After a three-year struggle during the pandemic, Japan’s tourism industry rebounded in 2023, with the government accelerating the normalization of business and social activities.

A major driving force for the industry was the reopening of the border, which has sparked a renewed influx of international tourists.

In October, Japan saw 2.51 million foreign visitors, exceeding the comparable figure in pre-pandemic 2019 for the first time. The figure was achieved even though the number of Chinese visitors, who had accounted for the largest share in October 2019, was still down about 65%.