Foreign visitors to Japan fall in April amid Middle East tensions

TOKYO - The number of foreign visitors to Japan in April fell 5.5 percent from a year earlier to 3.69 million, a decline attributed to flight suspensions and reductions linked to the conflict in the Middle East as well as a diplomatic row with China, government data showed Wednesday.

It was the first decline since January, although the April figure marked the highest monthly total so far in 2026, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization.