Japanese shrine rebuilt by Ghost of Tsushima fans bans tourists after “unforgivable” act

An iconic Japanese shrine that Ghost of Tsushima fans helped repair has now banned all tourists after an “unforgivable” act was committed on its grounds.

Watazumi Shrine is an iconic Shinto shrine that is located on the island of Tsushima, the main location of Sucker Punch Productions critically acclaimed Ghost of Tsushima video game. Although this exact shrine isn’t featured in the game, fans did famously help raise $260k in 2021 to help rebuild the shrine after a torii gate collapsed during a typhoon. 

Since then, the Watazumi Shrine has been a popular place for domestic and international tourists to visit. However, visiting the religious grounds will now not be possible for anyone besides parishioners and worshippers. 

Tsushima island shrine bans all tourists

According to an official announcement posted on Instagram, the decision to ban all tourists came after “a grave and unforgivable act of disrespect [was] committed by foreigner(s).” As for what the “unforgivable act” was remains uncertain, but we do know that it transpired on March 22, just days after the Japanese government had addressed concerns over the vandalism of places of worship. 

As previously reported by Tokyo Weekender, priests have been dealing with tourists smoking, littering, using ethnic slurs, and singing and dancing. Back in June 2024, Watazumi Shrine caused a lot of controversy after it banned South Korean tourists from entering the shrine.

Well, starting from March 23, entry to the shrine grounds will be prohibited to all domestic and international tourists – besides parishioners and worshippers.

The official machine-translated post mentions that staff members of the shrine have had to put up with “unbearable mental anguish” caused by the sacred grounds being desecrated, which has led to them feeling that the shrine is in jeopardy. 

“The way in which inbound tourism is destroying the places, things, and people that Japanese people hold dear is nothing less than the collapse of Japanese culture. We would like to express our regret here and will take action to protect the shrine and the hearts of the people.”