Latest news with #foreignvisitors
BreakingNews.ie
5 days ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Over 528,000 foreign visitors came to Ireland in April 2025, down by 4%
A total of 528,100 foreign visitors completed a trip to Ireland in April 2025, down 4 per cent compared with April 2024, and up 14 per cent compared with April 2023. The visitors spent €375 million on their trips (excluding fares), down 10 per cent compared with April 2024, and up 1 per cent compared with April 2023. Advertisement The largest contingent of visitors came from Great Britain (41 per cent), followed by visitors from the United States (18 per cent). The most frequent reason for travelling to Ireland was for holiday (40 per cent). Visitors stayed a total of 3.4 million nights in the country, a drop of 1 per cent when compared with April 2024, and down 6 per cent when compared with April 2023. The average length of stay for foreign resident overnight visitors was 6.5 nights, up from an average of 6.4 nights in April 2024, and down from 7.9 nights in April 2023. Advertisement Commenting on the release, Gregg Patrick, statistician in the tourism and travel Division, said: 'The results show that 528,100 foreign visitors departed Ireland on overseas routes in April 2025, a decrease of 4 per cent compared with April 2024 and an increase of 14 per cent compared with April 2023. Visitors' expenditure in Ireland (excluding fares) was €375 million. Visitors from Great Britain accounted for €96 million (26 per cent) of this spend, Continental Europe for €134 million (36 per cent), North America for €121 million (32 per cent), and visitors from the rest of the world for €25 million (7 per cent). Taken together, this represented a fall of 10 per cent compared with April 2024, and a rise of 1 per cent compared with April 2023. Advertisement The visitors most frequent reason for their journey was for holiday or leisure (40 per cent). Their second most frequent reason was to visit friends or relatives (38 per cent). Ireland Gerry Adams awarded €100,000 in damages after winn... Read More More of the visitors stayed with family or in their own property (42 per cent) than in any other accommodation type, and the typical visit lasted 6.5 nights.' Speaking about the figures, Eoghan O'Mara Walsh, chief executive of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, said: 'Industry use a variety of data sources, both their own and independently collated, and April was a strong month compared to the same month last year. "Industry record bums on seats and heads on pillows as opposed to the CSO sample survey – there remains a misalignment of sorts between the two data sources but it is narrowing and this is welcome'.
NHK
6 days ago
- Business
- NHK
LDP lawmakers to propose abolishing tax-free shopping for overseas visitors
A group of lawmakers from Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party says it has come up with a proposal that includes abolishing, in principle, the tax-free shopping system for foreign visitors. Under the current system, eligible foreign tourists can purchase items at duty-free shops in Japan without paying consumption tax. But it is pointed out that there have been many cases where visitors are buying a large amount of duty-free items and reselling them to gain illegal profits. An LDP study group initiated by Supreme advisor Aso Taro basically approved the draft plan on Thursday calling for the abolition of the tax exemption system. The draft is raising doubts about whether the government can gain the public's understanding for supporting sales of luxury brand items to foreign tourists through the tax system. But the group also notes that regional development needs to be supported. It calls for preferential measures for duty-free shops at regional airports and ports that sell specialty products such as sake to overseas visitors who have completed their departure procedures. The group says it will submit its proposal to the LDP's Research Commission on the Tax System for discussions on tax reform in fiscal 2026.
NHK
27-05-2025
- Business
- NHK
Japan wants residents to visit their country's tourism spots
A Japanese government white paper on tourism is calling for efforts to boost domestic travel. Local residents have been taking fewer trips since the COVID pandemic. That's in contrast to a boom in the number of visitors from overseas. The white paper says Japan hosted the most number of foreign visitors ever in 2024. Their spending was also a record high. Japanese opened their wallets too, spending a record 25.1 trillion yen, or roughly 175 billion dollars, on their domestic trips last year. But the number of travelers was down 8.2 percent compared to 2019, before the pandemic took hold. The government report blames the country's shrinking and aging population and declining birthrate. One idea is to attract repeat visitors through programs where they can interact with local residents. Seven municipalities are collaborating in one such initiative, called Yukiguni. A woman from Tokyo experienced rice planting in Niigata Prefecture last week. The accommodation fee was free in exchange for the work. She says she was so moved that she wants to come back to harvest rice. The organizer says the tour fosters a sense of affection for the area among participants as they can contribute locally. Another benefit is that the visitors can help with the region's labor shortage through their interactions with local people.
South China Morning Post
27-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China's Xinjiang plans to open up to more tourists
China's Xinjiang – an ethnically diverse region that still faces Western sanctions over a slew of human-rights issues – plans to open up to more foreign visitors, as the local government strives to boost tourism and diversify the regional economy. The Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, which stretches over a vast tract of land in western China, has become a hugely popular destination among domestic tourists in recent years, receiving a record 302 million visits last year. Now, local officials have published an action plan to further grow the region's culture and tourism sector, with a target of raising the industry's annual revenue to at least 1 trillion yuan (US$138 billion) and receiving at least 400 million visits per year by 2030, according to the document published on Sunday. The plan will involve opening up the region to more foreign tourists, with the document including references to strengthening the development of cross-border tourism and expanding trade in cultural goods and services. Xinjiang – which is famous in China for its stunning natural scenery and diverse mix of ethnic groups – is not currently fully open to foreign nationals. While international visitors can generally enter the region freely, they normally need special permits to visit some tourist attractions, such as the huge Bayinbuluke grassland, according to China-based travel agencies that organise trips for foreigners.
CNA
26-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Japan's Narita Airport to build third runway
TOKYO: Tokyo's Narita Airport has begun the construction of a third runway to help cope with an explosion in foreign tourist arrivals. The project, which kicked off on Sunday (May 25), will allow Narita to accommodate 500,000 landings and takeoffs annually by 2029, compared with 300,000 currently. Narita, located about an hour's train ride from Tokyo, serves as one of the two major international gateways to Tokyo along with Haneda Airport. The expansion, which will also include lengthening the second runway, will almost double the size of the airport. Airport chief executive Akihiko Tamura said the project will help boost Japan's international competitiveness. "It is an urgent issue to further enhance the functions of the airport to strengthen the international competitiveness of Japan and the Tokyo metropolitan area, to increase the number of foreign visitors to Japan, and to promote the development of the areas surrounding the airport," he said at an opening ceremony on Sunday. The record number of tourists descending on Japan every month are infusing energy into the nation's fragile economy while also causing congestion at popular destinations like Kyoto. The government has set an ambitious target of almost doubling tourists to 60 million annually by 2030. For the first four months of the year, Japan welcomed 14.4 million visitors, a rise of 24.5 per cent from a year ago.
