Japan relaxes Chinese visas to stimulate visitor & airline growth, following Southeast Asia success

Japan has an extremely ambitious tourism target, to raise its 10 million visitor arrivals to 20 million in 2020 and 30 million in 2030. But these targets are in fact entirely feasible, and perhaps even conservative, given the stringent visa policies around regional Asia that only in recent times have been relaxed, but not fully liberalised.

Japan has achieved visitor growth of over 50% from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam following relaxation of border formalities. These are Japan's smaller Asian markets but can contribute significantly to its growth needs, and diversify its arrival streams. Four North Asian markets - China, Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan - account for two-thirds of Japan's total visitor arrivals.

China has the biggest growth opportunities of all and is the next to have its visa rules relaxed. The biggest beneficiaries will be Chinese airlines and, later, Japanese LCCs. Asian visitor growth will involve Japan shifting its focus away from long-haul markets: Asian visitors comprised 64% of arrivals in 2000, but are now up to 81%. Japan in 2010 was the third most popular outbound market for Chinese, but in 2013 slipped to seventh place, suggesting considerable upside.