Visitors to Japan in Jan.-Nov. Top Record Annual High

   Tokyo, Dec. 18 (Jiji Press)--The cumulative number of foreign visitors to Japan in January-November is estimated to have totaled 33,379,900, already exceeding the previous annual record high of 31.88 million in 2019, the Japan National Tourism Organization said Wednesday.
   The surge was backed by the yen's historic weakness and more frequent flights.
   In November alone, the estimated number of foreign visitors to Japan grew 30.6 pct from a year earlier to 3,187,000, surpassing the 3 million threshold for the second straight month. It was also 30.5 pct higher than the figure for November 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
   The autumn foliage season attracted tourists from the United States, as well as from China, from which the recovery in demand had been delayed.
   By country or region, South Korea topped the number of visitors in November at 749,500, up 15.3 pct. China ranked second with 546,300, more than doubling from November 2023, followed by Taiwan, the United States and Hong Kong.

(2024/12/18-18:12)