Tens of thousands of vacationers flew abroad from airports in the Tokyo and Osaka areas as Japan's summer exodus began Saturday.
The number of international travelers passing through Narita airport is expected to total 871,500 during the 10 days of the Bon holiday season from Friday to Aug. 16, up 8 percent from last year, while the figure at Haneda airport is set to rise 9 percent to 379,300, the airports' operators said. Both figures are the largest in five years.
Narita International Airport Corp. attributes the expected rise chiefly to flight availability as new routes and increased flights are put in the summer flight schedule. Among the main destinations are Hawaii, Guam and other resort locations and Taiwan.