Japan Sees Record Spending and Visitor Numbers in 2024

Japan Sees Record Spending by Foreign Visitors in 2024

Foreign visitors to Japan spent a record 8.13 trillion yen ($51.69 billion) in 2024, marking a 53.4% increase from the previous year. This significant jump pushed spending beyond the 8 trillion yen mark for the first time, according to the Japan Tourism Agency.

The number of visitors to the country also reached an all-time high, with a 47.1% increase from 2023, bringing the total to 36,869,900 visitors.

The final quarter of 2024 saw a particularly strong performance, with spending by international tourists increasing by 37.3% compared to the same period the year before, reaching 2.31 trillion yen. This figure also represented a 90.5% surge compared to the same period in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chinese visitors contributed the most to the spending, accounting for 21.3% of the total. However, their proportion decreased by 15 percentage points compared to 2019. Meanwhile, the proportions of visitors from Western and Southeast Asian countries increased.

On average, each inbound visitor spent 227,000 yen during their trip. This strong consumption was driven by the weak yen and rising accommodation costs. In addition to shopping, tourists also spent more on entertainment and leisure activities, including theme parks and ski resorts.