Tourists from China walk on a street in the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo on Nov. 22, 2025. Photo by AFP
China on Monday warned its citizens against traveling to Japan during the Lunar New Year, its longest public holiday, as Beijing’s anger over a comment Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made in early November showed no signs of abating.
Citing “a surge in crimes targeting Chinese citizens” and earthquakes, the Chinese foreign ministry said nationals “face serious security threats in Japan,” according to a statement it released.
Beijing has issued similar warnings following Takaichi’s remark in November suggesting that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo.
Major Chinese airlines including Air China, China Eastern and China Southern Airlines, on Monday extended their free-of-charge change and cancellation policies for Japan-related flights until Oct. 24.
The airlines first announced the policies in November in the wake of Takaichi’s remark and then last month extended them until this March.
The number of Chinese tourists to Japan plunged 45% in December, but overall tourist numbers to Japan hit a record high, Japan’s tourism minister said last week.
While warning its nationals to shun trips to Japan, Beijing has been upbeat about a “tourism boom” with another of its eastern Asian neighbors – South Korea.
Buoyed by visa-free policies, the numbers of South Korean tourists to China and Chinese visitors to South Korea have been on the rise.
“This two-way tourism boom is a microcosm of the growing economic exchanges and cooperation between China and South Korea,” state-run tabloid Global Times said in a editorial published on Sunday.
