NIKKO, Japan -- Masaki Hirano, a hotelier in Japan's historic city of Nikko, is facing a wave of cancellations from guests in Tokyo.
Due to begin on Wednesday, a government plan offering 1.3 trillion yen ($12.6 billion) of travel subsidies aimed at helping coronavirus-battered local economies was scaled down last week. A surge of infections in Tokyo -- cases hit a daily high of nearly 300 on Friday -- prompted the government to exclude residents of the capital and those traveling there from using the initiative.