Japan’s visitor arrivals fall 5.5% in April as mainland China plunges 56.8%

First year-on-year decline in three months.

Data released by the Japan National Tourism Organization on May 20 showed that the number of foreign visitors to Japan in April fell 5.5% year-on-year to 3.6922 million, marking the first year-on-year decline in three months. In addition to China urging its citizens to avoid travel to Japan, worsening tensions in the Middle East and resulting flight suspensions also weighed on inbound tourism.

By country and region, the number of visitors from Italy dropped 34.2% year-on-year to 30,000. Visitors from Germany fell 15.2% to 48,500, while those from Spain declined 21.6% to 19,000. The Easter holiday period, which usually boosts travel demand to Japan, began in April in 2025 but started in late March in 2026, contributing to the decline in European visitors.

A series of flight suspensions involving routes to and from the Middle East may also have affected inbound travel to Japan. The region serves as a major transit hub for flights from Europe to Japan. Visitors from the Middle East fell 21.4% to 22,300. The number of travelers from mainland China dropped 56.8% to 330,700, marking the fifth consecutive month of year-on-year decline.

South Korea accounted for the largest number of visitors in April, rising 21.7% year-on-year to 878,600, followed by Taiwan, up 19.7% to 643,500.

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