China to lift ban on group tours to Japan

Nihon Keizai Shimbun learned on 9 August that the Chinese government plans to lift the ban on group tours to Japan.

A number of relevant sources revealed that the Chinese Embassy in Japan on the same day to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the form of text to convey the news that will be lifted on the 10th group travel ban.

China’s current economic downturn, hoping to expand economic exchanges with Japan’s strong will. Some analysts believe that China intends to build momentum for improved relations before the 12th of August, which marks 45 years since the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between China and Japan.

In February this year, the Chinese government lifted the ban on outbound group travel for Chinese people for the second time in about three years. Since then, the number of target countries has been increased in phases, and currently there are about 60 countries. Among them, there are more emerging countries such as Southeast Asia, Africa and South America, and Japan is not included at present.

China currently allows individual travel to Japan. However, if an individual travels to Japan, he or she needs to have a certain amount of income or more, and the Japanese government issues visas under very strict conditions. Group travel application conditions are more relaxed, if the ban is lifted, it is expected that the number of tourists from China to Japan will increase significantly.

It is not yet clear whether the group tour application procedure will actually start on 10 August.

Figures from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) show that mainland Chinese visitors to Japan had reached about 9.59 million at its peak in 2019, accounting for 30 per cent of the total number of foreign tourists visiting Japan.

The Japan Tourism Agency’s 2019 survey on consumption trends of foreigners visiting Japan showed that 30.3 per cent of Chinese visiting Japan for tourism and leisure purposes were group tourists.

If the ban on group travel to Japan from China is lifted, it may help activate Japan-related industries such as retail, transport and hotels. On the other hand, there are still problems with the hospitality system due to the severe labour shortage in Japan. With the increase in foreign tourists, hotel prices are also rising, and the lifting of the ban on group travel from China to Japan may further push up prices in the future.