In January, the number of visitors from Mainland China to Japan decreased by 60.7%, with the decline still widening. During the Spring Festival, hotel booking cancellations from China exceeded 50%.

The Japan Tourism Agency announced on the 18th that the number of visitors from Mainland China to Japan in January decreased by 60.7% year-on-year, further widening the decline from 45.3% in December of last year.

Data shows that due to the significant decrease in Chinese tourists, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan in January declined by 4.9% year-on-year, marking the first year-on-year decrease in four years.

Japanese media and experts pointed out that since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made false statements regarding Taiwan, the number of Mainland Chinese tourists visiting Japan has begun to decline noticeably, negatively impacting multiple sectors of the Japanese economy such as retail, accommodation, and dining.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that Tripla, a company specializing in accommodation reservation management systems, data shows that during this year’s Spring Festival, the cancellation rate of hotel bookings from China across Japan reached 53.6%, an increase of 14.9 percentage points compared to the Spring Festival of 2025. Additionally, department stores such as Mitsukoshi Isetan, Takashimaya, and Daimaru Matsuzakaya all saw tax-free sales in January decline by more than 10% year-on-year. Yoshiharu Nishisaka, executive director of the Japan Department Stores Association, expressed concern, stating that “the severe situation in the tourism market is expected to continue.”

(Source: Daily Economic News)