Chinese visitors to Japan drop for third month running

Chinese tourists visiting Japan declined in February, marking the third consecutive month. Previously the biggest source of tourists to Japan, Chinese travelers have now been overtaken by South Korean visitors.

According to The Japan Times, Chinese tourists have ditched Japan for the third month running. The article, published on March 18, 2026, reports a drop in Chinese visitors in February. Previously, Chinese travelers were the biggest source of tourists to Japan, with South Korean visitors now taking their place. Keywords include tourism, China, South Korea, and China-Japan relations. No specific figures or reasons for the decline are provided in the available details.

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Tokyo shopkeepers cheerfully serve Japanese customers in a bustling store, shrugging off fewer Chinese tourists amid diplomatic tensions.
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Japanese businesses brush off worries over fewer Chinese tourists

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A diplomatic spat over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan prompted China to warn its citizens against traveling to Japan, leading to fewer Chinese tourists, but Tokyo business owners largely dismiss concerns about sales impacts. Managers report that increased Japanese shoppers have offset the drop. In China, group tour cancellations are surging.

The number of Chinese tourists to Japan grew by just 3.0% year-on-year in November, a sharp drop from October's 22.8% increase. The Japan National Tourism Organization's data suggests deteriorating Japan-China relations played a role in this slowdown. Meanwhile, total inbound visitors from January to November hit 39,065,600, surpassing the 2024 annual record of 36,870,148.

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South Korea is poised to surpass Japan as the top destination for Chinese travelers during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, marking the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. Booking estimates indicate 230,000 to 250,000 mainland Chinese visitors to South Korea, a potential increase of up to 52% from last year. This shift highlights Seoul's visa relaxations amid tensions with Tokyo.

According to Taiwan’s Tourism Administration, around 3.24 million Taiwanese visited mainland China in 2025, nearly 17 per cent more than in 2024, but still 20 per cent lower than in 2019. Taiwanese media attributes the slow post-pandemic recovery to cross-strait tensions and partial travel bans. Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te, who took office in 2024, has used strong rhetoric against Beijing, exacerbating the disruptions.

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The Japan Tourism Agency plans to increase regions addressing overtourism from 47 to 100. This effort is included in the draft of the basic tourism promotion plan presented to an expert panel, outlining tourism policy through fiscal 2030. While keeping the inbound visitor target unchanged, it raises the repeat visitor goal from 36 million to 40 million.

Japan's exports jumped 16.8% in January from a year earlier, marking the biggest increase in more than three years. The surge was driven by strong Asian demand and front-loading shipments ahead of China's Lunar New Year holidays. While shipments to the U.S. fell, exports of semiconductors and electronic components rose sharply, boosted by artificial intelligence-related demand.

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Despite a large exodus of local residents, Hong Kong's hotels and tourist-area restaurants reported robust business during the Lunar New Year holiday from February 13 to 18. Immigration Department figures show 2.5 million outbound journeys by locals, compared to 1 million tourist arrivals. Visitor numbers rose, but the net outflow increased year on year.

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