Taiwanese were the biggest spenders among foreign visitors to Japan last year, edging out visitors from China for the top spot, Japan Tourism Agency figures showed.
Taiwanese spent about ￥783.5 billion (US$5.16 billion) in Japan over the year, up 42 percent from 2019, the last full year before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Spending soared despite the total number of visitors from Taiwan falling 10.4 percent from 2019, Japan Tourism Agency figures showed.
Photo: Yang Yao-ju, Taipei Times
The increase in spending might have been because of the devaluation of the Japanese yen, which last year was worth 20 to 25 percent less against the New Taiwan dollar than in 2019.
China ranked just behind Taiwan in total spending last year, with 2.36 million visitors spending ￥760.4 billion, followed by South Korea with 6.94 million visitors spending ￥739.2 billion.
Overall, total spending by foreign visitors in Japan hit a record ￥5.31 trillion, up 10.2 percent from 2019, with spending by Taiwanese visitors accounting for 14.8 percent of the total, the data showed.
Taiwanese spent ￥274.2 billion on shopping, ￥220.3 billion on accommodation, ￥167.1 billion on dining, ￥79.8 billion on transportation and ￥41.4 billion on entertainment and other services.
Japan has long been a favored destination of Taiwanese, and that was especially the case after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in late 2022.
Last year, 4.23 million Taiwanese visited Japan, compared with the 1.76 million who visited China, the second most popular destination, outbound traveler statistics for Taiwan showed.
While Taiwanese spent the most in Japan overall last year, visitors from Australia took the top spot with regards to average spending at ￥341,000 per person, followed by Spain at ￥336,000 and Italy at ￥334,000, the Japan Tourism Agency said.
In related news, Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Deputy Secretary-General Fan Chen-kuo (范振國) yesterday warned people traveling to Japan not to consume or buy products containing red yeast rice.
The reminder came ahead of the Tomb Sweeping Day long weekend, which starts tomorrow, as many Taiwanese are expected to travel to Japan, he said.
The Food and Drug Administration has asked Japan to provide export information on the red yeast rice used by Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co, Fan said.
The drugmaker on March 22 said that its nutritional supplements containing red yeast rice might cause kidney problems.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has asked the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan to monitor the issue and pass on related information to government agencies, Fan said.
The Japanese government is taking the issue seriously: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has pledged a thorough investigation, and Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said that the WHO would be kept informed, while Japan’s embassies abroad would share information related to the case, Fan said.
Additional reporting by Liu Tzu-hsuan
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS