During the pandemic, tourism to Japan virtually ceased for more than two years. However, numbers have steadily increased since the government reinstated visa-free travel for several countries in October and eliminated remaining COVID-19 limits on May 8.
Before COVID-19, Japan had a record 32 million visitors in 2019, and while no one expects that this year, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is optimistic that a comeback in the industry would add 5 trillion yen to the economy.
According to the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), the number of inbound tourists to Japan increased to 2.07 million in June, breaking the 2 million mark for the first time since February 2020. Despite a record heat wave in Japan, tourists are streaming in, taking advantage of a yen drop that has made vacations the cheapest in decades.
The 2.07 million arrivals in June were up from 1.9 million in May, but still down 28% from the level in June 2019. According to JNTO data, inbound passengers from the United States, Europe, Australia, and the Middle East have already surpassed 2019 levels. Visitors from China, once Japan’s largest source of visitors, increased by 55% to 204,500 in June compared to the previous month, but remain well below 2019 levels.
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The surge is fueling demand-driven inflation in the world’s third-largest economy, as hotels, restaurants, and stores discover they can charge more without negatively impacting sales. After surviving a 70% drop in sales during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kyubey in Tokyo’s luxury Ginza shopping district is one of the benefactors of the better times.
Kyubey halted a lunch sale it had been running for years in April due to growing expenses for sea urchin, abalone, and other shellfish. Discounts, however, are no longer required for Kyubey’s consumers, who are primarily from Europe, the United States, and Asia.
Source: channelnewsasia.com
