This analytical report by METI's Economic Analysis Office published on July 15, 2025 examines the recovery status of international air passenger transport and trends in Japanese and foreign travelers.
Observing passenger transport-related indices from the Tertiary Industry Activity Index, the particularly notable rapid recovery of the international air passenger transport index stands out among sectors that declined significantly during COVID. Signs of recovery appeared with partial relaxation of entry conditions in March 2022, and the recovery trend became clear through phased deregulation including permission for tourism entry in June 2022 and elimination of negative certificates and vaccination proof requirements from May 2023. By the end of 2024, levels had generally recovered to pre-COVID levels.
Looking at airport usage by international flights, the three airports of Narita International, Kansai International, and Tokyo International (Haneda) account for over 70% of total arrivals and departures in 2024. However, differences in airport usage between Japanese and foreigners are evident: Japanese travelers use Haneda Airport most at 32.8%, while foreigners use airports in the order of Narita, Kansai, and Haneda. This is influenced by the fact that departures from Tokyo and Kanagawa Prefecture account for 34.0% of the total and the convenience of Shinkansen connections to Tokyo Station.
Inbound tourism (foreign visitors to Japan) is clearly driving the recovery of international flights. While Japanese departures have not recovered to 2019 pre-COVID levels except at Haneda Airport, foreign arrivals have increased significantly. According to Japan Tourism Agency surveys, Japanese overseas travelers recovered to only about 60% from 11.8 million in 2019 to 7.48 million in 2024, while domestic travelers recovered to about 90% from 90.68 million in 2019 to 81.6 million in 2024, suggesting a continued tendency to choose domestic travel due to expensive overseas travel caused by the weak yen.
The article reveals that international air passenger transport is recovering driven by inbound tourism as the government aims for 60 million foreign visitors by 2030, indicating the need to monitor inbound trends from various angles going forward.