Tourism in Japan explained

Tourism in Japan is a major industry and contributor to the Japanese economy. Foreigners visit Japan to see natural wonders, cities, historic landmarks, and entertainment venues. Japanese people seek similar attractions, as well as recreation and vacation areas. In 2019, Japan attracted 31.88 million international tourists.[1] Japan welcomed 2.78 million visitor arrivals in February 2024, surpassing 2019 levels.[2]

Japan has 21 World Heritage Sites, including Himeji Castle, Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto and Nara. Popular attractions for foreigners include Tokyo and Osaka, Mount Fuji, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, ski resorts such as Niseko in Hokkaido, Okinawa, riding the Shinkansen and taking advantage of Japan's hotel and hotspring network.

The 2017 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report ranked Japan 4th out of 141 countries overall, which was the highest in Asia. Japan gained relatively high scores in almost all of the featured aspects, such as health and hygiene, safety and security, cultural resources and business travel.[3] In the 2021 edition of the report, now called Travel and Tourism Development Index, Japan reached the 1st place.[4]

History

The origins of early traditions of visits to picturesque sites are unclear, but an early sight-seeing excursion was Matsuo Bashō's 1689 trip to the then "far north" of Japan, which occurred not long after Hayashi Razan categorized the Three Views of Japan in 1643. During the Edo era of Japan, from around 1600 to the Meiji Restoration in 1867, travel was regulated within the country through the use of shukuba or post stations, towns where travelers had to present appropriate documentation. Despite these restrictions, porter stations and horse stables, as well as places for lodging and food were available on well-traveled routes. During this time, Japan was a closed country to foreigners, so no foreign tourism existed in Japan.

Following the Meiji Restoration and the building of a national railroad network, tourism became more of an affordable prospect for domestic citizens and visitors from foreign countries could enter Japan legally. As early as 1887, government officials recognized the need for an organized system of attracting foreign tourists; the, which aimed to coordinate the players in tourism, was established that year with Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi's blessing. Its early leaders included Shibusawa Eiichi and Ekida Takashi. Another major milestone in the development of the tourism industry in Japan was the 1907 passage of the Hotel Development Law, as a result of which the Railways Ministry began to construct publicly owned hotels throughout Japan.[5]

For much of post-war period, Japan has been an exceptionally unattractive tourist destination for its population and GDP size. According to the IMF, WTO, and OECD, from 1995 to 2014, it was by far the least visited country.[6] As of 2013, Japan was one of the least visited countries in the OECD on a per capita basis.[7] Within six years however, the number of international visitors has more than tripled, reaching a peak of 31.9 million visitors in 2019.[8]

Current status

Domestic tourism remains a vital part of Japanese economy and Japanese culture. Across the nation, Japanese children in many middle schools see the highlight of their years as a visit to Tokyo Tower, Yomiuriland, Tokyo Disneyland, Sensō-ji, and/or Tokyo Skytree, and many high school students often visit Okinawa or Hokkaido. The extensive rail network together with domestic flights sometimes in planes with modifications to favor the relatively short distances involved in intra-Japan travel allows efficient and speedy transport. International tourism plays a smaller role in the Japanese economy compared to other developed countries; in 2013, international tourist receipts was 0.3% of Japan's GDP, while the corresponding figure was 1.3% for the United States and 2.3% for France. In 2019, the value was up to 1.0% of GDP, driven by an increase in international tourism, while the country's GDP has remained stable.[9] [10]

Tourists from South Korea have made up the largest number of inbound tourists several times in the past. In 2010, their 2.4 million arrivals made up 27% of the tourists visiting Japan.[11]

Travelers from China have been the highest spenders in Japan by country, spending an estimated 196.4 billion yen (US$2.4 billion) in 2011, or almost a quarter of total expenditure by foreign visitors, according to data from the Japan Tourism Agency.[12]

From 2016 to 2020, Japanese government hoped to receive 40 million foreign tourists every year by 2020.[13] According to the Japan National Tourism Organization in 2017, 3 out of 4 foreign tourists came from other parts of East Asia, namely South Korea, mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.[14]

Japanese film, TV, video game, and manga/anime industries, who lead a role in driving tourism to Japan. In surveys held by Statista between 2019 and 2020, 24.2% of tourists from the United States, said they were motivated to visit Japan because of Japanese popular culture.[15]

Overtourism

Following the easing of COVID-19-era travel restrictions, 2024 is on track to be a record-breaking year for the number of overseas tourists.[16] This tourism boom can be attributed in part to the weakening Japanese yen. The unprecedented number of foreign tourists has led to claims that some parts of Japan are suffering from overtourism.[17]

In response to this surge, officials in some parts of Japan have introduced measures to counter its negative effects. For example, Yamanashi Prefecture has set a cap of daily climbers of Mount Fuji at 4,000 people and began charging an entrance fee of ¥2,000. Also in Yamanashi Prefecture, a mesh barrier was set up to block a view of Mount Fuji behind a Lawson convenience store in Fujikawaguchiko due to tourist-caused disturbances in the area.[18]

As of 2024, some Japanese officials have considered instituting a two-tiered pricing system which would have foreign tourists pay more than residents at certain tourist attractions in order to counter the effects of overtourism.[19] [20]

Contribution to the national crises

Following the triple meltdown of Fukushima nuclear reactors in Fukushima Prefecture caused by the earthquake and tsunami, the number of foreign visitors to Japan declined for the first time since 2009. In September 2011, some 539,000 foreign tourisms visited Japan, 25 percent down compared with the same month in 2010. This decline was largely attributed to the natural disasters including Fukushima nuclear accident; also the stronger yen made a visit to Japan more expensive. In October 2011, the Japan Tourism Agency announced a plan to give 10,000 round-trip air tickets to Japan to encourage visitors to come and to boost tourism. However, on December 26, 2011, the Agency reported on their site that the "Fly to Japan! Project", which would have given out 10,000 round-trip tickets to Japan, had not been approved by the government for fiscal year 2012.[21]

By 2012, free tickets would be offered if the winners would write online about their experiences in Japan. They also would need to answer some questions about how they felt while visiting Japan after the triple disaster and how interest in tourism in Japan could be renewed. About US$15 million would be spent on this program.[22] [23] International tourism inflows in Japan had recovered to pre-2011 levels.[24]

In early 2020, Japan received only 4.1 million foreign tourists, as many countries tightened travel restrictions due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. This was the first time visitor statistics had fallen since the Great Recession in 2008.[25] In January and September 2021, tourism in Japan had also further dipped to 245,862 foreign visitors, which was a 88% decrease as compared to 2020. In October 2021, as the country lifted the fourth state of emergency up and ahead of the endemic phase, the Japanese government announced that many domestic visitors would be only resumed and waived from the pandemic, in a move to reopen domestic travel with the introduction of vaccinated travel lanes.

In late November 2021, amid the spread of a highly transmissible COVID-19 Omicron variant, many countries including Japan tightened travel restrictions, with some governments banning travel completely to curb transmission.

In September 2022, the Japanese government announced that visa requirements from some countries would be waived from October 2022, in a move to reopen international travel after the pandemic border restrictions.[26] [27] Prior to the pandemic, Japan did not require tourist visas for 68 countries and regions.

Tourism statistics

These are the top 35 nationalities that visited Japan from 2017 to 2024.[28]

Country/TerritoryTotal
4/20242023202220212020201920182017
2,999,9626,958,4941,012,75118,947694,4765,584,5977,538,952 7,140,200
1,938,7024,202,434331,0975,016487,9394,890,6024,757,258 4,564,100
1,861,6872,425,157189,12542,2391,069,2569,594,3948,380,034 7,355,800
808,0172,114,402269,2851,252346,0202,290,7922,207,804 2,231,500
799,5492,045,854323,51320,026219,3072,187,5571,939,719 1,756,732
466,298995,558198,0372,758219,8301,318,9771,132,160 987,100
333,698613,06288,6483,265143,508621,771552,440 496,100
269,313622,293126,8425,625109,110613,114503,976 424,200
233,865573,916284,11326,586152,559495,051389,004 308,900
180,193415,71274,0951,83176,573501,592468,360 439,500
179,496429,382119,7235,20977,724412,779396,852 352,200
178,426591,267131,96985755,273492,252437,280 404,100
175,464425,87455,8773,53653,365375,262330,600305,591
150,543321,48257,4967,29451,024424,279333,979310,499
123,016277,43652,7827,02443,102336,333304,896268,605
108,846233,41045,7485,19729,785236,544215,336195,606
72,941166,39454,3148,83126,931175,896154,029134,371
63,683152,30523,6833,52713,691162,769150,060125,864
41,74794,6849,1521,1249,52871,74568,44863,440
39,611115,87315,9263,05311,741130,243118,90199,814
37,59678,97812,1071,40416,07094,11573,20864,873
37,19683,30275,20011,64817,19151,57744,29739,950
29,14974,48612,0641,8608,48179,47972,06963,041
29,04674,2521,3595412,234121,197108,694115,304
27,47641,96510,3243,72322,260120,04394,81077,251
27,21350,5709,4362,7316,88847,57544,20142,207
24,91545,81522,7631,53110,88430,97724,41822,915
24,03253,3958,9171,3876,03653,90852,09947,154
18,70340,6345,7451,3503,99638,53434,70628,727
18,47331,1987,1291,1612,88622,72419,76219,123
17,50439,91619,2671,6857,11831,51327,64723,365
16,88945,1437,6736192,31544,21439,19332,758
16,44936,74221,5363,1278,91828,38027,78927,904
16,35539,2457,9001,1127,62253,83653,82250,805
13,45334,3526,6111,1224,07439,24534,38732,054
12,84930,7805,4037944,78032,89329,16325,235
11,49127,8123,1767283,17932,34926,50623,442
11,08926,3605,0258883,60527,53024,18721,035
10,95227,06713,6187847,42028,49221,69617,857
10,91822,9854,4588203,27039,38720,31918,591
9,77221,5413,7365573,62024,83822,56920,786
8,41221,4044,6087364,85929,43727,11625,310
8,08515,3162,3765521,40914,83712,25010,390
7,85421,13211,4234,2846,14517,20815,80213,729
7,64519,55911,9811,7894,44415,17413,97112,878
7,36113,8081,9022763,38113,37014,08911,027
7,22113,1772,1987984,22023,80523,69218,610
5,51113,9582,4877531,67914,35612,25511,114
4,93711,3162,5111,0341,30212,69610,4409,148
4,9229,9691,8697441,0919,4947,9686,703
4,2639,5981,4954761,09811,7459,9668,795
4,02810,2702,7052037708,8917,7827,106
3,84912,3802,4031,03911,1527,4037,5547,587
3,6797,1452,1527467205,2525,1616,457
3,6076,3601,0243386276,3245,1064,529
3,5659,3572,5618381,62319,5439,7939,057
3,4768,5711,5116018905,4314,3914,125
3,0846,7493,7951,0701,46610,1768,4587,094
2,8926,3591,8041501,1696,1545,9875,398
2,7428,07551571,5671,2905,2435,5304,380
2,7276,2261,2862726725,2604,4984,177
2,4346,2921,159237424,8663,6263,699
2,1125,1951,1962541,1916,0225,0484,549
1,8024,8162,2231,1871,2946,3454,9424,283
Total (all countries)11,601,48625,066,3503,832,110245,8624,115,82831,882,04931,191,856 28,690,900

Major tourist destinations

Hokkaido

Tōhoku region

Kantō region

Chūbu region

Kansai region

Chūgoku region

Shikoku

Kyushu and Okinawa

See also

References

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: International tourism, number of arrivals - Japan | Data .
  2. Web site: Loh . Matthew . Jimmy Kimmel says his trip to Japan last week made him realize that the US is a 'filthy and disgusting country' . Business Insider . April 3, 2024.
  3. Web site: The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2017 . World Economic Forum . April 2017.
  4. Web site: Travel & Tourism Development Index 2021 - Rebuilding for a Sustainable and Resilient Future . May 2022 . World Economic Forum . January 19, 2024.
  5. Book: Leheny, David Richard. The Rules of Play: National Identity and the Shaping of Japanese Leisure. 59. Cornell University Press. 2003. 0-8014-4091-2. registration.
  6. Web site: International tourism, number of arrivals - United States, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Canada Data. data.worldbank.org. 2020-03-16.
  7. Web site: The Countries Where You're Surrounded By Tourists. Silver. Nate. 2014-08-18. FiveThirtyEight. en-US. 2020-03-16.
  8. Web site: 2023 Visitor Arrivals & Japanese Overseas Travelers(Compared to 2019) . Japan National Tourism Organization . 17 January 2024. 19 January 2024.
  9. Web site: International tourism, receipts (current US$) Data. data.worldbank.org. January 19, 2024.
  10. Web site: GDP (current US$) Data. data.worldbank.org. January 19, 2024.
  11. News: Dickie. Mure. Tourists flock to Japan despite China spat. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210221236/https://www.ft.com/content/6a76579a-2945-11e0-ab2f-00144feab49a. December 10, 2022. subscription. live. March 16, 2012. Financial Times. January 26, 2011.
  12. Web site: Tokyu Group in steadfast pursuit of Chinese tourists. TTGmice. April 18, 2013.
  13. Web site: Japan to offer 10-year multi-entry visas for Chinese as part of tourism push . . May 17, 2016 . May 17, 2016 . Bhattacharjya, Samhati.
  14. Web site: Japan Tourism Agency aims to draw more Western tourists amid boom in Asian visitors . February 6, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20190107231243/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/02/06/national/japan-tourism-agency-aims-draw-western-tourists-amid-boom-asian-visitors/ . January 7, 2019. Japan National Tourism Organization.
  15. Web site: Anime industry in Japan - statistics and facts. Statista. 26 February 2021.
  16. Web site: 2024-05-15 . Japan visitors exceed 3 million for second straight month, tourism agency says . 2024-07-11 . The Japan Times . en.
  17. Web site: Inoue . Yukana . 2024-06-30 . Mount Fuji begins charging entrance fees as overtourism prevention measure . 2024-07-11 . The Japan Times . en.
  18. Web site: Gardin . Caroline . 2024-05-21 . Weary of overtourism, Japan town blocks one popular view of Mount Fuji . 2024-07-11 . The Japan Times . en.
  19. News: 2024-06-19 . Japan’s Flood of Tourists Prompts Call to Charge Foreigners More . 2024-07-11 . Bloomberg.com . en.
  20. Web site: In Japan, higher prices for foreign visitors come with caveats . 2024-07-11 . Nikkei Asia . en-GB.
  21. Web site: Japan Tourism Agency . "Fly to Japan! Project"(10,000 FREE FLIGHTS TO FOREIGNERS) | Japan Tourism Agency . December 26, 2011 . March 16, 2012 . September 30, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170930112356/http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/en/page08_000020.html . dead .
  22. NHK-world (October 21, 2011) Japan to give away air tickets to 10,000 visitors
  23. JAIF (October 22, 2011)Earthquake report 242: Japan to give away air tickets to 10,000 visitors
  24. Web site: International tourism, number of arrivals - Japan Data. 2021-01-20. data.worldbank.org.
  25. Web site: NEWS. KYODO. Foreign visitors to Japan in 2020 plunge 87.1%, biggest since 1964. 2021-01-20. Kyodo News+.
  26. Web site: Japan to waive tourist visa requirements as part of border easing: Report . 2022-09-12 . CNA . en.
  27. Web site: Japan to waive tourist visa requirements as part of border easing: Report . 2022-09-12 . Japan to waive tourist visa requirements as part of border easing: Report - 'Channel News Asia' News SendStory Singapore . en.
  28. Web site: 2017年推計値 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160508231752/http://www.jnto.go.jp/jpn/news/data_info_listing/pdf/160420_monthly.pdf . 2016-05-08 . Japan National Tourism Organization.
  29. Web site: Overseas tourists are changing the face of Japan. Nikkei Asian Review.