Foreign visitors to Japan hit 3.7 mil. in May, new record for month

By country and region, South Korea topped the list with 825,800 visitors, up 11.8 percent, followed by China with 789,900, a 44.8 percent increase, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization.

The two countries and 19 other markets set new visitor records for May, while those from India hit a record monthly high of 43,000, up 47.9 percent from the previous year, it said.

"The momentum is strong, and we are on a very good trajectory," Japan Tourism Agency Commissioner Naoya Haraikawa told a press conference, while also noting that a concentration of visitors in the country's three major metropolitan areas -- Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya -- remains an issue.

Japan received some 18.1 million foreign arrivals from January to May, up 23.9 percent from the same period in 2024.

Travel demand has remained strong on the back of school holidays in some markets, with a surge in visitors from China, the Philippines and the United States providing support, according to the organization.

Among all countries and regions individually tracked, only Hong Kong saw a decline in May from the previous year, down 11.2 percent to 193,100. It is believed that a Japanese manga predicting a major disaster in Japan this July has discouraged travel.

The Japan National Tourism Organization office in Hong Kong has issued a statement on Facebook refuting any scientific basis for the date and location of the rumored disaster.

Earlier it was reported that Japan urged its nationals in Iran to evacuate amid Israeli attacks.