Japan raises tourist costs
Japan recorded a record number of overseas visitors in fiscal 2025 and 3.6 million international arrivals in March — up about 3.5% year‑over‑year — as authorities roll out tougher overtourism measures. (asahi.com) New 2026 measures include proposals that triple the departure tax and double hotel taxes in Tokyo and Kyoto, and Q1 foreign visitor spending hit roughly ¥2.3 trillion driven by stronger arrivals from Taiwan and South Korea. (japantimes.co.jp) (euronews.com) (travelandtourworld.com)
Japan is making trips more expensive as record visitor numbers push Tokyo, Kyoto and the national government to raise tourism-related taxes. (asahi.com) (euronews.com) Japan logged 42,829,443 overseas visitors in fiscal 2025, the first time it has topped 40 million in a fiscal year, according to preliminary March figures released on April 15. March alone brought 3,618,900 international visitors, up 3.5 percent from a year earlier and a record for that month. (asahi.com) (japannews.yomiuri.co.jp) The national government is planning to raise the international departure tax from 1,000 yen to 3,000 yen from July 2026 for travelers age 2 and older leaving Japan by air or sea. The tax, introduced in 2019, is usually built into airline or ferry tickets. (euronews.com) (asahi.com) Kyoto already changed its accommodation tax on March 1, 2026, with rates now ranging from 200 yen to 10,000 yen per person per night depending on the room price. Kyoto says the tax funds tourism promotion and “sustainable urban development” for residents and visitors. (kyoto.travel) (city.kyoto.lg.jp) Tokyo is moving in the same direction, but its change is not yet in force. The Tokyo metropolitan government proposed replacing its current flat 100 yen or 200 yen lodging tax with a 3 percent rate and expanding the tax to private lodgings, while raising the exemption threshold from 10,000 yen to 13,000 yen per night. (tax.metro.tokyo.lg.jp) (asahi.com) The money at stake is large even before those increases fully land. Japan’s Jan. 1 to March 31 foreign visitor spending rose 2.5 percent from a year earlier to 2.3 trillion yen, the third-highest quarterly total on record, with stronger arrivals from South Korea and Taiwan helping offset weaker demand from China. (article.wn.com) (japannews.yomiuri.co.jp) Japan is not backing away from growth targets while it raises costs. Its new five-year tourism plan for fiscal 2026 through 2030 keeps the goal of 60 million inbound visitors and 15 trillion yen in annual spending by 2030, while adding stronger anti-congestion measures in crowded destinations. (asahi.com) (japantoday.com) Officials say the extra taxes will help pay for crowd control, waste collection, transport management and other services strained by the rebound in travel. The result is a simple tradeoff: Japan still wants more visitors, but it is asking them to cover more of the bill. (tax.metro.tokyo.lg.jp) (kyoto.travel)
