The latest JTB Tourism Research & Consulting survey on Japanese overseas travel finds that a share of FITs who individually book hotels and air tickets accounted for 55.1% of the total. Including travelers choosing a free-time plan or a package tour with hotel and air ticket only, about eighty percent chose free-time travel in an overseas destination. 

The most FITs were found in 50’s males (69%), while 60 years old or older travelers preferred to package tours: 17% for a tour with a local guide, 18% for a tour with a tour conductor and 3.9% for a group travel among males and 15.5% for a tour with a local guide, 25.2% for a tour with a tour conductor and 3.9% for a group travel among females.

The table below shows overseas travel styles by generation and gender:

The ratio of FITs who booked their travels online was 69.1%, much outnumbering 21.2% at real travel agencies. More than 40 percent of online bookers booked and purchased hotels and air tickets separately. At real travel agencies, 33.3 percent purchased so-called skeleton-typed tours. 

The table below shows places to book and what to book:

The survey also finds that core overseas travelers, who travel overseas once in two or three years at least, have recently increased particularly among 60 years old or older travelers.

The table below shows the ratio of core overseas travelers (blue) by generation and gender:

In Japanese