Tourists hit record in Japan, despite plunge from China

Japan logged 42.7 million arrivals last year, according to the transport ministry, topping 2024's record of nearly 37 million as the weak yen boosted the appeal of the "bucket list" destination.

However, the number of tourists from China last month dropped about 45 percent from a year earlier to around 330,000.

China has been the biggest source of tourists to the Japanese archipelago, with almost 7.5 million visitors in the first nine months of 2025 -- a quarter of all foreign tourists, according to official figures.

Attracted by a weak yen, Chinese tourists splashed out the equivalent of $3.7 billion in the third quarter.

The overall increase is partly due to government policies to promote attractions from Mount Fuji's majestic slopes to shrines and sushi bars in more far-flung parts of the archipelago.

The government has set an ambitious target of reaching 60 million tourists annually by 2030.

Overtourism

Japan's biggest travel agency JTB forecasted that overall tourist numbers this year would be "slightly lower" compared to 2025 due to a decrease in demand from China and Hong Kong.

Nevertheless, tourism income was expected to increase due to rising prices of items such as lodging and strong spending among visitors.

It added that due to an uptick in repeat visitors to Japan, the places people want to visit are shifting from large cities to rural areas.

Authorities say they want to spread sightseers more evenly around the country, as complaints of overcrowding in hotspots like Kyoto grow.

As in other global tourist magnets like Venice in Italy, there has been a growing pushback from residents in the ancient capital.

The tradition-steeped city, just a couple of hours from Tokyo on the bullet train, is famed for its kimono-clad geisha performers and increasingly crowded Buddhist temples.