China’s recent decision to lift its ban on Japan-bound group tours is set to add extra fuel to an ongoing rebound in tourist spending, with the hefty buying power of Chinese travelers helping to further resuscitate Japan's tourism industry.
Japan has been seeing a recovery in inbound tourism, with the total number of foreign visitors in the first half of this year topping 10 million — about 65% of the 2019 pre-pandemic level — according to government data.
Spending by international visitors, meanwhile, is already back to about 91% of the pre-pandemic figure. In the January-June period, Japan logged ¥2.22 trillion in inbound spending, compared with ¥2.42 trillion in 2019.