Various destinations in Asia Pacific showed strong recovery, including the increasing number of Chinese travellers.
Japan
Boosted by a weak Yen, there were around 2 million foreign visitors to Japan in June, approximately 72% of the comparable figure in 2019. Aside from the key feeders in East Asia, several markets showed stronger demand than 2019, including Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam, the U.S., and Australia.
The largest feeder market in 2019, China, showed slow recovery due to limited direct flights from major cities, and the total number of visitors from China was only at 24% of pre-pandemic levels. An announcement on August 10 indicated that China would allow outbound tour groups to Japan to be organized again.
As more tourists flock to Japan, hotels and transportation industries faced worsening labor shortages. While hotels are registering record occupancy levels and room rates, some have decided to raise the room rate to keep occupancy down. The transportation industry across Japan also saw the surging demand of foreign tourists in major cities, and local trains and taxis were not able to cope with the increasing demands. The Kyoto government decided to abolish the one-day bus pass by March 2024 in the hope of alleviating overcrowding on buses for local users.
Macau SAR
Macau welcomed more than 2.2 million visitors in June, 52% of whom were overnight visitors. Boosted by visitors from Greater China, tourism in Macau recovered quickly after the return of Chinese travelers. Approximately two-thirds of visitors were from Mainland China in June, followed by Hong Kong SAR (27.2%) and Taiwan (1.9%). The year-to-date June data also indicates the recovery of Macau’s visitor arrivals, recording 57% of comparable figures in 2019.
With the growing number of tourists, hotel performance also increased drastically. In June, all hotels registered an average occupancy rate of 89% with an average room rate of MOP 1,305. The monthly RevPAR was at 97% of the figures in 2019, showing robust demand from the gaming side and tourists after the pandemic.
Vietnam
In the first half of 2023, Vietnam welcomed over 5.5 million overseas visitors, including 975,000 in June. South Korea, China, Taiwan, and the U.S. were the largest feeder markets to Vietnam, and it is expected to draw more overseas visitors once the new visa policy takes effect on August 15. The new visa policy will allow overseas visitors to stay longer in the country; visitors with an electronic visa are able to stay in the country for up to 90 days.
While the absolute number of overseas visitors lags behind other countries in Southeast Asia, the monthly figure reached approximately 82% of the levels in 2019, showing strong demand for tourism in Vietnam. At the same time, June is also the peak season for domestic tourism. There were roughly 13.5 million domestic tourists, including 9 million overnight stays. According to local news, total tourism revenue in the first half of 2023 is estimated at VND 343.1 trillion (USD 144.6 billion).
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