Japan recorded over 2,4 million inbound travelers in November last year, the second consecutive month that was above the level of 2019.

Korea, Taiwan, and China are the top feeder markets, while the number of visitors from China had only recovered to 34% of pre-pandemic levels.

Japan

At the same time, the number of visitors from Korea tripled from the comparable figures in 2019, due to improved Japan-Korea relations as well as a weaker yen.

On the first day of 2024, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck central Japan near the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, and the death toll exceeded 200 amid the aftershocks. Some of the public transportation and roads in central Japan remained restricted due to ongoing repairs.

One of Tokyo's Haneda Airport’s runways, where a collision between a Japan Airlines passenger jet and a Japan Coast Guard plane happened, was reopened after a week, while it affected more than 200,000 passengers during the New Year holidays.

Macau SAR

Macau welcomed over 2.5 million visitor arrivals in November 2023, about 88% of the comparable figure in 2019. Hotel occupancy also recovered to 82.3% in the same month, 9.5% less than in 2019. On the other hand, Macau’s gross gaming revenue reached over MOP180 billion in 2023.

According to the terms of casino license renewal, the six operators are obliged to increase their investment in non-gaming sectors by 20% if the gross revenue is greater than MOP180 billion. As a result, the total investment in non-gaming sectors is expected to increase from MOP108.7 billion to MOP130.4 billion.

The Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) allocated a budget of MOP235 million for expanding Macau’s international visitor market in 2024 through flight subsidies to Air Macau’s international flights, which exclude mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, and Taiwan.

However, the effect might be limited as the international flights only cover seven countries in North and Southeast Asia.

The Philippines

According to the data from the Department of Tourism (DOT), over 5.4 million international visitors entered the Philippines in 2023, exceeding the 4.8 million visitors projected earlier. The recovery rate was approximately 66% compared to 2019.

The international tourism receipts also surged to an estimate of PH482.5 billion in 2023, approximately the same record as in 2019. In 2024, DOT sets a target of 7.7 million international visitor arrivals, or around 93% of the recovery.

Following the guidance of the National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP) 2023–2028, DOT completed several projects aiming to improve connectivity between destinations and mobility between hubs.

At the same time, DOT expects to boost domestic tourism in 2024 after the government introduces more long weekends in the country. Domestic tourism contributed about PH1.5 trillion last year, over three times more than inbound tourists.

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