A small town that sparked fury last year when it cut down its iconic trees to tackle overtourism has admitted the plan has not worked.

09:55, Mon, Jan 5, 2026 Updated: 09:57, Mon, Jan 5, 2026

White birch trees and Mount Yotei at Niseko, Hokkaido

A small town that cut down its iconic trees to tackle overtourism has admitted it has not worked (Image: Getty)

A picturesque town that draws millions of tourists annually and enacted a radical move last year in a bid to tackle overtourism has admitted its plan has not worked. The small town of Biei in central Hokkaido, Japan, is heralded for its picturesque rolling hills, patchwork fields of crops and flowers in summer, and its white birch trees.

It made headlines last January when the authorities decided to cut down a row of photogenic trees. Home to just over 9,600 people, Biei is known as one of Japan's "blue water spots", with the Biei Shirogane Blue Pond a popular winter tourist attraction.

But another major attraction was its cluster of white birch trees near the town's Seven Stars Tree, which over the years became an Instagram hotspot. In 2024, the number of tourists, including those from abroad, reached an eyewatering 2.68 million. However, this invasion of tourists to the area resulted in clogged roads and trampled fields, infuriating local farmers and landowners.

Aerial view of beautiful of Shirogane blue pond or Aoike in Biei town in Hokkaido, Japan

Biei Shirogane Blue Pond is a popular winter tourist attraction (Image: Getty)

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Alongside overtourism, the farmers also complained that the trees cast shadows on their nearby crops, robbing them of sunlight and decreasing yields. As a result of the complaints, the town announced that it would cut down the trees.

The move was met with fury online, with one commenter saying, "To withstand the wind and snow only to be felled by tourism," while others suggested that imposing a fee to view the attraction would have been a better solution. 

However, one year later, it appears the move has had little impact on the flow of visitors. According to Japan Today, on December 6, a bus-load of tourists arrived at a nearby car park, and ignored the stumps of the felled trees and instead headed for the Seven Stars Tree, a tree made famous after appearing on cigarette packaging. The tourists took their photos and left the area about 10 minutes later.

Panoramic Flower Gardens Shikisai hill in Biei, Japan

In summer Biei is known for its patchwork fields of crops and flowers (Image: Getty)

Over the Christmas period, Biei's Christmas Tree in another part of the town was a popular tourist spot, and just as crowded as in previous years. Security guards armed with whistles were employed to control traffic, while tourists were often seen trampling farmland near the closest station, according to the Biei Tourism Association.

To address the problem, the association launched a pilot operation of shuttle buses between the tree and JR Biei Station last month. It has also increased the number of security guards this winter.

However, "it will be difficult to resolve this fundamentally without putting restrictions on the number of buses and cars," said Takeo Izumi, the association's deputy secretary general.