Last night, I was chatting with a friend in Japan, and he revealed some surprising news.

He said that the cost of traveling to Japan is getting higher and higher. Japan announced that starting July 1st, the single-entry visa fee will increase from 3,000 yen to 15k yen, multiple-entry visas from 6,000 to 30k, and departure taxes from 1,000 to 3,000.
This is the first time since 1978 that visa fees have increased, and the cap on permanent residence application fees has risen from 10k to 300k.
Japan explained it as "responding to rising prices and exchange rate fluctuations," but my friend said everyone knows it's actually because Chinese tourists are no longer going.
Japan’s tourism bureau data shows that in May, Chinese tourists visiting Japan plummeted by 60.4% year-on-year, with a six-month consecutive decline.
Nikkei BP also lamented that mainland Chinese tourists' spending in the first quarter plummeted by 50%, leaving only 270.8 billion yen.
This is the reality: the spending power of European and American tourists is simply not on the same level as Chinese tourists.
In the past, one person going to Ginza to shop would be enough, now several people are needed.
The gap needs to be filled by raising prices, which is out of necessity and helplessness.
For Japan’s tourism industry, even bigger challenges are brewing.
Internationally, South Korea and Southeast Asia are taking advantage, offering full visa exemptions, diverting potential visitors who originally planned to go to Japan.
Domestically, more and more people are spending within China.
After Hainan closed its borders, duty-free shopping soared, with sales reaching 14.2 billion yuan in the first quarter, a 25.7% year-on-year increase.
Additionally, many luxury brands that used to only offer discounts in Japan are now available at discount channels like outlets and Vipshop domestically, with discounts not much less than in Japan, further pulling back consumption.
In short, the consumer power that used to fly to Tokyo’s Ginza to queue for tax refunds and buy luxury goods or authentic jerseys is being divided.
Japan’s "tourism-oriented nation" strategy for over a decade was fundamentally based on Chinese tourists’ spending power.
Now that fewer people are going, the costs are being passed on to those still willing to go.
How long this can last is uncertain. $ETH