Chinese tourism to Japan plummeted on persistent tensions between the two countries.
Arrivals from China were down 61% in January year-on-year, after a 45% drop in December, Japan’s tourist board said.
The different timing of this year’s Lunar New Year holiday was a factor, but a larger one has been Beijing’s warning against travel in the wake of the Japanese prime minister’s comments saying Tokyo could get involved should China invade Taiwan. Chinese tourists have flocked to Thailand and Vietnam instead, Nikkei reported.
The economic impact could be significant: Income from Chinese travelers accounts for a fifth of Japan’s tourism revenue, and overall tourism fell, despite growing numbers from the US and elsewhere.
