Japan and Foreign Visitors: Updated July 16, 2026.

Foreign visitors to Japan dip 2% in 1st-half 2026 as Chinese travelers drop

Ideas

A 2.0 percent decrease from a year earlier should not be that much of a concern considering some in Japan now think there are too many foreign tourists entering Japan. And the idea there was a decrease in Chinese tourists should make some happy as again, there have been complaints lately of too many tourists and over-tourism has become a real challenge in Japan now.

It's interesting, as maybe not all Chinese tourists are following exactly what the government wants or says as sometimes a suggestion can be like an order in China, but if there were 2.06 million tourists from China that indicates maybe they can make their own choices without government interference.

It's also interesting that as early as 2019 or around there, South Korea had a supposed boycott on Japanese products and even traveling to Japan was limited as South Korean tourists and travelers avoided going to Japan but those days seem long gone as other articles have suggested that South Korean tourists are the number one group entering Japan or close to it.

Taiwan, compared to China and South Korea has always had a friendly relationship with Japan and they haven't had any of the post-war entanglements that the other two countries have had and as a result tourists from Taiwan has remained consistent while both China and South Korea have had periods of less than normal relations, kind of like squabbling siblings going back and forth over the years.

It seem, unfortunately, whether deserved or not or whether deliberate or not, Japan keeps saying things that seem to upset China and has at times also upset South Korea from time to time but these days South Korea and Japan seem to be going out of their way to make sure all things are normal as maybe they are looking at China as the main instigator in the Asia-Pacific region and both countries seem to be working together now on diplomatic and security issues.

But as mentioned above there were 2.06 million visitors from China that visited Japan, so there are still quite a few who want to go to Japan and spend their money.

It's quite possible that a decrease of 6.8 percent from a year earlier might be just enough to satisfy those in Japan who think and feel that over-tourism has overtaken Japan and some might want to see even less tourists.

The problem is the Japanese domestic economy is now heavily dependent on foreign tourism for spending as overall, consumer spending in the domestic economy is now where it should be due to the continued inflation situation.

As the Japanese yen is very weak now, which gives foreign tourists more purchasing power Japanese businesses should welcome foreign tourists with open arms as they spend a lot when they are in Japan despite, unfortunately, there are always going to be some who have poor manners in Japan like some tourists in all countries these days.

Have a nice day!

Article source:    https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20260715/p2g/00m/0li/056000c