Domestic Violence:  Victim's assistance resources or battered women's shelters exist in major urban areas, but are difficult for foreigners to access. These types of resources are also generally unavailable in rural areas. Investigations of sexual assault crimes are often conducted without female police officers present, and police typically ask about the victim's sexual history and previous relationships.

Tourism:  The Victim's assistance resources or battered women's shelters exist in major urban areas, but are difficult for foreigners to access. These types of resources are also generally unavailable in rural areas. Investigations of sexual assault crimes are often conducted without female police officers present, and police typically ask about the victim's sexual history and previous relationships.

See our webpage for more  information on insurance providers for overseas coverage.

Local Laws & Special Circumstances

Criminal Penalties:  You are subject to Japanese law while you are in Japan. If you violate Japanese laws, even unknowingly, you may be arrested, imprisoned, or deported. If you are arrested in Japan,  even for a minor offense , you may be held in detention without bail for several months or more during the investigation and legal proceedings.

Some offences are also prosecutable in the United States, regardless of Japanese law. For examples, see our website on  crimes against minors abroad  and the  Department of Justice  website.

The vast majority of arrests of U.S. citizens in Japan are for drug-related offenses. Japanese authorities aggressively pursue drug smugglers and users, including recreational users with sophisticated detection equipment, "sniffing" dogs, blood tests, “stop and frisk” tactics, and other methods. Penalties for possessing, using, or trafficking a drug that is illegal in Japan are severe, and convicted offenders can expect long jail sentences and fines. Please note that some drugs which may be legal in certain jurisdictions outside of Japan, including marijuana and synthetic drugs, remain illegal in Japan. This also applies to certain prescription drugs that doctors in the United States may prescribe.  Japanese law makes no distinction between medical and recreational marijuana; therefore, having a prescription for medical marijuana will not help you avoid arrest or prosecution. Even possession of a small amount of marijuana for personal medical or recreational use can result in a long jail sentence and fine. Japanese customs officials carefully screen incoming packages, and individuals who are mailed drugs can be arrested and prosecuted as drug traffickers.   

Confiscation of Prescription Drugs and Other Medication:  It is important to note that some medications that are routinely prescribed in the United States, including Adderall and marijuana, are strictly prohibited in Japan. The Japanese government decides which medications may be imported legally into Japan. The Embassy and Consulates of Japan in the United States have limited information available and do not have a comprehensive list of specific medications or ingredients. Please see more  information on importing medicines  into Japan.

You must carry your U.S. passport or Japanese Residence Card (Zairyu Kado) with you at all times. In Japan, you may be taken in for questioning if you do not have your passport or Japanese residence card to show your identity and status in Japan (e.g., as a visitor, student, worker, or permanent resident).

It is illegal to work in Japan while in tourist or visa-waiver status. Overstaying your visa or working illegally may lead to fines of several thousands of dollars, and in some cases, re-entry bans as long as 10 years, or indefinitely for drug offenders. For additional information, please see  Japan’s Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act  and contact the  Japanese Embassy  or nearest Japanese Consulate in the United States for more information.

Driving under the influence of alcohol could also land you immediately in jail. The blood-alcohol limit in Japan is 0.03%. Punishments can be up to 10,000 USD in fines and up to five years in prison.

Possession of a gun or ammunition is a crime in Japan. Carrying a knife with a locking blade, or a folding blade that is longer than 5.5 cm (a little more than two inches), is illegal in Japan. U.S. citizens and U.S. military personnel have been arrested and detained for more than 10 days for carrying pocket knives that are legal in the United States but illegal in Japan. The possession of lock-picking tools is illegal in Japan.

Establishing a Business : Individuals establishing a business or practicing a profession that requires additional permits or licensing should seek information from the competent local authorities, prior to practicing or operating a business.

A  list of English-speaking lawyers  located throughout Japan is available on our  website .

Arrest Notification : If you are arrested or detained, ask police or prison officials to notify the U.S. Embassy immediately. See the Department of State’s webpage  and the Embassy’s  website  for additional information.

Counterfeit and Pirated Goods: Although counterfeit and pirated goods are prevalent in many countries, they may still be illegal according to local laws. You may also pay fines or have to give them up if you bring them back to the United States. See the U.S. Department of Justice’s website for more information .

Faith-Based Travelers:  See our following webpages for details:

• Faith-Based Travel Information
• International Religious Freedom Report  – see country reports
• Human Rights Report  – see country reports
• Hajj Fact Sheet for Travelers
• Best Practices for Volunteering Abroad

LGBTQI+ Travelers:  There are no legal restrictions on same-sex sexual relations or the organization of LGBTI+ events in Japan.

Laws governing rape, sexual commerce, and other activity involving sexual relations do not apply to same-sex sexual activity. This leads to lower penalties for perpetrators of same-sex rape and sexual assault and greater legal ambiguity surrounding same-sex prostitution.

See our  LGBTQI+ Travel Information  page and section 6 of our  Human Rights report  for further details.

Travelers with Disabilities:  The law in Japan prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities. Japanese disability laws require the public sector to provide reasonable accommodations and the private sector to make best efforts in employment, education, access to health care, or the provision of other services; however, there are no penalties for noncompliance. Social acceptance of persons with disabilities in public is not as prevalent as in the United States.

Although Japan’s accessibility laws mandate that new construction projects for public use include provisions for persons with disabilities, older buildings are not likely to have been retrofitted for accessibility. At major train stations, airports, and hotels, travelers with disabilities should encounter few accessibility problems. Note that many smaller stations are inaccessible to those who cannot climb stairs. Information on travel in Japan for travelers with disabilities is available at  Accessible Japan .

Travelers with disabilities can learn more about resources available in country from the Japan National Tourism Organization’s  traveling with a disability page .

Students:  See our  Students Abroad  page and  FBI travel tips .

Women Travelers:  See our travel tips for  Women Travelers .

Conditions at Prisons and Detention Facilities:  Japanese prisons and detention facilities maintain internal order through a regime of very strict discipline.  U.S. citizen prisoners often complain of stark, austere living conditions and psychological isolation.  Heating in winter can be inadequate in some facilities, food portions can be significantly smaller than what many may be accustomed to, and access to specialized medical care, particularly mental health care, at detention facilities and prisons is sometimes limited. Additional  information on arrests in Japan  is available on our embassy website.

Customs Regulations:  Please contact the Japanese Embassy or nearest Japanese consulate in the United States, or  visit the Japanese Customs website  for specific information regarding import restrictions and customs requirements.

Japanese customs authorities encourage the use of an Admission Temporaire/Temporary Admission (ATA) Carnet in order to temporarily import professional equipment, commercial samples, and/or goods for exhibitions and trade fairs into Japan.  For additional information, please call (212) 354-4480, or  email the U.S. CIB  for details.

Pets:  The Japanese  Animal Quarantine Service  (AQS) sets procedures for importing pets. At a minimum, the process will take seven to eight months, though the process can take up to a year before a pet may enter Japan. Advance planning is critical. You can find more information about  importing a pet into Japan  or information about  exporting a pet from Japan  on our  Embassy website.

Employment Issues:  U.S. citizens should not come to Japan to work without having the proper employment visa arranged ahead of time. Teaching English, even privately, and serving as hosts/hostesses are both considered "work" in Japan and are illegal without the proper visa.

Some U.S.-based employment agencies and Japanese employers do not fully or correctly represent the true nature of employment terms and conditions. A minimum requirement for effectively seeking the protection of Japanese labor law is a written and signed work contract. If there is no signed contract, Japanese authorities are not able to act on behalf of foreign workers. If you are coming to Japan to work, carefully review your contract and the history and reputation of your Japanese employer before traveling to Japan. Complaints against U.S.-based employment agencies or recruiters may be directed to the  Better Business Bureau  or the Office of the Attorney General in the relevant state(s).

Disaster Preparedness : Japan is prone to natural disasters, including earthquakes, typhoons, tsunamis, and landslides. See the  Embassy’s  webpage for recommendations and steps you can take to prepare for an emergency. The Japan Tourism Organization’s  Safety Tips app  and  NHK World app  provide Japanese government emergency “J-Alerts” to your cell phone in English through push notifications. “J-Alerts” can provide early warning emergency alerts on earthquakes predicted in a specific area, sometimes seconds before an earthquake hits. 

Radiation: Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant : The Government of Japan continues to closely monitor the conditions at and around the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. You should comply with all travel restrictions and cautions put into place by the Government of Japan for areas surrounding the plant. For more information, contact the  Japan Nuclear Regulation Authority .

For police service in Japan, dial 110. For fire or ambulance, dial 119.

Ambulance services are widely available but receiving hospitals may decline to accept inbound patients unless they can provide proof of funds to pay for services.

COVID-19 Testing:

• Travelers should contact Japanese local health providers to determine the location of testing facilities within Japan. A non-comprehensive list of some COVID-19 testing facilities can be found here on the Embassy website.

COVID-19 Vaccines:

• The COVID-19 vaccine is available for U.S. citizens to receive in Japan.
• Review the Government of Japan’s  English language website  on COVID-19 vaccinations in Japan.
• Visit the FDA's website to  learn more about FDA-approved vaccines  in the United States. 

The Department of State does not pay medical bills.  Be aware that U.S. Medicare/Medicaid does not apply overseas. Most hospitals and doctors overseas do not accept U.S. health insurance.

Medical Insurance:  Make sure your health insurance plan provides coverage overseas. Some care providers in Japan only accept cash payments. See our webpage for more information on insurance providers for overseas coverage. Visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more information on type of insurance you should consider before you travel overseas.

We strongly recommend  supplemental insurance  to cover medical evacuation.

If traveling with prescription medication, check with the government of  Japan’s Ministry of Health website to ensure the medication is legal in Japan; possession, use, or importation of a prescription drug that is illegal in Japan may result in arrest and criminal prosecution. Always carry your prescription medication in original packaging with your doctor’s prescription. U.S. prescriptions are not honored in Japan, so if you need ongoing prescription medicine, you should arrive with a sufficient supply for your stay in Japan or enough until you are able to see a local care provider.

Vaccinations:  Be up-to-date on all  vaccinations recommended  by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Further health information:

• World Health Organization
• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  (CDC)

Japan has a national health insurance system which is available only to those foreigners with long-term visas for Japan. National health insurance does not pay for medical evacuation. Medical caregivers in Japan may require payment in full at the time of treatment or concrete proof of ability to pay before they will treat a foreigner who is not a member of the national health insurance plan.

U.S.-style and standard psychological and psychiatric care can be difficult to locate outside of major urban centers in Japan and generally is not available outside of Japan's major cities. Extended psychiatric care can be very difficult to obtain.

Air Quality: Visit AirNow Department of State for information on air quality at U.S. Embassies and Consulates.

Travel and Transportation

Road Conditions and Safety : Driving in Japan can be complicated and expensive. Traffic moves on the left side of the road. Those who cannot read the language will have trouble understanding road signs. Highway tolls can be very high, and city traffic is often very congested. A 20-mile trip in the Tokyo area may take two hours. There is virtually no legal roadside or curbside parking; however, traffic is commonly blocked or partially blocked by those illegally parked curbside. In mountainous areas, roads are often closed during the winter, and cars should be equipped with tire chains. Roads in Japan are much narrower than those in the United States.

Traffic Laws : Japanese law provides that all drivers in Japan are held liable in the event of an accident, and assesses fault in an accident on all parties. Japanese compulsory insurance (JCI) is mandatory for all automobile owners and drivers in Japan. Most short-term visitors choose not to drive in Japan. Turning right or left on red lights is not permitted in Japan, and all passengers are required to fasten their seat belts.

Japan has a national 0.03 percent blood-alcohol-level standard for driving, and drivers stopped for driving under the influence of intoxicants will have their licenses confiscated. If you are found guilty of driving under the influence, speeding, or blatantly careless driving resulting in injury, you are subject to up to 15 years in prison. 

See our  Road Safety page  for more information. The National Police Agency (NPA) oversees the administration and enforcement of traffic laws in Japan. You can find further information in English on the  NPA English website . Information about roadside assistance, rules of the road, and obtaining a Japanese driver's license is available in English from the  Japan Automobile Federation (JAF) web site . See  the Japan National Tourism Organization’s website for car rental and driving in Japan.

Emergency Assistance : For roadside assistance, please contact the Japan Automobile Federation (JAF) at 03-5730-0111 in Tokyo, 072-645-0111 in Osaka, 011-857-8139 in Sapporo, 092-841-5000 in Fukuoka, or 098-877-9163 in Okinawa.

International Driving Permits (IDPs):  An international driving permit (IDP) issued in the United States by the American Automobile Association (AAA) or the American Automobile Touring Alliance (AATA) is required of short-term visitors who drive in Japan. You must obtain an IDP issued in your country of residence prior to arriving in Japan. The U.S. Embassy andU.S. consulates do not issue IDPs. IDPs issued via the Internet and/or by other organizations are not valid in Japan. 

Foreign residents in Japan who use an IDP may be fined or arrested. In practice, the term “resident” involves more than simply visa status or length of stay in Japan and is determined by the police. In short, a driver license from country outside Japan is not a substitute for a valid Japanese license for foreign residents. See the U.S. Embassy’s  website  for more information on driving in Japan.

Aviation Safety Oversight : The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has assessed the government of Japan’s Civil Aviation Authority as being in compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) aviation safety standards for oversight of Japan’s air carrier operations. Further information may be found on the  FAA's safety assessment page .

Maritime Travel : Mariners planning travel to Japan should also check for U.S. maritime advisories and alerts  in the Alerts section of the Embassy’s messages. Information may also be posted to the  U.S. Coast Guard homeport website , and the  National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) broadcast warnings website portal  select “broadcast warnings.”

For additional travel information

• Enroll in the  Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP)  to receive security messages and make it easier to locate you in an emergency.
• Call us in Washington, D.C. at 1-888-407-4747 (toll-free in the United States and Canada) or 1-202-501-4444 (from all other countries) from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
• See the  State Department’s travel website  for the  Worldwide Caution  and  Travel Advisories .
• Follow us on X (formerly known as "Twitter") and Facebook .
• See  traveling safely abroad  for useful travel tips.

Review information about International Parental Child Abduction in  Japan . For additional IPCA-related information, please see the  International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act ( ICAPRA )  report.

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Travel Alerts and Disaster Updates

2024 noto peninsula earthquake.

In the afternoon of January 1, 2024, a strong earthquake caused widespread damage and the loss of many lives on the Noto Peninsula and surroundings.

The northern part of the Noto Peninsula was most affected. Particularly badly hit were the city of Suzu and the city of Wajima , where the earthquake did not only topple many buildings, but also caused a large fire, which destroyed a considerable part of the city center, including the site of the famous local morning market.

The intensity of the earthquake in the nearby cities of Kanazawa , Takaoka , Toyama and Niigata was also strong, but it caused no widespread damage.

Transportation

Service along many train lines in the region resumed within a couple of days of the earthquake, except on the peninsula itself, where the disruptions lasted longer. The last affected railway, the Noto Railway, resumed service along its entire length on April 6.

It will take several months for the Noto Peninsula to open to tourism again, especially the northern part. But also in Wakura Onsen further down the peninsula, almost all lodgings remain closed until further notice.

Outside the Noto Peninsula, tourism is much less affected. In Kanazawa , most tourist attractions reopened within four days of the quake. An exception was the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art , which suffered some damage, but reopened partially on February 6 and fully on June 22. Read our report from Kanazawa from early February .

Coronavirus Outbreak

Japan dropped all remaining COVID-related entry requirements (including the need of COVID testing/vaccination certificates) on April 29, 2023. With this, over three years of COVID-related border measures have came to an end.

Volcano Closures

No-entry zones are currently maintained at the following prominent volcanoes :

• Sakurajima (Level 3 - do not approach the volcano) Do not climb the mountain. Does not affect transportation and tourism.
• Shinmoedake (Kirishima) (Level 1 - potential for increased activity) Closure of hiking trails.
• Kusatsu-Shirane (Level 1 - potential for increased activity) Closure of hiking trails.

Japan to declare Covid-19 curbs in 3 regions hosting U.S. bases

TOKYO — Japan is to step up coronavirus restrictions in three regions that host United States military bases to stem a Covid-19 surge that some officials have said the bases have helped fuel.

The restrictions, which authorities call “priority measures,” are being brought back for the first time since September, when Japan lifted emergency controls that had prevailed across the country for most of last year.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a meeting the measures, which will allow steps such as limiting the operating hours of restaurants and bars, were needed to rein in surging cases.

The infectious omicron variant has been found in about 80 percent of Japanese prefectures. Total new infections will exceed 5,000 on Friday, the Yomiuri newspaper reported, compared with an average of about 200 a day last month.

“We must be prepared for the rapid spread of infection,” Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto told reporters.

“There are cases where there is no history of overseas travel and the route of infection is unknown, while the delta strain also continues to spread.”

The new measures in the southern prefecture of Okinawa and the western prefectures of Hiroshima and Yamaguchi, will last from Sunday to the end of the month.

All three regions host bases for the U.S. military, which on Thursday announced stricter infection controls at Japan’s urging after outbreaks at bases appeared to have spilled into communities.

Governors of the prefectures had requested the tougher measures after seeing a surge in cases driven by the omicron variant.

The southern island chain of Okinawa, host to 70 percent of U.S. military facilities in Japan, has been the hardest hit, in what appears to be the country’s sixth wave of the pandemic.

The prefecture reported 1,414 new cases on Friday, a record and up from 981 on Thursday.

“This number will likely stay high and steadily increase,” said Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki, who has harshly criticized infection controls at U.S. bases.

Infections have also been on the rise in major metropolitan areas. Tokyo said it found 922 new cases on Friday, the most since Sept. 15.

Tokyo’s government is planning to strengthen countermeasures by directing restaurants to limit diners to groups of four, down from eight, the Kyodo news agency reported.

Amid ongoing frustration with the U.S. bases in Japan, the two countries have also to work together on another issue dominating officials: China’s growing might.

The comments from the two allies, in a joint statement that followed a virtual meeting of their foreign and defense ministers, highlight how deepening alarm about China — and growing tension over Taiwan — have put Japan’s security role in focus.

The ministers expressed concerns that China’s efforts “to undermine the rules-based order” presented “political, economic, military and technological challenges to the region and the world,” according to their statement.

“They resolved to work together to deter and, if necessary, respond to destabilizing activities in the region,” it said.

The ministers also said they had “serious and ongoing concerns” about human rights in China’s Xinjiang and Hong Kong regions and stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

In a separate virtual summit on Thursday, Japan and Australia signed a defense cooperation agreement.

China lodged stern representations with all three countries.

“We deplore and firmly oppose the gross interference in China’s internal affairs by the U.S., Japan and Australia and the fabrication of false information to smear China and undermine the solidarity and mutual trust of countries in the region,” foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a daily briefing in Beijing.

Pacifist Japan has close economic ties to China but is increasingly concerned that it could move against democratic Taiwan, which it claims as part of China.

“This is clearly a combined message reflecting a common concern, not a case of U.S. arm-twisting to get Japan to sign onto vague euphemisms,” said Daniel Russel, who served as the top U.S. diplomat for Asia under president Barack Obama and is now with the Asia Society Policy Institute.

“In particular, the expression of joint resolve to respond if necessary to destabilizing activities comes across as a powerful expression of alliance solidarity and determination.”

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JRailPass.com » Japan Travel Blog » Japan travel restrictions and requirements for 2023

Japan travel restrictions and requirements for 2023

May 15, 2023

When planning a trip to Japan, make sure you know if there are any travel restrictions in place and any entry requirements you need to follow.

Japan has now completely removed all COVID-19 entry restrictions . Immigration rules have returned to normal from May 8, 2023 .

If you are thinking about traveling to Japan, you can check this regularly updated page and find out what you need to visit the country.

Below you’ll find information about the reinstatement of visa exemptions , vaccine and testing requirements, and other coronavirus measures in Japan.

Can I Travel to Japan Now?

Yes , Japan’s borders are now open to all international tourist travel.

You can easily travel to Japan by air or by sea as long as you meet the standard entry requirements.

Japan has completely removed the entry cap on daily foreign arrivals. All the usual visa exemptions currently apply to eligible visitors. This means that citizens of around 70 countries, including Australia, the United States and all European Union nations, can once again visit Japan for 90 days visa-free simply by using a valid passport.

Once in the country, train services are running as normal. You can use your Japan Rail Pass to travel around the nation at your leisure.

Japan Standard Entry Requirements

If you’re not a national of a visa-exempt country , you’ll need a visa to travel to Japan.

You should also make sure you have a valid passport , and other necessary documentation to enter the country.

If you have an e-Passport, you can use the Electronic Customs Declaration Gates (e-Gates) when arriving in Japan to clear border control.

Public transportation restrictions within Japan

Public transport, including trains, is operating in Japan. Travelers are advised to refer to Japanese train status updates issued by each individual operator to check if a service they plan to use remains affected by temporary Shinkansen COVID-19 restrictions.

Face masks are no longer required on JR trains or in most other places. They are still common and recommended, but are ultimately optional .

Who can travel to Japan now?

Anyone who meets the normal entry requirements can now travel to Japan.

All travelers should ensure they have a valid relevant visa for Japan (unless visa-exempt), a valid passport, and other necessary documentation to enter the country.

North Koreans cannot currently enter Japan due to sanctions. Apart from this, there are no other travel bans in place.

For further information about visas and visa exemptions, please check with the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs at https://www.mofa.go.jp/ .

Rules for tourists

Individual tourists can now travel to Japan. There is no longer any need to book a place on a package tour.

Although mask use is not obligatory outdoors in Japan, it is still recommended in crowds or when having a conversation at close quarters.

Quarantine measures when traveling to Japan

There are currently no quarantine measures in Japan.

For further information, please check with the Japanese Ministry of Health at https://www.mhlw.go.jp/

Countries and regions banned to enter Japan

Only citizens of North Korea are currently prohibited from traveling to Japan. This is because the Japanese government has imposed sanctions on North Korea.

All other nationalities are allowed to visit Japan with the proper documentation. All travel bans due to coronavirus have now been lifted.

Travel advisories

Check the up-to-date travel advisories for Japan regarding COVID-19 from your country below:

• New Zealand
• United Kingdom
• United States

Health advice when visiting Japan

There are no specific health requirements in place for traveling to Japan.

Visitors are advised to have health insurance and be up-to-date on standard vaccinations. Recommended vaccines include:

• Chickenpox (Varicella)
• Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis
• Flu (influenza)
• Hepatitis A
• Hepatitis B
• Japanese encephalitis
• Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR)

Japan’s Health Ministry has stated that the two most effective ways to curb the spread of illnesses like the coronavirus are to frequently wash hands and use a face mask when out in public:

• You should wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol.
• Face masks are recommended in public. The mask should cover your mouth, nose and chin, and be disposed of after a single-use.

If you are traveling to Japan with medication, make sure you bring copy of the prescription, a doctor’s note, and bring your medicine in the original container.

For the latest travel advisory and information about restrictions, please visit the Japan National Tourism Organization’s site .

The Japan National Tourism Organization has also set up a coronavirus hotline for tourist information available in 3 languages: English, Chinese, or Korean:

• From within Japan : 050 3816 2787
• If overseas : +81 50 3816 2787

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• Data Descriptor
• Open access
• Published: 27 August 2024

A dataset of acoustic measurements from soundscapes collected worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic

• Samuel Challéat   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-2119-2051 1   na1 ,
• Nicolas Farrugia   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1159-3513 2   na1 ,
• Jérémy S. P. Froidevaux   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6850-4879 3 , 4 , 5   na1 ,
• Amandine Gasc   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8369-4930 6 , 7   na1 ,
• Nicolas Pajusco 2 , 8   na1 &

Silent Cities project consortium

Scientific Data volume  11 , Article number:  928 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

2 Altmetric

Metrics details

• Environmental impact
• Urban ecology

Political responses to the COVID-19 pandemic led to changes in city soundscapes around the globe. From March to October 2020, a consortium of 261 contributors from 35 countries brought together by the Silent Cities project built a unique soundscape recordings collection to report on local acoustic changes in urban areas. We present this collection here, along with metadata including observational descriptions of the local areas from the contributors, open-source environmental data, open-source confinement levels and calculation of acoustic descriptors. We performed a technical validation of the dataset using statistical models run on a subset of manually annotated soundscapes. Results confirmed the large-scale usability of ecoacoustic indices and automatic sound event recognition in the Silent Cities soundscape collection. We expect this dataset to be useful for research in the multidisciplinary field of environmental sciences.

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Background & summary.

In response to the rapid spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) around the world, governments of many countries adopted physical distancing measures in early 2020, including more or less drastically restricting individual travel and suspending many work and leisure activities deemed ‘non-essential’ 1 , 2 , 3 . Incidentally, these public health policy decisions opened a window of opportunity for many environmental scientists to investigate the effects of such a reduction in human activity on ecosystems at multiple spatiotemporal scales 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 .

The modification of soundscapes, especially in urban and peri-urban areas, was among the most significant environmental changes observed during this period 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 . The sudden decrease in individual travel and motorized transport of people and goods shaped extraordinary soundscapes in most cities of the world for a few weeks. This revealed the richness of animal sounds in urban areas, previously hidden by a multitude of anthropogenic sounds. Such a change, directly perceptible by the population, even raised interest outside the academic sphere, as reflected in numerous articles in the general press. Among the thousands of press articles on the subject, we will particularly mention the interactive publications produced by The New York Times (see, for example: The Coronavirus Quieted City Noise. Listen to What’s Left ; or: The New York City of Our Imagination ).

From an academic point of view, several studies have already been carried out on these “soundscapes of a confined world”, at different scales and in different types of spaces and territories (sub-continents 15 , countries 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , regions 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , cities 18 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , neighborhoods 29 , 34 , protected natural areas 35 , semi-anthropized environments 36 , 37 , 38 , tourist sites 39 ). Among these studies, some benefited from sensor networks predating the COVID-19 crisis, mobilizing for example underwater acoustics and/or seismic monitoring networks 16 , 22 , 40 , permanent noise pollution monitoring networks in urban environments 26 , 41 , 42 , or devices installed for pre-existing research projects 43 . Beyond these physical measurement approaches, several studies have also investigated individual and subjective perceptions of changes in soundscape composition. More specifically, the perceived proportion between natural and anthropogenic events in the soundscape is regularly raised in investigations that more broadly address the changes induced by different periods of population containment on experiential relationships to nature 21 , 29 , 44 .

In this paper, we present a global acoustic dataset 45 , collected between March and October 2020 by 261 contributors, at 317 sites distributed in 35 countries (Fig.  1 ). Recordings were primarily collected using Open Acoustic Devices AudioMoth 46 or Wildlife Acoustics Song Meters SM4 ( www.wildlifeacoustics.com ) programmable recorders, which are widely used within the professional and amateur naturalist communities. This dataset is unique, with its international dimension, collaborative construction and open access availability. The acoustic data are presented in addition to climate classification and surrounding environment, offering a more comprehensive understanding of their significance and implications. In addition, we provide a set of descriptors based on ecoacoustic indices 47 and on automatic recognition of sound categories using a pretrained deep neural network 48 . These descriptors were subsequently validated by collecting expert annotations on a small subset of the dataset, with which we derived statistical models to demonstrate their usability.

Panel a. Global and European mapping of recording sites. Colors refer to climates. Panel b. Number of recording sites per country. Colors refer to continents. Panel c. Number of recordings by confinement level and climate. Panel d: temporal distribution of global sampling effort, in number of recordings.

Silent Cities is a data collection that involved programmable audio recordings worldwide. The global scale of the project warranted us to not only gather acoustical recordings, but also contextualize them. We first describe the data collection procedures, the contributors’ network and contextual information related to the recording sites, such as location, urban density, climate classification or governmental policies related to human population containment in response to COVID-19. Next, we describe the processing of acoustic measurements computed on all recordings, including ecoacoustic indices, automatic sound event recognition, and voice activity detection.

Data collection

Recording protocol.

On March 16, 2020, the French government announced the upcoming first containment of the population. A few days later, a first version of the Silent Cities protocol was submitted to professional networks. Feedback from researchers but also from journalists, artists and biological conservation practitioners interested in contributing were received. As requested, a more inclusive version, opening up the possibility of using different equipment and sampling efforts while preserving requirements for further robust statistical analyses was proposed ( https://osf.io/m4vnw/ ). This second and final version of the protocol was shared on March 25, 2020 and is described below.

Each contributor provided recording equipment. To homogenize the recordings collection, recording devices were configured to obtain a 1 minute-long recording every 10 minutes on a daily cycle schedule, with a sampling rate set at 48 kHz. All recorders were to be set in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC+00) with an output format in .wav. In order to have comparable data, the use of an audible SM4 (Wildlife Acoustics) or an AudioMoth (Open Acoustic Devices), which were the two most popular programmable recorders at the time, was recommended. However, any device with high quality recording, allowing the recording configuration requested, was accepted. To anticipate the return of high levels of anthropogenic sounds after the end of containment measures, the gain was to be set at “low” for the Audiomoth and at 31 dB for the SM4 (gain at 5 dB and preamplification at 26 dB). The final dataset includes 216 sites monitored by an Audiomoth, 47 by an SM4 and 54 by another device.

The sampling duration of the collection was locally dependent. The protocol recommended to continue recording a minimum of two weeks after the end of the total city shut down and restoration of “normal” activities. However, the expected scenario of the return to “normal” activity extended well beyond predictions as the magnitude of the pandemic became progressively realised. As containment measures were being lifted in many countries during the summer, the acoustic sampling was ended on July 31, allowing contributors to continue collecting data after this date based on local situations. To summarise, the entire recordings collection covers the period from March 16 to October 31, 2020, with the highest number of recordings between April and July (see Fig.  1d ).

Originally, contributors were able to choose between three levels of sampling effort based on their ability to record during the entire or partial duration of the project. Hereafter, we refine the definition of those levels to better fit the diversity of recording profiles represented in the final data set:

expert - The daily cycle schedule, duration of files and sampling rate were set according to the recommendations, and the duration of the sampling period was at least two months;

modified - The parameters are set as recommended but the sampling period is less than two months or some parameters such as the file duration, the sampling rate or the daily cycle schedule are different ( i.e . every 3 hours), while conserving a fixed recording pattern along the sampling period;

opportunistic - All other sites that do not show any type of recording patterns.

The expert protocol was applied by 228 contributors, while the modified protocol and the opportunistic protocol were followed respectively by 72 and 17 contributors.

International contributor network

The dataset 45 results from the collaborative work of 261 international contributors from various professional fields: 182 are academics, 37 are conservationist practitioners, 12 are artists and 30 do not recognize themselves in the three previous groups. An Open Science Foundation (OSF) project 45 was created to organize the data collection and guarantee its open access with no restrictions. Other tools used to manage the collaborative work were Framaforms ( https://framaforms.org/abc/fr/ ) to collect metadata about sites and contributors from the consortium.

Site descriptions

The containment of a large number of citizens worldwide restricted the location of the recorders. Contributors deployed their recorder on private land or a balcony at their residency (example on Fig.  2a ). We encouraged those living in (peri-)urban areas to participate, even though recordings were also collected in rural areas. The soundscape recordings were collected from 317 sites located in or around 197 cities and 35 countries (see Fig.  1 ). In order to protect citizens’ privacy, the exact coordinates of the sites remain unknown and the location of the sites were based on the coordinates of their corresponding cities and approximate neighborhood. The sites cover four of the five climates defined by the Köppen climate classification 49 , with a majority of sites located in the temperate and dry climates and a spatial sampling in favor of the European and American continents (see Fig.  1 ). For each site, we extracted information about the surrounding land cover (more specifically the percentage of built-up and tree cover within a 1 km radius buffer scale around the sites; 100 m resolution 50 ), human footprint (from 0 to 50, with the lowest score depicting the least human influence, 1 km resolution 51 , 52 ), and population density (no. of inhabitants per square kilometer, 1 km resolution 53 ) to document the degree of urbanization and human impact on the landscapes encompassing the recordings. In addition, contributors described in a few sentences the surroundings/context of their site. Thanks to the open data available on https://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/AltAz , we also extracted for each recording site the altazimuth coordinates of the Moon and Sun as well as the moon phase for each 10-second time interval during the days where soundscapes were collected. These data would be important for potential analysis about temporal soundscape dynamics. Finally, containment measures 3 per country and date, summarized by the University of Oxford in the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker dataset, were downloaded from the web portal https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/stay-at-home-covid . These stay-at-home requirements are organized in 4 levels:

0 - No measures;

1 - Recommended not to leave home;

2 - Not allowed to leave home, with exceptions for daily exercise, grocery shopping, and other activities considered as essential;

3 - Not allowed to leave home, with rare exceptions ( e.g . allowed to leave only once every few days, or only one person at a time).

Panel a. Top left: Professional fields of the 261 participants. Middle: Distribution of type of devices for the 317 recording sites. Bottom left: type of protocol implemented. Right: Photos of the two main recording devices used: Open Acoustic Devices AudioMoth (top) and Wildlife Acoustics SM4 (bottom). Panel b. Association between the measured acoustic indices and tagging types and the presence of geophonical (Geo), biophonical (Bio) and anthropophonical (Ant) events detected manually by the contributors. Model estimates and associated 95% confidence intervals are represented with points and bars, respectively. Positive and negative estimates with confidence intervals not overlapping zero indicate positive and negative associations, respectively. Panel c. Radial barplots depicting the mean anthropophony and biophony level values per site, combining all protocols, recorded hourly throughout each period of COVID-19 containment levels. Panel d. Model predictions and associated 95% confidence intervals for NDSI, biophony (birds) and anthropophony (engine noise) levels at 8:00 a.m. during the COVID-19 confinement measures, following the expert protocol only. *** p < 0.001, ** p < 0.010, * p < 0.050, ns: p > 0.050.

Due to the limited data collected during the strictest containment period (level 3, see Fig.  1c ), we combined data from the two periods when leaving home was not permitted (levels 2 and 3) when performing the technical validation.

Acoustic measurements

All computations described here were performed with open-source packages or code from github, including scikit-maad (v1.4) 54 , 55 , librosa 56 and pytorch 57 . The analysis code used to prepare this dataset is available for reference at https://github.com/brain-bzh/SilentCities .

Preprocessing audio

Audio preprocessing was divided into two steps. First, the file name, sample rate, date and relative sound pressure level were extracted from each audio recording. Then, each file (n = 2,701,378) was divided into 10-second segments (n = 16,252,373) in order to have a meaningful duration for both acoustic index calculation and automatic sound event recognition. The sampling rate of audio segments were homogenised at 48 kHz for acoustic index calculation and resampled to 32 kHz for automatic sound event recognition. For acoustic indices, the signals were filtered using a bandpass filter from 100 Hz to 20 kHz to remove low frequency electronic noise inherent to some recorders.

Acoustic Indices calculation

Acoustic diversity indices aim to summarize the overall complexity of an acoustic recording in a single mathematical value. Numerous acoustic indices have been previously proposed 47 , 58 , 59 , considering the time, frequency and/or amplitude dimensions of the recorded sound wave. We selected and calculated eight indices on all recordings; these indices were chosen based on their complementary and/or wide representation in the literature:

dB represents the relative acoustic energy of a signal;

dB Full Scale or dBfs represents the acoustic energy of a signal where the RMS value of a full-scale sine wave is defined as 0 dBfs 60 ;

Acoustic Complexity Index or ACI 61 measures the frequency modulation over the time course of the recordings. The value is calculated on a spectrogram (amplitude per frequency per time). ACI is described to be sensitive to highly modulated sounds, such as song birds, and less affected by constant sounds, such as background noise;

Activity or ACT 62 corresponds to the fraction of values in the noise-reduced decibel envelope that exceed the threshold of 12 dB above the noise level. This noise level was estimated for each site by seeking the audio file yielding the minimum dB value;

Bioacoustic index or BI 63 measures the area under the frequency spectrum (amplitude per frequency) above a threshold defined as the minimum amplitude value of the spectrum. This threshold represents the limit between what can be considered acoustic activity (above threshold) and what could be considered background noise (under threshold);

Entropy of the Average Spectrum or EAS 62 is a measure of the ‘concentration’ of mean energy within the mid-band of the mean-energy spectrum;

Entropy of the Spectrum of Coefficients of Variation or ECV 62 is derived in a similar manner to EAS except that the spectrum is composed of coefficients of variation, defined as variance divided by the mean of the energy values in each frequency bin;

Entropy of the Spectral Peaks or EPS 62 is defined as a measure of the evenness or ‘flatness’ of the maximum-frequency spectrum, maximal frequencies being measured along the time of the recording. A recording with no acoustic activity should show a low EPS value, as all spectral maxima are low and constant over time;

Normalized Difference Soundscape Index or NDSI 64 measures a ratio between biophony and anthropophony. The value of this index is calculated on a spectrogram and varies between -1, meaning the entire acoustic energy of the recording is concentrated under the frequency threshold of 2kHz and attributed to anthropophony only, and +1, meaning the entire acoustic energy of the recording is concentrated above the frequency threshold and attributed to biophony only.

Manual soundscapes description

In order to have a more thorough description of the recorded soundscapes, some contributors manually performed sound identification on a subset of their recordings. Two non-consecutive days of recordings were randomly selected for each site and each one-minute-long audio file recorded at the beginning of each hour was analysed ( i.e . a total of 48 1-min files). Using software dedicated to sound analysis (e.g. Audacity: https://www.audacityteam.org/ , Sonic visualizer: https://www.sonicvisualiser.org/ , and Kaleidoscope: https://www.wildlifeacoustics.com/uploads/user-guides/Kaleidoscope-User-Guide.pdf ), contributors were to (i) listen and view spectrograms of the recordings, (ii) estimate the percentage of time occurence (0%, 1-25%, 25-50%, 50-75% and 75-100%) of geophonic, biophonic, and anthropophonic events in each audio file, and (iii) provide more information about the source/type (e.g. geophony: wind, rain and river; biophony: birds, mammals and insects; anthropophony: car, plane and music) of each event. They further indicated the strength/intensity (on a scale from 0 to 3) of the identified geophonic and anthropophonic events and to provide for each biophonic event the number of different song/call/stridulation types visible on the spectrogram. Scoring per recording was associated with a confidence level on a scale from 1 to 5 (see Table  3 for an example of the identification table, inspired from protocol proposed in 65 ).

A total of 1351 minutes of sounds were manually described from 30 sites. Contributors from Europe (Austria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, and United Kingdom), the Americas (Canada, Colombia, Mexico, and United States of America), and Australia participated in the manual sound identification process. The number of audio files described varied slightly between participants (min: 9 minutes, max: 96, median: 48, mean: 45). Most audio files manually analyzed were recorded using AudioMoth (19 sites) and SM4 (8 sites).

Recordings were dominated by geophonic, biophonic and anthropophonic events ( i.e . time occurence >75% within 1-min files) in 20, 34 and 51% of the 1351 minutes of sounds recorded, respectively. The most detected geophonic sounds were from wind (26% of the total number of records, including 76 records with strong wind intensity) and rain (12%). Bird calls (63%) and insect stridulations (16%) were the most encountered biophonic sounds. Around one third of the recordings with bird calls contained at least four different bird call types. Noise from cars (61%) and people talking (26%) were responsible for most of the anthropophonic sounds.

Automatic sound event recognition

Automatic sound event recognition (SER) became an essential task due to the immense volume (around 20 Terabytes) of the Silent Cities dataset. We adopted the AudioSet ontology and dataset 66 , which covers a wide range of everyday sounds. We explored the viability of utilizing PANNs (pretrained audio neural networks) pretrained on the full AudioSet data (available online: https://github.com/qiuqiangkong/audioset_tagging_cnn ). The choice of a pretrained model was driven by its generality, as it has been exposed to a wide range of sounds, rendering it suitable for recognizing various audio events. In implementing our methodology, we employ a zero-shot inference approach. This involves applying the pretrained model directly to the entirety of the Silent Cities recordings without the need for additional training or fine-tuning. By doing so, we can benefit from the model’s generalization capabilities and avoid the time-consuming process of manual annotation. To categorize the diverse audio events within our dataset, we leverage the Audioset ontology and make necessary adaptations. Specifically, we classify the sounds into three main types: anthropophony (sounds produced by human activities), biophony (sounds originating from natural living organisms), and geophony (sounds resulting from non-living sources like weather or geological activities). The details of sound event grouping (i.e. audio tagging types) and corresponding labels are presented in Table  4 to provide clarity and consistency in the classification process. This grouping was also done to have the same categories than in the manual annotation described in the previous section.

Voice activity detection

As many recordings in Silent Cities were performed at home (e.g. on a balcony) during periods of containment, human voices are likely to be heard and speakers may be easily identified. In order to prevent issues related to privacy, we identified audio segments containing speech and only shared in open access the audio segments without speech. Voice activity detection was conducted using a general purpose voice activity detector (GP-VAD) that was pretrained on noisy, natural speech recordings in the wild 67 (available online: https://github.com/RicherMans/GPV ). We applied GP-VAD on a subset of 250000 one-minute recordings (approx. 24 weeks). Detections on this subset were considered as a ground truth speech label, that we set a reference to detect speech in the entirety of the Silent Cities dataset, for which we have a weak speech label from the Audioset SER (described in the previous paragraph). More precisely, we used the GP-VAD predictions on the subset to estimate a receiver-operator characteristic curve, and by setting a true positive rate of detecting 75 % of speech recordings, we obtain an average false positive rate of 34 % false alarms when using the Audioset SER. The corresponding threshold was applied on the raw probability from the Audioset SER on the entirety of the dataset, which eventually resulted in a rejection of 2,868,098 10-second audio segments, representing approximately 18 % of the dataset.

Data Records

The dataset 45 comprises the entire collection of acoustic recordings in Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC) format and associated metadata spread across several Comma Separated Value (CSV) tables (see Table  1 ). In order to protect privacy, only the preprocessed 10-second audio files with no speech identified are in direct open access on the OSF website ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/H285U ).

Technical Validation

To validate the Silent Cities dataset 45 , we verified the veracity of the metadata reported by the contributors and consolidated the acoustic recordings collections by checking for device malfunctions. We also verified whether the automated acoustic measurements conducted on the recordings were coherent with aural human observations. Finally, proof of validity of the dataset to reflect urban soundscape changes due to stay-at-home requirements is presented. The three steps of this technical validation are detailed below.

First, we verified the quality of the data by manually verifying that the recordings were correctly attributed to their dedicated site with the help of the contributors. We also ran a manual cleaning of information given by the contributors to remove any personal information, such as address or GPS coordinates, and to correct spelling mistakes to ensure interoperability between tables. In addition, we verified the conformity of the protocol by automatically extracting information from the recording collection ( i.e . frequency range, schedule of recordings) and reported observed modification of the protocol. We also automatically and manually verified the proper calculation of acoustic measurements and identified 10,724 files for which the calculation failed, probably due to file-related issues; these files were excluded from the dataset without affecting an entire site ( i.e . no sites were excluded because of this issue). Finally, we checked for recorder device malfunction by making sure of a temporal variation of the dB value for each recorder, only one site was identified with a flat dB response, leading to its exclusion from the dataset.

Second, we confirmed that the automated soundscape measurements informed and aligned with real soundscape events. More specifically, we investigated whether the acoustic indices and audio tagging categories were representative of geophonic, biophonic and anthropophonic events detected manually by the contributors. To do so, we conducted a series of univariate generalized linear mixed-effect models (GLMMs; ‘glmmTMB’ package 68 ,) in R v4.2.1. We tested independently the presence/absence of geophonic, biophonic and anthropophonic events within the 1351 1-min recordings ( i.e . response variables) in relation to acoustic indices and tagging types ( i.e . explanatory variables). Models were fitted with a binomial error distribution and a logit link function. We considered the identity of contributors as a random effect to avoid pseudoreplication. We also implemented a first-order autoregressive function to account for serial autocorrelation in residuals. Statistical assumptions were visually assessed using model diagnostics (i.e. Quantile-Quantile plot, residuals vs fitted plot) with the DHARMa package 69 . The acoustic indices were linked to geophonic, biophonic, or anthropophonic events, albeit to varying degrees (Fig.  2b ). For instance, the presence of biophonic events was associated with greater values of EAS and ECV and lower values of dB. Audio tagging categories effectively captured the intended soundscapes they aimed to portray (Fig.  2b ).

Third, we assessed the validity of the dataset in evaluating the impact of stay-at-home requirements on soundscapes. In a first step, we plotted the mean values of biophony and anthropophony levels (here defined as the maximum probability of having a biophonic and anthropophonic event in the 1-min recording, respectively) per site recorded at each hour (all protocols combined). As expected, we observed temporal patterns in biophony and anthropophony levels throughout the day (Fig.  2c ). Regardless of the time of day, biophony levels were greater during the period when leaving home was not permitted ( i.e . confinement level 2 or 3) compared to the other periods, while the opposite pattern was true for anthropophony. In a second step, we modeled changes in the values of acoustic indices as well as biophony and anthropophony levels ( i.e . response variables) in relation to the containment measures ( i.e . explanatory variables) using GLMMs with a beta distribution and a log link function. We aimed to provide a proof of validity and therefore limited the analysis to the expert protocol and all recordings collected at 8:00 am ( i.e . peak of biophonic and anthropophonic events; Fig.  2d ). We focused on NDSI for the acoustic index and the probability of bird calls and engine noise indicated by the automatic sound event recognition in the recordings as proxies of biophony and anthropophony levels, respectively. We added as covariates in the models: (i) Julian day to consider seasonal changes in biological and anthropogenical sounds, (ii) the first Principal Component Analysis axis depicting the level of anthropization in the landscape surrounding the recordings, and (iii) the climate type. Continuous covariates were scaled (mean = 0; SD = 1) to avoid convergence issues. We considered as random effects site identity nested within country to account for hierarchical clustering within data and recorder type, due to potential sensitivity differences between devices. Due to the limited data collected during the strictest containment period, we combined data from the two periods when leaving home was not permitted. The same approach as outlined previously was employed for model validation (note that the validity of the statistical assumptions, assessed using Quantile-Quantile and residuals vs fitted plots, was only partially met for the engine noise model). Full models were more informative than the null ones with differences in Akaike Information Criterion scores > 500. Finally, we conducted Tukey’s post hoc multiple comparison test to investigate pairwise differences in NDSI values and biophony and anthropophony levels between the three COVID-19 containment measures investigated. Overall, we found that COVID-19 lockdown had positive effects on NDSI values and biophony levels and negative effects on anthropophony levels. After accounting for seasonal and landscape effects, our models suggest that NDSI values and biophony levels were significantly greater during the periods when leaving home was not recommended or permitted, compared to the period with no measures (Fig.  2d ; Table  2 ). There were also higher biophony levels during the period when leaving home was not permitted than during the period with when leaving home was not recommended. The opposite patterns were found for the anthropophony levels, with significantly lower values measured during the periods when leaving home was not permitted compared to the other periods, albeit the differences were of smaller magnitude (Fig.  2d ; Table  5 ). Altogether, our preliminary analysis revealed potential changes in soundscape patterns that can be attributed to containment policies, these changes being above expected differences due to climate.

Usage Notes

The Silent Cities dataset could be considered for multiple applications. In the specific fields of bio/ecoacoustics, it could be used to study the effect of containment measures on urban soundscapes 29 , to improve the performance of acoustic indices in urban environments 70 and to gain a deeper understanding of the interplay between biophony and urban environment characteristics 71 . In the field of machine learning (machine listening, deep learning), it will allow the testing of difficult cases of generalization in sound event recognition from one site to another, due to the variety of sampled sites 72 . In the interdisciplinary field of territorial sciences (e.g. economic geography, territorial economics, spatial planning, urban engineering sciences), it will make it possible to analyze the links between the levels of economic activity of a city and the levels of noise pollution. Finally, for environmental sciences interested in well-being and relationships between humans and non-humans within urban socio-ecosystems (e.g. environmental and health psychology, landscape design, environmental geography, etc.), this dataset opens up opportunities for the qualitative study of individual and subjective perceptions of the different soundscape configurations collected. More broadly, we aim for this international and collaborative dataset to be usefully mobilized in any research working to make better coexistence between humans and non-humans possible, and thus working to maintain the Earth’s habitability conditions for all of them.

The Silent Cities dataset 45 is available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International waiver (CC-BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ). The CC-BY-4.0 waiver facilitates the discovery, re-use, and citation of the dataset. When using all or part of the dataset, we require anyone to cite both the dataset 45 and this publication.

Code availability

The recording manipulation and acoustic measurements were run using Python, https://github.com/brain-bzh/SilentCities and the analyses were run on R https://github.com/agasc/SilentCities-R .

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Aimee Johanssen for the English editing of the manuscript. We also would like to thank Garett and Marlow Pignotti for testing of the appropriate SM4 gain level in context of high anthropophony. JSPF was supported by the Leverhulme Trust through an early-career fellowship (award reference: ECF-2020-571). Finally, we dedicate this article to our colleague Didier Galop, one of the contributors to the Silent Cities dataset, who recently passed away during a field mission and whose unwavering support enabled us to launch this project. Since then, “even brook trout get the blues” in the Pyrenees.

Author information

These authors contributed equally: Samuel Challéat, Nicolas Farrugia, Jérémy S. P. Froidevaux, Amandine Gasc, Nicolas Pajusco.

Authors and Affiliations

UMR5602 GEODE (Géographie de l’environnement), CNRS, Université Toulouse 2 - Jean Jaurès, 31058, Toulouse, France

Samuel Challéat, Albane Burens, Didier Galop & Magali Philippe

UMR6285 Lab-STICC (Laboratoire des Sciences et Techniques de l’information de la Communication et de la Connaissance), IMT Atlantique, CNRS, 29238, Brest, France

Nicolas Farrugia & Nicolas Pajusco

University of Stirling, Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, FK9 4LA, Stirling, United Kingdom

Jérémy S. P. Froidevaux

UMR7204 CESCO (Centre d’Écologie et des Sciences de la Conservation), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, 75005, Paris, France

University of Bristol, School of Biological Sciences, Life Sciences Building, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom

Jérémy S. P. Froidevaux, Penelope C. Fialas & Luke Romaine

UMR7263 IMBE (Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d’Écologie marine et continentale), Aix-Marseille Université, Avignon Université, CNRS, IRD, 13080, Aix-en-Provence, France

Amandine Gasc, Cécile H. Albert & Adrien Charbonneau

Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA

Amandine Gasc

UMR6613 LAUM (Laboratoire d’Acoustique de l’Université du Mans), Institut d’Acoustique - Graduate School (IA-GS), CNRS, Le Mans Université, 72085, Le Mans, France

Nicolas Pajusco

Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK

• Carlos R. Abrahams

School of Natural Resources and Environment, Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, & Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA

Orlando Acevedo-Charry

Environmental Sound Collection, Instituto de Investigación de recursos biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Boyacá, Colombia

Orlando Acevedo-Charry & Eliana Barona Cortés

University of Braslia, Department of Zoology, Campus Darcy Ribeiro s/n, Asa Norte, Braslia, DF, Brazil

Ludmilla M. S. Aguiar & Ricardo B. Machado

School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

Zachary R. Ahlin, Henry Bates, Ally Bradley, Emily Buckner, Angela Chappa Larrea, Lauren Foster-Shaner, Madeline E. Hallet, Sierra E. Herzberger, Isabelle Hoecherl, JoMari M. A. Moreno, Laura Prugh, Mimi Reed, Alyssa M. Ryser, Marcela Todd, Yanchen Wu & Selena Xie

NABU Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Breisgau, Deutschland

Franz Aiple

Terrestrial Ecology Group, Departamento de Ecologa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Irene Alcocer, Diego Llusia & Larissa S. M. Sugai

Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Cambio Global, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal

Ana Sofia Alves

CIBIO (Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos), InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal

Francisco Amorim, Luis P. da Silva, Sonia A. F. Ferreira, Diogo F. Ferreira, Leili Khalatbari, Vanessa Mata, Lorenzo Quaglietta & Ana M. Serronha

CIBIO (Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos), InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal

Francisco Amorim & Fabio Marcolin

BIOPOLIS (Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning), CIBIO (Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos), Vairão, Portugal

Francisco Amorim, Pedro M. Araújo, Luis P. da Silva, Sonia A. F. Ferreira, Diogo F. Ferreira, Leili Khalatbari, Vanessa Mata & Ana M. Serronha

Núcleo de Pesquisa Flora Tristán: representações, conflitos e direitos. Instituto de Ciência Poltica, Universidade de Braslia (UnB), Braslia, DF, Brasil

Ludmila B. Andrade

University of Coimbra, MARE (Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre), ARNET (Aquatic Research Network), Department of Life Sciences, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal

Pedro M. Araújo, Lara R. Cerveira, Ivo dos Santos, Ana Margarida Ferreira, Vitor H. Paiva & Jorge M. Pereira

cE3c (Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes), CHANGE (Global Changes and Sustainability Institute), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal

Fernando Ascensão & Ricardo Jorge Lopes

Parks Canada Agency, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada

Serge Aucoin & Brenda Shepherd

Bat Conservation Switzerland, Zürichbergstrasse, Zürich, Switzerland

Elias Bader & Kim Krähenbühl-Künzli

Wildlife Consulting & Equipment S.R.L, Sachaca, Arequipa, Peru

Diego Balbuena

UMR1201 DYNAFOR (Dynamiques et écologie des paysages agriforestiers), INRAE, Université de Toulouse, 31326, Castanet-Tolosan, France

Luc Barbaro

Laboratório de Ciência Aplicada à Conservação da Biodiversidade, Department of Zoology, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil

Eder Barbier & Enrico Bernard

Programa de Doctorado Territorio, Espacio y Sociedad de la Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Luis Emilio Barrie

EcoBioAcústicaLab, Departamento de Biologa y Qumica, Facultad de Ciencias Básicas, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile

José L. Bartheld & Felipe N. Moreno-Gómez

LPO (Ligue pour la protection des oiseaux) Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Lyon, France

Alice Baudouin

School of Science, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia

Christa Beckmann

Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia

School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, 3216, Australia

Christa Beckmann & Peter A. Biro

Art and Design Department, University of the Highlands and Islands, Orkney, UK

Amy Beeston

Center for Global Soundscapes, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

Kristen M. Bellisario, Bryan C. Pijanowski & David Savage

Department of Zoology, University of Seville, Seville, Spain

Juan F. Beltrán & Eduardo Rodrguez-Rodrguez

Post-Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Brazil

Raone Beltrão-Mendes

Passerelle Arts Sciences Technologies, Albi, France

Thierry Besche

CEN Occitanie (Conservatoire d’espaces naturels d’Occitanie), Montpellier, France

Cathie Boléat

Forest Research Centre, School of Agriculture, University of Lisbon, Tapada da Ajuda, Lisbon, Portugal

Paulo Branco, Sofia Conde, Gonçalo Duarte, Inês Gomes Marques, Patricia Mara Rodrguez-González, José M. Santos & Vera Zina

Bat Conservation Trust, London, UK

Philip A. Briggs & Penelope C. Fialas

ICMBio (Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade), Boa Vista, Roraima, Brasil

Sylvio Romério Briglia-Ferreira

Department of Genetic Research, Institute for Biological Research “Sinisa Stankovic” - National Institute of Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

Ivana Budinski

Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada

Rachel T. Buxton

Departamento de Ecologa y Gestión Ambiental, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay

Andrés Canavero

Bioinsight, Lda, Odivelas, Portugal

Paulo Cardoso

Keller Science Action Center, Science & Education, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA

Farah Carrasco-Rueda & Michelle E. Thompson

Biodiversa Foundation US, Fundación Biodiversa Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia

Paula C. Caycedo

CPIE (Centre permanent d’initiatives pour l’environnement) Seignanx et Adour, Saint-Martin-de-Seignanx, France

Frédéric Cazaban

Eurometropolis of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France

Mina Charnaux

Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

Pooja Choksi & Sarika Khanwilkar

Sección de Entomologa, Colecciones Biológicas, Centro Colecciones y Gestión de Especies, Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Villa de Leyva, Boyacá, Colombia

Julián Clavijo-Bustos

Grupo de estudio en Aves GEA-UT, Universidad del Tolima, Ibagué, Tolima, Colombia

Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA

Zuania Colón-Piñeiro

Civil Engineering for Research and Innovation for Sustainability, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal

Maria João Costa

Associação Vita Nativa - Conservação do Ambiente, Olhão, Portugal

António Cotão

Faculty of Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

Marina D. A. Scarpelli & Susan Fuller

Department of Creative Technology, Bournemouth University, Poole, UK

Laboratory of Insect Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Biology, University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland

Krzysztof Deoniziak

UR3456 LECD (Laboratoire éthologie cognition développement), Université Paris Nanterre, 92001, Nanterre, France

Tudor I. Draganoiu

CWS (Canada Wildlife Services), Environment and Climate Change Canada, Québec Region, Québec, QC, Canada

Bruno Drolet

Laboratory of Bioacoustics, Post graduate program of Vertebrate Biology, Pontifical Catholic University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Marina H. L. Duarte

School of Science, Engineering, and Environment, University of Salford, Manchester, UK

University of Applied Sciences HTW Dresden, Dresden, Germany

Frank Dziock

Experimental Ecologies Group, Sussex Humanities Lab, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK

Alice Eldridge

Reef Pulse S.A.S., Sainte-Clotilde (La Réunion), France

Simon Elise

UMR9220 ENTROPIE (Écologie marine tropicale dans les Océans Pacifique et Indien), Université de La Réunion, IRD, CNRS, IFREMER, Université de la Nouvelle-Calédonie, 97744, Saint-Denis (La Réunion), France

Simon Elise & Matthieu Le Corre

Environmental Sustainability Research Centre, University of Derby, Derby, UK

David R. Elliott

Département de Géosciences, École Normale Supérieure, 75005, Paris, France

Arthur Enguehard

School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK

Darren M. Evans, James J. N. Kitson, Kirsten E. Miller, Darren P. O’Connell & Fredric M. Windsor

Guimarães Landscape Laboratory, Guimarães, Portugal

Daniel M. Ferreira

Laboratory of Applied Ecology, CITAB (Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environment and Biological Sciences), University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal

Cascais Municipality, Cascais, Portugal

Ana Margarida Ferreira

UMR5175 CEFE (Centre d’écologie fonctionnelle et évolutive), Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, EPHE, 34090, Montpellier, France

Bárbara Freitas

Museum of Nature Hamburg, Leibniz Institute for the Study of Biodiversity Change, Hamburg, Germany

Nicholas R. Friedman

Environmental Informatics Section, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Onna, Okinawa, Japan

National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA

Daniel Garside

UMR6554 LETG (Littoral - Environnement - Télédétection - Géomatique), CNRS, Nantes Université, 44312, Nantes, France

Laurent Godet

Instituto de Ecologa, A. C. Biblioteca de Sonidos de las Aves de Mexico, Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico

Fernando González-Garca

Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity Research, Institute of Wildlife Biology and Game Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, 1180, Vienna, Austria

Paul Griesberger, Jennifer Hatlauf, Robin Sandfort & Stéphanie C. Schai-Braun

Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, India

Bilal Habib, Sarika Khanwilkar & Sougata Sadhukhan

Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA

Meena M. Haribal

UMR7205 ISYEB (Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, 75005, Paris, France

Sylvain Haupert & Jérôme Sueur

Departamento de Biologa-IVAGRO, Universidad de Cádiz, Campus Ro San Pedro, Puerto Real, Spain

José M. Herrera

MED (Mediterranean Institute for Agriculture, Environment and Development), University of Évora, Évora, Portugal

José M. Herrera, J. Tiago Marques, Slvia Pereira Barreiro, Vanesa Rivera & Bruno M. Silva

Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Brasil

Frederico Hintze Oliveira

Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Bournemouth University, Poole, UK

Kathy H. Hodder, Amanda H. Korstjens & Adrian C. Newton

Department of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

Mark F. Hulme

Department of Biology, Furman University, Greenville, SC, USA

Emilia Hyland & John E. Quinn

School of Life Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India

Akash Jaiswal

UMR5193 LISST-CIEU (Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire Solidarités, Sociétés, Territoires), CNRS, Université Toulouse 2 - Jean Jaurès, 31058, Toulouse, France

Laurent Jégou

School of Art and Creative Industries, Teesside University, Middlesbrough, UK

Steve Jones

UMR7263 IMBE (Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d’Écologie marine et continentale), Aix-Marseille Université, Avignon Université, CNRS, IRD, Nouméa, New Caledonia

Hervé Jourdan

Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic

Tomáš Jůnek

Mohitban Society, Tehran, Iran

Leili Khalatbari

Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology Department, Project Dhvani, Columbia University, Wildlife Institute of India, New York, NY, USA

Sarika Khanwilkar

Cetalingua Project, Tampa, FL, USA

Natalija Lace

Office National des Fôrets, Maisons-Alfort, France

Sébastien Laguet

University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

Hedwig Lankau

Sylvio Romério Briglia-Ferreira’s, i.e. the Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio), Boa Vista, Roraima, Brasil

Thiago O. Laranjeiras

Locus Sonus Vitae, École Supérieure d’Art d’Aix-en-Provence, Aix-en-Provence, France

Gregoire Lauvin & Peter F. Sinclair

Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

Samuel Lavin

IES Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Madrid, Spain

Monica León

University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA

Judah J. Levenson

Oceans Forward, Boston, MA, USA

Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czechia

Pavel Linhart

BioPhonia, Oletta, France

Juliette Linossier

The Nature Conservancy, Bogotá, Colombia

Diego J. Lizcano

Laboratório de Herpetologia e Comportamento Animal, Departamento de Ecologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Campus Samambaia, Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil

Diego Llusia

School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

Marty Lockett

Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

Pedro B. Lopes

MHNC-UP (Museu de História Natural e da Ciência da Universidade do Porto), University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

Ricardo Jorge Lopes

Biodiversity Research Institute (CSIC - Oviedo University - Principality of Asturias), Oviedo University, Mieres, Spain

José Vicente López-Bao

BiBio Research Group, Natural Sciences Museum of Granollers, Granollers, Spain

Adrià López-Baucells, David López-Bosch & Xavier Puig-Montserrat

Department of Ecology and Wildlife Management, University of Kisangani, Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Claude Mande

CEF (Centro de Estudos Florestais), Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, Lisbon, Portugal

Fabio Marcolin & Pedro Segurado

Colección Ornitológica, Universidad del Quindo, Programa de Biologa, Armenia, Quindo, Colombia

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Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla de Baz, México

Sociedade Portuguesa de Vida Selvagem, Braga, Portugal

Carina B. Marques

CHANGE (Global Change and Sustainability Institute), Institute for Advanced Studies and Research, Universidade de Évora, Évora, Portugal

J. Tiago Marques

Museu de Ciéncies Naturals de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Eloisa Matheu-Cortada

ENES Bioacoustics Research Lab, UMR5292 CRNL (Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon), Université de Saint-Étienne, CNRS, Inserm, 42023, Saint-Étienne, France

Vincent Médoc

Department of Ecology, The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden

Kirsten E. Miller

Groupe Mammalogique Breton, Sizun, France

Basile Montagne

University of Freiburg, Faculty of Biology, Geobotany, Freiburg, Germany

Sandra Mueller, Michael Scherer-Lorenzen & Taylor Shaw

Colección Oológica Cornelis Johannes Marinkelle, Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Villa de Leyva, Boyacá, Colombia

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Contributions

S.C. introduced the concept; S.C., A.G., J.S.P.F. and N.F. designed the protocol; S.C., A.G., J.S.P.F., N.P., N.F. and the Silent Cities Consortium collected the soundscape recordings; A.G., N.P. managed the data; A.G., J.S.P.F., N.P. and N.F. conducted the data analysis; A.G. and J.S.P.F. conducted the technical validation. N.F. was in charge of high performance computing; S.C., A.G., J.S.P.F., N.P. and N.F. wrote the initial draft; all authors including the Silent Cities Consortium reviewed the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Samuel Challéat or Nicolas Farrugia .

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Challéat, S., Farrugia, N., Froidevaux, J.S.P. et al. A dataset of acoustic measurements from soundscapes collected worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sci Data 11 , 928 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03611-7

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Received : 21 December 2023

Accepted : 03 July 2024

Published : 27 August 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03611-7

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