TOKYO: The family of Japanese Emperor Naruhito has decided not to visit a villa during this summer due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, it was learned Tuesday.

The Emperor, Empress Masako and their daughter, Princess Aiko, usually take a trip in summer to the Suzaki Imperial villa in the city of Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, or the Nasu Imperial villa in the town of Nasu in the eastern prefecture of Tochigi.

This year, however, the family canceled such a trip because it would require a large number of people, including staff officials and security guards, to travel together, and local citizens would gather along streets to welcome the family, creating the risk of coronavirus infection, according to aides.

Emperor Emeritus Akihito and Empress Emerita Michiko will also skip a villa visit and instead spend the summer at their residence in Tokyo’s Minato Ward.

JIJI Press