The de facto "travel advisory" issued by the Chinese government to its citizens, following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks hinting at intervention in the event of a Taiwan contingency, appears to have had a minimal impact on Japan's tourism industry, the Sankei Shimbun reported on the 6th.

Sankei's analysis comes as it marks half a year since Prime Minister Takaichi's remarks on November 7th last year, hinting at intervention in the event of a Taiwan contingency.

According to data from the Japan National Tourism Organization, the total number of Chinese tourists visiting Japan from November last year, when the Chinese government's travel advisory began, to March this year, a period of five months, was 1.97 million, a sharp decline of 44.1% compared to the same period last year.

However, the total number of tourists visiting Japan during the same period increased by 3.5%.

This is attributed to an increase in tourists from countries other than China, which rose by 15.7% during this period, offsetting the decline in Chinese tourists.

In terms of spending, the expenditure per Chinese tourist visiting Japan in October-December 2025 was 243,000 yen (approximately 2.26 million won), a decrease of 12.2% compared to the same period last year.

However, the total spending by all tourists who visited Japan during the same period was 234,000 yen (approximately 2.18 million won), a decrease of only 0.5%.

In September 2012, when Japan converted three islands in the Senkaku Islands, whose sovereignty is contested by China and Japan, from private to national property, causing Chinese backlash, Chinese tourist numbers to Japan decreased by 34.1% over a five-month period.

Regarding the fact that the recent travel advisory has led to a 10 percentage point higher decrease in Chinese tourists compared to that time, Hidehiro Shioya, a professor of tourism economics at Kokugakuin University, explained that while the Chinese economy was strong in 2012, the current sluggishness is likely a contributing factor.

Professor Shioya stated, "A decline in the purchasing power of Chinese tourists visiting Japan was already becoming noticeable even before the travel advisory."

Meanwhile, the Japanese government, through its "Basic Plan for Promoting Tourism Nation" announced in March this year, has set a target of 60 million inbound tourists and 15 trillion yen (approximately 139 trillion won) in consumption by 2030, and is preparing measures against overtourism.

Chinese tourists in Tokyo, Japan Chinese tourists (Yukes) lined up at the entrance of a restaurant in downtown Tokyo, Japan [Yonhap News. Not directly related to the article]