White Paper on Tourism In Japan The Tourism Situation in FY2015 1 Table of contents Part I Tourism Trends in FY2015 .................................................................................................. 3 Chapter 1 Global Tourism Trends ............................................................................................ 3 Section 1 Global Macroeconomic Conditions ....................................................................... 3 Section 2 Global Tourism Situation in FY2015 ..................................................................... 4 Chapter 2 Tourism Trends in Japan ........................................................................................ 11 Section 1 Travel to Japan .................................................................................................. 11 1 Travel to Japan ........................................................................................................... 11 2 International Conferences and Exhibitions Held in Japan .............................................. 19 Section 2 Trends in Japanese Overseas Travel..................................................................... 25 Section 3 Trends in Domestic Travel .................................................................................. 26 Section 4 Trends in Overnight Travels ................................................................................ 27 Section 5 Recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake .................................................. 31 1 Guest nights of Japanese staying at tourist-oriented accommodations ............................. 31 2 Guest nights of foreign visitors staying at tourist-oriented accommodations .................... 32 3 Guest nights at business people-oriented accommodations ............................................ 33 Section 6 The Tourism Situation Regional Areas ................................................................. 34 1 Hokkaido ................................................................................................................... 36 2 Tohoku ...................................................................................................................... 36 3 Kanto ........................................................................................................................ 37 4 Hokuriku-Shin‘etsu .................................................................................................... 37 5 Chubu ....................................................................................................................... 37 6 Kinki ......................................................................................................................... 37 7 Chugoku .................................................................................................................... 37 8 Shikoku ..................................................................................................................... 37 9 Kyushu ...................................................................................................................... 37 10 Okinawa .................................................................................................................. 38 Section 7 Initiatives for Regional Efforts for Tourism Promotion in Regional Areas .............. 38 1 Hokkaido ................................................................................................................... 39 2 Tohoku ...................................................................................................................... 40 3 Kanto ........................................................................................................................ 41 4 Hokuriku-Shin‘etsu .................................................................................................... 41 5 Chubu ....................................................................................................................... 42 6 Kinki ......................................................................................................................... 43 7 Chugoku .................................................................................................................... 44 8 Shikoku ..................................................................................................................... 45 9 Kyushu ...................................................................................................................... 46 10 Okinawa ............................................................................................................... 47 2 Part I Tourism Trends in FY2015 Chapter 1 Global Tourism Trends Section 1 Global Macroeconomic Conditions The year 2015 saw a gradual recovery in the world economy, although the economy of emerging countries in Asia was relatively weak. While China's moderate economic slowdown and decreases in resource prices put a downward pressure on business activities in emerging countries, the economies of the United States and developed countries in Europe has recovered. The economic situations in various regions and countries are summarized below. According to the IMF1, the real economic growth rate of the United States was between 1.8% and 3.3% for the three years immediately prior to the 2008 financial crisis, but negative growth rates were maintained in 2008 and 2009. Since increasing to 2.5% in 2010, the real economic growth rate of the United States has been fluctuating between 1.5% and 2.6%. Improvements in situations of employment and income led to a steady rise in consumer spending, which helped sustain a continued economic recovery in the United States In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, the European Sovereign Debt Crisis was triggered by the Greek crisis in 2009, and the real economic growth rate of the EU2 declined to -4.3%. In August 2015, a formal decision was made on a third financial assistance package for Greece. In implementing policies related to that package, Greece has been facing the difficult task of striking a balance between fiscal reconstruction and economic growth. The Eurozone experienced three consecutive years of positive economic growth from 2013 through 2015. The Eurozone economy has been gradually recovering thanks to growing consumer spending, growth that is partly attributable to the collapse in oil prices. In general, the economy in emerging countries is slightly weakening. The real economic growth rate of China fluctuated in the 7-plus-percent range from 2012 through 2014, and dropped to the 6-plus-percent range in 2015. China's economy has been moderately slowing down because investments in real-estate development and fixed assets, exports, and production activities have become sluggish. In August 2015, the yuan was devalued for three consecutive days, which spooked global financial markets. China's total value of trade decreased in 2015 after 6 years of increase. Regarding exports, those to Japan and the EU, China's largest trading partner, decreased. China is also experiencing a decline in imports, which suggests that a moderate economic downturn is taking place in that country. In the five major states of ASEAN3 (i.e., Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam), the real economic growth rate was between 5.5％ and 6.2％ from 2006 through 2008. Due to the impact of the 2008 financial crisis, the real economic growth rate of these countries dropped to 2.4% in 2009. In and after 2010, the real economic growth rates of these countries have been fluctuating between 4.6% and 6.9%, more or less the same figures that had been maintained prior to the 2008 financial crisis. At the end of December 2015, ASEAN launched the AEC4, an ASEAN-wide framework of economic cooperation within which ten member states aim at accelerating economic growth through intra-ASEAN free trade and market integration. The AEC started its activities on a full scale, and these activities are expected to enhance the economic growth of the region. Among emerging countries, Latin American and Caribbean countries experienced negative real economic growth of -1.3% in 2009. The real economic growth rate in these countries increased to 6.1% in 2010, a rate higher than the 5.7% recorded in 2007, the year immediately preceding the 2008 financial crisis. The economic growth in these countries decelerated in subsequent years, and their economy as of 2015 was in a slowdown as shown by the real economic growth rate of -0.3%. In the Middle Eastern and North African countries, the real economic growth rate fell to 2.2% in 2009, and it fluctuated between 4% and 5-plus % from then until 2012. In and after 2013, the real economic growth rate in these countries dropped again to the 2-plus-percent range. Significant constraints on future economic growth in these countries include political instability due to the Syrian civil war and activities of the Islamist militant group ISIL, as well as the plunge in crude oil prices. In sub-Saharan African countries, the real economic growth rate in 2009 was 4.1%, not having been significantly affected by the 2008 financial crisis. The figure fluctuated between 4.3% and 6.6% from 2010 1 International Monetary Fund 2 European Union 3 Association of South-East Asian Nations 4 ASEAN Economic Community 3 through 2014, but it was 3.8% in 2015, which indicates a downturn in the economic growth of these countries (Fig. I-1). Fig. I-1 Changes in the Real Economic Growth Rates of Major Countries and Regions 2006