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Chinese tourists blamed for overtourism in Japan’s Kyoto despite huge fall in arrivals

Chinese tourists are being unfairly blamed for Kyoto’s overtourism crisis, according to a new report, even as data shows mainland visitor numbers have fallen sharply…

By Samantha Johnson / July 21, 2026
Chinese tourists are being unfairly blamed for Kyoto’s overtourism crisis, according to a new report, even as data shows mainland visitor numbers have fallen sharply amid worsening ties between China and Japan.

The report released earlier this month by the Kyoto City Tourism Association’s destination management organisation said many local residents assumed crowded public transport, congestion at popular sights and rising hotel prices were being driven by mainland Chinese tour groups.

But relatively few Chinese visitors travelled to the ancient Japanese capital in the past couple of years, the report said, largely because Beijing pressured its citizens to holiday elsewhere amid rising geopolitical tensions.

Analysts said near-daily media coverage about China had amplified residents’ assumptions – and grumbles – and likely contributed to the hostility.

In recent weeks, Japanese media reported on Chinese vessels conducting maritime research within Japan’s exclusive economic zone, the arrest in China of two Japanese nationals on suspicion of smuggling restricted rare earth products and the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile from a Chinese submarine into the South Pacific.

Tourists walk past shops and restaurants up the hill leading to Kiyomizu-dera temple in Kyoto in January 2025. Japan is targeting 60 million foreign tourists by 2030. Photo: AFP
Tourists walk past shops and restaurants up the hill leading to Kiyomizu-dera temple in Kyoto in January 2025. Japan is targeting 60 million foreign tourists by 2030. Photo: AFP

Takuya Horie, director of planning and marketing for the Kyoto City Tourism Association, cited several reasons for the misconception that many Chinese tourists were in Kyoto.

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