Japan tourism statistics & news

[castermaild55]

foreign Visitors To Japan UP 34.6%　8,370,000 in 2012

http://www.jiji.com/jc/graphics?p=ve...in&rel=y&g=tha
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20...000107-jij-pol

[Kaaskop]

Originally Posted by castermaild55

foreign Visitors To Japan UP 34.6%　8,370,000 in 2012

http://www.jiji.com/jc/graphics?p=ve...in&rel=y&g=tha
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20...000107-jij-pol

Isn't that mostly due to the earthquake in 2011? What was the number of foreign visitors to Japan in 2010?

Anyway, in 2013, I will be one of them :-)

[ukiyo]

2010 (record year) had 8.6 million, so tourism is back on track. I was skeptical tourist arrivals would go over 8 million in 2012 due to tensions with China but tourists from HK, Taiwan and SE Asia boomed last year. 2011 had only 6.2 million.

[Kaaskop]

Originally Posted by ukiyo

2010 (record year) had 8.6 million, so tourism is back on track. I was skeptical tourist arrivals would go over 8 million in 2012 due to tensions with China but tourists from HK, Taiwan and SE Asia boomed last year. 2011 had only 6.2 million.

Thanks for your answer.

With the weakening Yen, the number of foreign tourists probably will have another large increase in 2013, wouldn't it? Although it indeed also strongly depends on political issues.

[ukiyo]

More Koreans Visiting Japan As Yen Slides

FUKUOKA (Nikkei)--The number of South Korean visitors to Japan has recovered close to levels from before the March 2011 disaster thanks in part to the weakening yen.

Roughly 668,700 foreigners visited Japan in January, down 2.4% from a year earlier, according to data released Tuesday by the Japan National Tourism Organization.

But the number of South Korean visitors jumped 35.2% to a post-disaster high of 234,500, just slightly short of the 268,300 of January 2011.

Ridership on Kyushu Railway Co.'s high-speed ships traveling between South Korea's Busan and Tsushima in Nagasaki Prefecture surged 50% in January. Hotels in the city of Tsushima have been almost fully booked. Many Koreans are making day trips to the island of Tsushima to shop at duty-free stores, according to a local tourism official.

The number of foreign customers, mainly Koreans, is now double the levels from last summer at Canal City Hakata in Fukuoka, according to the operator of the shopping complex. And the number of Korean visitors to Huis Ten Bosch, the Dutch-themed park in Nagasaki Prefecture, rose 18% on the year in January.

Okinawa Prefecture received a record 7,900 Korean visitors last month, partly because a popular Korean television drama was shot there.

http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20130220D1902A18.htm

[ukiyo]

JTA heralds start of 10 million tourists a year era

With the number of foreign visitors finally returning to predisaster levels, the Japan Tourism Agency unveiled Friday its new promotion strategy to draw 10 million travelers this year.

“I would like to declare that the era of 10 million inbound visitors has arrived,” JTA Vice Commissioner Tadashi Shimura told a press event held at a rather unusual venue — the (Tokyo) Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel, a huge underground facility built in Saitama to divert floodwaters.

Although the calamities saw foreign visitor numbers plunge that year, around 8.36 million traveled to Japan in 2012, a year-on-year surge of 34.6 percent. The total was the second-highest on record, after the 8.61 million in 2010.

To promote Japan as a tourism destination, the JTA launched a new website — www.visitjapan.jp — featuring more than 160 videos about various areas. One of the main promotional videos, titled “Discover the Spirit of Japan,” showcases the Awaodori traditional dance in Tokushima Prefecture.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/201.../#.UUeMSByG37E

The new website is really nice with many videos.

[quashlo]

I'll be one of the 10 million.

[ukiyo]

Japan's tourism hits new record on the weak yen

Tokyo - Foreign visitors to Japan rose 33 percent last month to their highest on record for a February as a weakening yen boosted travelers' buying power.

Arrivals increased to 729,500 in February, from 547,948 a year earlier, the Japan National Tourism Organization said in a report Friday. That's the highest for a February, according to tourism agency statistics going back to 1964.

"After Abenomics, thanks to the depreciating yen, many inbound tourists gain a benefit," Yabuta said. "Prices actually decrease if I spend a dollar in Japan instead of America."

The Japanese currency weakened to 96.71 yen against the dollar on March 12, the lowest since August 2009. The yen averaged averaged 93.13 versus the dollar in February, 19 percent weaker than 78.48 ia year ago.

Visitors from Hong Kong posted the biggest increase, rising 97 percent to 56,500, while the number of travelers from Taiwan climbed 74 percent to 150,300, according to the tourism agency.

http://www.theday.com/article/201303...3239961/-1/BIZ

[ukiyo]

Tourism panel eyes easy visas

Easier visa requirements were recommended to the government Thursday to lift foreign tourism to Japan.

The idea was among several proposals submitted by a Liberal Democratic Party tourism panel that are expected to be reflected in the government’s new policies on economic and fiscal management in June.

They are also expected to be among its pledges for the upcoming House of Councilors election this summer.

The government aims to boost foreign tourism from about 8.37 million in 2012 to 10 million in 2013, and to 25 million in 2020.

The proposals seek to free Thais, Malaysians and Indonesians from visa requirements while allowing Vietnamese and Russians to obtain multiple visas so they can visit as many times as they want until the visa expires.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/201.../#.UXBk-7WG37F

[wino]

why is it that airfare-tax to Japan is too high?
Makes flying there expensive...



ooooops.. nevermind.. I checked just now.. taxes aren't the same as a couple years ago..
The last time I checked waaay back 2010, taxes are like around 40-50%... I really did not understand why...

[ukiyo]

Visitors To Japan Rise 26% On Year In March

TOKYO (Nikkei)--The number of overseas tourists visiting Japan reached 857,000 in March, an increase of 26% on the year, the Japan National Tourism Organization said Wednesday.

That was the second-highest number ever for a single month, following the all-time high of 878,000 in July 2010. The sharp drop in the yen contributed to the increase in visitors from South Korea and Southeast Asia, including Thailand and Indonesia.

http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20130424D24SS240.htm