Visitors to Japan in 2018 Seen Hitting 30 M. Soon

December 14, 2018

Tokyo--The number of visitors to Japan in 2018 is expected to reach 30 million as early as next week, Japanese tourism minister Keiichi Ishii said Friday.

It would be the first time for Japan to have 30 million visitors in a year.

Speaking at a press conference, Ishii said, "We will continue to work proactively on measures to achieve our goal of hitting 40 million visitors in 2020."

In recent years, the number of visitors to Japan has been rising, mainly due to a cheaper yen and an increase in the number of flights operated by budget airlines. In 2017, the number of such visitors hit a record high of 28.69 million.

While the number of inbound visitors in 2018 fell in some months after natural disasters, such as strong Typhoon Jebi and a massive earthquake that rocked the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, the number of visitors is seen exceeding 30 million thanks to strong growth marked in the first half of the year. Jiji Press