The government plans to double the tourism agency's budget for fiscal 2016 to step up efforts to attract more foreign tourists, sources familiar with the matter said Thursday.
The Japan Tourism Agency will get more than ¥20 billion ($163 million) for the year starting in April, double the amount of recent years and a third more than the ¥14.2 billion budget it requested, they said.
Some 17.96 million foreign tourists visited Japan from January to November, already surpassing the annual record of 13.41 million set last year.
With the increased budget, the agency is expected to increase free Wi-Fi services at airports and train stations, and remodel Japanese-style toilets at traditional ryokan inns into Western-style facilities, the sources said.
The money may also be used to promote tours involving cultural assets and local specialties to attract even more foreign tourists, they said.