Japan close to reaching ambitious 2020 tourism goal thanks to Chinese tourists

The explosion in Chinese tourists arriving in Japan has led to Japan to be close to reaching its, initially considered very ambitious, tourism goal of 20 million foreign visitors in one year. The previous record was 13.4 million arrivals in one year, and it has already attracted 16.3 million visitors this year – with many more visitors scheduled to come before the end of 2015.

The target set by the Abe administration was to reach the number of 20 million foreign tourists by 2020, the same year Tokyo hosts the Olympic Games. However, with Chinese visitors to the country having more than doubled, this goal seems well within reach long before the start of the Olympic Games. According to the Japan Tourism Agency, Chinese visitors represented approximately half of all expenditures by foreign visitors in Japan between July and September this year, an increase by 82 percent year-over-year.

As COTRI China Outbound Tourism Research Institute has previously reported, Japanese companies are reacting to the influx of Chinese tourists in many different ways: SoftBank is starting a travel agency targeting Chinese customers, Japanese airport corporations are opening downtown tax-free stores, since Chinese tourists are spending enormous amounts shopping in Japan.

COTRI provides expert insights into the worldwide developments of China’s outbound tourism market. As Chinese outbound tourists are travelling to a large range of destinations, our publications cover a number of different regions. Important Chinese visitor activities are analysed, and detailed insights are presented.

With COTRI’s insights you can create a successful business strategy with in-depth market insights, comprehensive qualitative analyses, and future prospects. For competitively priced standardised consultancy products, please check out the COTRI Standard Offers.

Source: Wall Street Journal

Photo: flickr