JAPAN’S inbound tourism is recovering rapidly as the global coronavirus pandemic subsides. In August, the Chinese government lifted its ban on group tours to Japan. As Chinese tourists accounted for the largest share of visitors to Japan before the pandemic, this raises expectations of an influx of visitors. The economic ripple effect will be significant – but it might be affected by political conflict.
The Japanese government implemented strict border-control measures in response to the pandemic beginning in 2020, and the number of visitors to Japan in 2021 fell to a record low of 240,000. In October last year, the government decided to greatly ease border-control measures because of the decrease in the number of people infected with the coronavirus. A daily limit of 50,000 people entering the country was removed, and a ban on individual travel from abroad was lifted. Visa exemptions for short-term visitors were also resumed.
