19-4-2024 (BANGKOK) The number of foreign visitors to the country surged past the 3-million mark in March, marking the first instance of such a feat within a single month. Thai tourists to Japan ranked sixth in this influx, contributing to a total of over 3.08 million visitors.
According to estimates from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), South Korean travellers constituted the largest group, totaling 663,100, reflecting a 13.2% increase from pre-pandemic levels in 2019. Following closely were tourists from Taiwan at 484,400, marking a notable 20.4% increase, while visitors from China numbered 452,400, experiencing a decline of 34.6%.
Meanwhile, tourists from the United States ranked fourth at 290,100, marking a remarkable 64.3% increase, followed by those from Hong Kong at 231,400, representing a 35% rise.
Although Thai tourists ranked sixth at 131,700, indicating a 10.7% drop from 2019, they led in the number of foreign holidaymakers from Southeast Asia.
The amount spent by overseas travellers in Japan also reached a record 1.75 trillion yen (418 billion baht) in the first quarter of 2024, the highest ever recorded for a three-month period. This surge was largely attributed to a weak yen, according to the Japan Tourism Agency.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida chaired a meeting of a ministerial council convened to promote Japan as a tourism-oriented country, expressing optimism about achieving record highs for both arrivals and spending in 2024 if the current momentum persists.
Japan’s annual record of 31.88 million arrivals was established in the pre-pandemic era in 2019, with the previous monthly high of 2,991,189 arrivals recorded in July 2019. Visitor spending hit a record 5.3 trillion yen in 2023.
As Japan targets an annual influx of 60 million foreign visitors by 2030, it grapples with various challenges, including the adverse effects of tourism growth such as littering and traffic congestion. Kishida instructed relevant ministers to bolster measures to tackle “overtourism,” including redirecting tourists from urban hubs to rural areas.
Despite a surge of 75.7% in Japanese outbound travel compared to the previous year, totaling 1,219,800, the figure still remained 36.8% lower than that of 2019.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) reported in March that over 28 million foreign arrivals were recorded in the kingdom in 2023, with Malaysia leading the influx with 4.2 million visitors. Japan secured the 10th spot with 804,205 arrivals.
