Japan continues to show a significant increase in tourist flow from Russia. In January-March 2019, 23,600 Russians arrived in Japan against 19,542 a year earlier. March month has broken all the records.   The number of Russians who crossed the border of Japan in March 2019 increased by 31.2% compared to the same period last year and amounted to 11,700 people (against 8,916 people in March 2018), reports the Moscow office of the Japan National Tourist Organization (JNTO) . 

The leading Japanese airline All Nippon Airways (ANA) plans to enter the Russian market in 2019. Aeroflot will have a strong competitor on the destination. Meanwhile, Russian tour operators are waiting for further growth in demand for Japan in 2019. ANA made a strategic decision to enter Russian routes in the coming months.

According to the latest statistics of Japanese National Tourist Organization (JNTO), 88,6 thousand tourists from Russia visit Japan over 11 months, which is 23.8% more than in this period in 2017. JNTO also notes a record total incoming flow to Japan - 30 million tourists since 2018. In 2017, Japan was visited by 28,690,000 visitors from different countries.

The number of tourists to Japan from Russia grew by 34%. At the same time, experts say that the reason for growth is the decline in prices for flights, as well as the year of cross-tourism in Russia and Japan, which increased the demand for trips to the country of the rising sun. According to the OneTwoTrip travel service, in 2018 the Russians began to fly to Japan more often: 34% more tickets were bought in comparison with 2017.

Russian tourist flow to Japan continues to show double-digit growth. During the first three quarters of 2018, 68,500 citizens of the Russian Federation visited this country, which is 26% more than in the same period last year.

“The Russian tourist flow to Japan in 2018 may exceed the record indicator of 2017”, - said Airi Motokura, the Head of Moscow office of Japanese National Tourist Organization (JNTO). She connects such dynamics of Russian arrivals to Japan with the facilitation of visa regime in 2017, as well as the opening of new flights and increasing frequencies from Irkutsk, Novosibirsk and Vladivostok.

“The statistics of June showed a record growth of the tourist flow from Russia to Japan, which reached 7000 people. In 2017 this figure was 5500 people, thus, the increase is 26.1%”, -according to the National Tourism Organization of Japan. During the first six months of 2018 46,400 Russians visited Japan, which is 29.9% higher than in the last year.

“S7 airline is going to carry out a new direct regular flights from airport Tolmachevo on the route Novosibirsk-Tokyo-Novosibirsk”, - reported the airport's press service. "The flights will be performed by Airbus A320neo in a two-class configuration (economy and business) from June 9 on Saturdays, returning to Novosibirsk the next day on Sundays", - the report said. The flight S7 575 will take off from Novosibirsk at 23:00 and arrive to Tokyo at 07:35. The return flight S7 576 will take off from Tokyo airport at 08:40 and arrive to Tolmachevo at 13:45. Local time is indicated for each airport.

“In January-November 2017 the tourist flow from Russia to Japan increased by 41.8% up to 71.5 thousand people, which is a record figure for the entire history of statistics”, - reported Japanese National Tourist Organization (JNTO). According to JNTO, in November 2017 7,800 Russians visited the Land of the Rising Sun, which is 56.5% higher than in the last year (5 thousand visitors). According to Japanese statistics, more than 80% of travelers come to Japan from Asia.

Siberia Airlines, part of S7 group, will begin direct flights from Irkutsk to Tokyo on April 29, 2018. As stated in the report of S7, flights will be performed on Thursdays and Sundays by A320 aircraft. Departure from Irkutsk is scheduled for 12:10 local time, arrival to Tokyo - at 18:30; departure of the return flight is at 19:30, arrival - at 00:10 next day.

“In January-October this year 63.7 thousand Russians visited Japan, which is 40.2% more than in the same period of the last year”, - according to statistics published on the website of the Japanese National Tourism Organization (JNTO). In October 2017 9,300 visitors from Russia visited Japan, which is 43.9% more than in the same period a year earlier. In general, the number of foreign tourists in Japan for the first ten months of this year amounted 23.8 million people (plus 18.3%). In October 2017 the country was visited by 2.6 million foreign travelers (plus 21.5%).

“Russia and Japan plan to increase the mutual tourist flow among themselves up to 250,000 in 2019”, - reported TASS. According to the Head of Rosturism Oleg Safonov, the parties will sign the corresponding document during the annual international tourism exhibition JATA in Tokyo.

“35.800 Russians visited Japan in the first half of 2017, which is 40.6% more than a year ago”, - reported Japan National Tourism Agency (JNTO). "The number of Russian citizens who visited the country in June 2017 increased by 58% against the same period of the last year and amounted 5.6 thousand people. In the past year in June Japan was visited by 3.5 thousand Russians", - noted in JNTO. The agency believes that the growth of the tourist flow is affected by simplification of Japanese visas regime since January 2017, the reduction of tariffs for air tickets to Japan, as well as the increase of the number of direct flights from the cities of Russian Far East.

“In April 2017, 9 thousand Russians visited Japan, this is an absolute record”, - reported in the Japanese National Tourist Organization (JNTO). "The number of Russians, who visited the country in April 2017, increased by 66% against the same period of the previous year and amounted 9 thousand people, which is an absolute record since the beginning of statistical observations.

"Aurora” airline (included in the group of "Aeroflot") will begin the regular flights on the route Vladivostok - Tokyo (airport "Narita") - Vladivostok since March 20”, - said the press service of the carrier. The flights on the new route are planned to perform three times a week - on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays - by aircraft Bombardier Dash 8-Q400.

“Since January 1, 2017 the Russian and Japanese sides on the basis of reciprocity enacted synchronized measures aimed at simplification of the visa regime for trips of citizens of both countries”, - according to the data of the Russian Foreign Ministry. In particular, the Russian consular offices abroad will now issue the Japanese citizens multiple tourist visas (including for the tourism purpose) up to 6 months, multiple private visas up to one year, as well as multiple business or humanitarian visa up to five years.

“The questions of visa regime simplification between Russia and Japan can be solved before the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to the country”, - said the Deputy press secretary of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan Masao Otaka. "I'm not sure that I can name now any terms. I think we will try to finish it (work on the agreement) very soon, I hope, before the visit of Vladimir Putin", - he added to reporters on Saturday.

The office of Japan National Tourist Organization (JNTO) will be opened at the beginning of the next year in Moscow. The news was reported to Russian tourist industry representatives and journalists by vice-president of JNTO Morihiro Kawata. He had arrived to Moscow for a workshop, organized by his Office in the Embassy of Japan.

“Charter flights program between Kamchatka and Japan will connect Tokyo and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in the summer of 2017”, - said the Agency of Tourism and External Relations of Kamchatka Region on Tuesday. "The JATM (Japan Air Travel Marketing Co Ltd) company will be the organizer and consolidator of flights tours from Japanese side.

Moscow is ready to mitigate the visa regime with Japan up to the abolition of visas, Russia’s Ambassador to Japan Yevgeny Afanasyev has told a news conference at the National Press Club. "Russia is ready to mitigate the visa regime and even to abolish it. We are working on that," the ambassador said. He noted that tourism was an important area of bilateral cooperation, but the level of tourist traffic between the two countries was not very high at the moment. According to statistics, about 60,000 Russian tourists visit Japan every year, and approximately the same number of Japanese tourists visit Russia.

In January-July 2015, Japan was visited by 11.1 million foreign tourists, which is 46.9% more than in the same period of last year, according to the Japan National Tourist Organization. The mark of 10 million tourists was reached in July, which is three months earlier than in the last year. In July, Japan was visited by 1.9 million tourists, which is 51% higher than in July 2014. For 7 months of this year, the number of tourists from China increased by 113.8% and amounted to 2.8 million people, the number of tourists from South Korea increased by 41.7% (2.2 million), from Taiwan increased by 29% (2.2 million). For the same period, Russian tourists' flow to Japan decreased by 16.8%, amounting to 30.6 thousand people. Last year, Japan was visited by 13.4 million international tourists. In 2030, the government expects to increase this number to 30 million people.

Yakutia Airlines well-known for charter flights to Japan is planning to introduce direct scheduled services to Niigata from Khabarovsk and Vladivostok onboard brand new SSJ-100 aircraft. Yakutia is the second air line in Russia to employ Sukhoi Superjets after Aeroflot. The flight period is not too long - slightly over a month.

Charter air connection between Japan and Kamchatka is set to be resumed this July. A relevant agreement has been reached by Japan Air Travel Marketing company and Russian inbound tour operator KamchatIntour. In recent years, only flights to Tokyo were offered from the region. This year, however, there are going to be two services to Osaka. The routes will be operated by Yakutia Airline's brand new Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ-100) aircraft with up to 100 seats.