Foreign tourists spend record ¥4.8 tril in Japan in 2019

Numbers should be amazing this year with the Olympics.

Make sure to thank a visiting Chinese or Korean for coming to Japan. Some Japanese I know have some pretty negative attitudes towards them.

The Chinese tourist is keeping Japan afloat!

Even with the downturn in South Korean tourists, 5.58 million of them still visited Japan last year. That's not an insignificant number, so good for them.

The Australians will be spending the most due to the high proportion of skiers. One day of skiing is way more expensive than one day of sightseeing.

To avoid overtourism, the focus needs to be on spending and dare I say it profits, not on the simple number of tourists.

Speaking of "overtourism" (as it relates to Japan) I was just reading this article earlier..

https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-topics/c07701/kyoto-and-the-peril-of-overtourism-interview-with-mayoral-candidate-murayama-shoei.html

It would be great if rail passes allowed access to the Nozomi. That would move tourists around more and likely mean the would spend more. Also be a more welcoming sign.

Skiing is expensive. Focusing on the cost of it destroys the stoke, so many people try to deny it, especially ski bum types. I live local, use blagged and second hand gear, and ride on a season pass and it still costs me a fortune when I write it all down. If you enjoy it, there is no need for any other justification. Its your money and you are free to do what you like. Just don't pretend people out there looking at a few temples or wandering around Harajuku are spending the same amount of money as skiers. They are not.

As with everything in life, there are good and bad points to this, and there are good and bad apples when it comes to tourism and tourists themselves. But a lot of Japanese I know who complain about the increase in tourism -- usually singling out Chinese and Koreans -- need to understand how vital all this is to the Economy, and that they really are no different when they themselves travel (loud, clueless, bumping into things, crowding places up, etc.). That people are coming here to spend their time and money and WANT to be in Japan is Something to celebrate, and we should embrace them, despite said few bad apples.

How do they know how much they spend? Stats?

How much is it by Gross Domestic Product

I am surprised that an increase in 2.2 % in tourists transformed into 6.6% more spending while yen currency was higher and VAT went up in October...

Good for Japan but beware of downslide waiting after Olympic games.

Currency is too expensive for Europe at least.

How much is it by Gross Domestic Product?

less than .01%

5 million South Koreans visited Japan last year. South Korea has a population of 51 million, which means that 10% of South Koreans (1 in 10 people) visited Japan last year. That is a significant number. How does that total for a 10 or 20 year period?

That's a lot of money. Way to go Japan!

That is about 1% of Japan's GDP.