The Chinese Communist Party recently called on Chinese people to “avoid traveling to Japan,” but this move not only failed to impact Japan’s tourism industry but also accelerated Japan’s efforts to reduce its reliance on Chinese tourists. A report from Japanese media on May 17th indicated that a decrease in Chinese tourists may actually benefit Japan by speeding up its “de-Sinicization” process.
In November 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi mentioned during a parliamentary session that a “crisis involving Taiwan” could pose a threat to Japan’s existence. Following this, the Chinese government warned its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan citing concerns over social stability in Japan and “provocative remarks made by Japanese leaders regarding Taiwan.” This warning was seen as a form of economic retaliation by Beijing.
However, a report from Yahoo Finance Japan revealed that Beijing’s warning did not negatively impact Japan’s tourism industry. In fact, it unintentionally helped Japan reduce its dependence on Chinese tourists.
Statistics showed that in 2025, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan reached 42.7 million, significantly higher than the previous year’s 36.9 million, setting a new record. The total amount spent by foreign visitors in Japan also reached approximately 9.5 trillion yen, also breaking previous records.
Following Beijing’s warning, there was a temporary surge of about 30% in cancellations of Chinese bookings for trips to Japan. Subramania Bhat, CEO of the tourism data research company China Trading Desk, had warned Bloomberg in November 2025 that Japan’s tourism industry would suffer significant losses, estimating potential losses of up to $1.2 billion by the end of the year if Chinese tourists continued to stay away in 2026, accumulating possible losses of up to $9 billion.
However, actual data completely disproved these predictions. While the number of Chinese visitors dropped by over 50%, the strong growth in visitors from South Korea, Taiwan, and the United States quickly filled the gap.
According to a report by Skift, a US travel industry magazine, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan in 2025 set a historic record of 42.7 million.
NBC News reported that in January of this year, the number of South Korean visitors to Japan reached 1.18 million, a 22% increase from the same period last year, reaching a new monthly high; Taiwanese visitors increased by 17% to 694,500; and American visitors increased by 14% to 207,800.
According to data from Bloomberg, even with the continuous decline in Chinese visitor numbers, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan in February this year increased by 6.4% compared to the same period last year.
The increase in long-haul visitors from the Americas, Europe, and Australia has further raised per capita spending. Skift predicts that the total number of visitors from Europe, the Americas, and Australia is expected to increase by 22% in 2025. Long-haul visitors tend to stay longer and have higher purchasing power, further boosting overall tourism expenditure.
According to data released by the Japan Tourism Agency on May 15, the total amount spent by foreign visitors in Japan in the first quarter of 2026 is estimated to be 2.3378 trillion yen (approximately $14.78 billion), a 2.5% increase from the same period last year.
Among them, Taiwanese visitors spent the most with 388.4 billion yen (approximately $2.46 billion), followed by South Korea with 318.2 billion yen (approximately $2.01 billion), China with 271.5 billion yen (approximately $1.72 billion), the United States with 259.2 billion yen (approximately $1.64 billion), and Hong Kong with 148.2 billion yen (approximately $940 million).
However, not all businesses have benefited from this trend, as many Chinese-owned guesthouses in Japan have suffered significant losses.
Meanwhile, there has been a sharp decline in Japanese visitors traveling to China. According to Kyodo News, the person in charge of the China division at a major Japanese travel agency revealed that due to a surge in reservation cancellations and reduced flights, the number of Japanese visitors to China has decreased by about 90%.
Japanese-speaking tour guides working at tourist sites in China are also facing unemployment. A Japanese-speaking tour guide with over 30 years of experience at the Terracotta Army site in Xi’an revealed on social media that they have not received any Japanese visitors this year.