Chinese Visitors to Japan Drop 45% in December After Beijing's Travel Advisory

Record 42.7 Million Foreign Visitors to Japan Last Year

After the Chinese government issued a travel advisory urging its citizens to refrain from visiting Japan, the number of Chinese tourists traveling to Japan has dropped significantly. China announced the advisory in November last year, following remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding potential intervention in the event of a Taiwan emergency.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) reported on the 20th that Japanese Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Yasushi Kaneko stated in a press conference that the number of Chinese visitors to Japan in December last year was approximately 330,000, a decrease of 45% compared to the same month the previous year.

Tourists visiting a popular tourist attraction in Japan. Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News Agency

The outlet reported that "bilateral relations appear to have deteriorated following Prime Minister Takaichi's comments on a potential Taiwan contingency," and that, after China issued its travel advisory, flights between the two countries were reduced and group hotel bookings were canceled. It also noted that this could potentially slow the overall increase in inbound visitors to Japan this year.

Minister Kaneko said that the government is closely monitoring the situation regarding the decline in Chinese visitors to Japan. According to the Japan Tourism Agency, the number of Chinese tourists increased by 40.7% during the first 10 months of last year. Bloomberg reported that Chinese tourists are the largest consumer group, accounting for about one-fifth of Japan’s tourism revenue of 8.1 trillion yen in 2024.

The Japanese government has set a goal of increasing the number of foreign visitors to Japan to 60 million by 2030. However, due to the deterioration in China-Japan relations, projections suggest that the number of foreign visitors this year will remain at around 41.4 million. Bloomberg also reported that Chinese authorities have ordered domestic airlines to reduce flights to Japan through March in accordance with the travel advisory, raising concerns that the downturn in Japanese tourism could be prolonged.

Despite the decline in Chinese tourists last month, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan last year reached an all-time high. The total was 42.7 million, marking the first time Japan’s annual foreign visitor count surpassed 40 million. In 2024, the number of visitors was 36.87 million. Nikkei reported that "from 2013 to 2018, there was significant growth in visitors from China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong," and that "since 2018, the number of visitors from Europe, North America, and Australia has increased."

Last year, foreign visitors spent a record-breaking 9.5 trillion yen on accommodation, shopping, and other expenses.

Nikkei also reported that in some popular tourist cities such as Kyoto and Kamakura, the problem of overtourism has become severe due to an excessive influx of tourists.