News
Highway bus WILLER is booked by 11 times more Chinese travelers to Japan during this year’s Chinese New Year holiday period than a year go
Highway bus WILLER's Chinese passengers increased to 2,473 as of January 28 2025 during the Chinese New Year holiday period (January 13 to February 23 2025), which were about 11 times more than a year ago.
e-ticket management system provider ‘Japan ticket’ connects with Klook on API for pre-payment and instant booking for international travelers
Japan ticket, an e-ticket management system provider for international travelers to Japan, has started connecting with Klook to allow users to book tourism experiences provided by Japan ticket on the Klook platform.
Online booking for Shinkansen in the western Japan is now available on Apple Map
JR West, a railway company of Japan, has begun connecting online and ticketless booking services ‘Express Booking’ and ‘Smart EX’ with the route search on Apple Map.
Sumitomo Mitsui Card reveals that credit card payment in Japan by international visitors increased year on year by 55% in 2024
Sumitomo Mitsui Card revealed that international visitors to Japan paid 55.3% more money with credit cards during the period from January to November 2024 than a year ago. Payments in hotels, ryokans, restaurants and amusement parks increased,
Cherry blossom in Japan is expected to bloom earlier in this spring, and the earliest blooming may be seen in Tokyo on March 21
Weather News announced that cherry blossom is expected to bloom nationwide earlier than usual. The earliest blooming is seen in Tokyo on March 21, and blooming will begin in Hakodate on April 22.
New amusement park ‘JUNGLIA OKINAWA’ will open on July 25 2025, differentiating prices between residents in Japan and international visitors
A new large-scale amusement park ‘JUNGLIA OKINAWA’ will open in the northern part of Okinawa Prefecture on July 25 2025, differentiating prices between residents in Japan and international visitors. Economic ripple effect is estimated at 6.8 trillion yen for 15 years.
JTB and Airbnb Japan work together for reuse of abandoned houses to receive travelers in local regions
JTB and Airbnb Japan have agreed to work together for reuse of abandoned houses to receive travelers in local regions, having a goal of developing the areas in 100 regions nationwide by 2028.
ANA plans to increase international flights by 8% in FY2025 to meet growing inbound travel demand
ANA Group, including Peach Aviation and Air Japan, plans to operate 8% more international flights in FY2025 than FY2024. Peach and Air Japan plan to expand networks for Asia respectively within FY2025. Details will be announced later.
A key for 40 million international visitors in 2025 is how Japan National Tourism Organization encourages them to local regions
Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) Executive Senior Vice President mentioned a possibility of 40 million international visitors in 2025, "I believe that the current strong trend will be unchanged. We continue developing active promotions.”
JAL will launch Narita-Chicago services on May 31 2025, and its group airline JTA launch its first international services to Taipei
JAL will launch daily services between Narita and Chicago on May 31 2025. Japan Transocean Air (JTA) a JAL Group airline, will launch its first international services between Naha and Taipei by the end of FY2025.
JTB CEO talks about a business strategy in 2025, redefining its big picture of ‘Bringing People, Places and Possibilities Together’
JTB CEO Eijiro Yamakita talked about a business strategy in 2025 at a partner event ‘JTB Group New Year Partnership Meeting 2025,’ redefining its big picture of ‘Bringing People, Places and Possibilities Together. He said, “As AI is evolving rapidly, we have to rethink about values of people.”
Bookings of winter activities and experiences in Tohoku rapidly increased among inbound travelers to Japan during this year’s Chinese New Year
KKday Japan announced bookings of winter activities and local experiences in Tohoku area rapidly increased among inbound travelers to Japan during this year’s Chinese New Year, influenced by postings on SNS.
Kyoto City raises accommodation tax to 10,000 yen at most, expecting tax revenue of 12.6 billion yen a year
Kyoto City plans to raise accommodation tax from currently 200 to 1,000 yen a night to10,000 yen a night at most, The proposed new tax rule are divided into five categories.
Japanese outbound travelers resulted in 13 million in 2024, about 70% of 2019
The number of Japanese outbound travelers in 2024 was up 35.2% year on year to 13 million, 35.2% fewer travelers than 2019. In December 2024 only, Japanese outbound travelers were down 30.7% to 1,187,200 compared to December 2019.
Tourism spending in Japan by international visitors exceeded 8 trillion yen in 2024, breaking the previous record in 2019
The total amount of tourism spending in Japan by international visitors increased by 69.2% to record-high 8.1 trillion yen compared to 2019. Spending per visitor was up 43.3% to 227,000 yen. The top market was China with 1.7 trillion yen.
International visitors to Japan resulted in record-high 37 million in 2024, 5 million more visitors than 2019
The number of international visitors to Japan in 2024 reached record-high 36.9 million, 15.6% more visitors than the previous record of 31.9 million in 2019, adding 3.5 million in December 2024.
AI suggests travel plans to avoid over-crowd in Hakone, a famous hot spring resort in Japan, developed by a local DMO and University of Tokyo
AI-based travel planning service ‘Hako Tabi’ is available in Hakone, a famous onsen resort in Japan, developed by a University of Tokyo startup ‘EasyX’ and local Hakone DMO.
Record-high 82 taxi companies went bankrupt in Japan in 2024 mainly because of shortage of drivers and rise in fuel cost
According to Teikoku Data Bank, the number of bankrupted taxi companies in a debt of more than 10 million yen in Japan was record-high 82, more than the previous record of 73 in 2019.
Japan Tourism Agency Director talks about how Japan tries to overcome over-tourism
Kenji Hamamoto, Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) International Tourism Department Director, talked about over-tourism in Japan in the interview with Travel Voice. He emphasized that over-tourism is not 'tourism pollution.
Shizuoka Bank and Yamanashi Chuo Bank create high-valued package tours for luxury travelers from Philippines
Local banks in Shizuoka and Yamanashi sell package tours for the prefectures to Philippines BDO credit card and debit card members, offering high-valued itineraries touring tourist contents including Mt. Fuji for luxury travelers.