Japan visitor arrivals growth strong in November despite China travel warning

TOKYO – The

ongoing diplomatic rift between Japan and China

has had a muted impact on overall tourist numbers, as visitors to ‍Japan ​grew 10.4 per cent year on year in November, the ‍country’s tourism board said on Dec 17.

Arrivals from overseas for business and leisure stood at 3.52 million in November, pushing the total for 2025 past 39 million, the Japan National Tourism Organization said.

The total as at ‍the end of November has already exceeded the record annual total ​of 36.87 million people logged ⁠in 2024.

Growth in visitors from mainland China slowed to 3 per cent in November, far below the 37.5 per cent growth across the whole of 2025 to the end of November, compared with the same period in 2024.

A diplomatic dispute following Japanese ‌Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s

remarks ​on Taiwan

– the democratically governed island claimed by China – prompted Beijing in mid-November to urge its citizens not to travel to Japan.

Chinese airlines offered free refunds for flights up to the end of 2025.

Tourism-related Japanese stocks, including department store operator Isetan Mitsukoshi ‍and Tokyo Disneyland operator Oriental Land, were hit in the immediate ​aftermath of the travel warning and have yet to recover.

Mainland Chinese tourists ​have nevertheless made up the largest cohort of ‌visitors to Japan so far in 2025, accounting for nearly a quarter of the total. REUTERS