Japan Mobilizes for '20 Million Outbound Travelers': Why Push Citizens Abroad With a Weak YenA · FULL TRANSLATION

While the world races to attract inbound visitors to Japan, Tokyo is doing the opposite—mobilizing to send its own citizens abroad. On June 16, the Japan Tourism Agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and ANTOR-JAPAN held a joint press conference on a goal of 20 million outbound travelers. For Taiwan's tourism and hospitality businesses, this is a clear signal about Japanese visitor demand. In 2025, Japanese outbound travelers numbered about 14.73 million, up 1.72 million year on year but still short of the pre-pandemic peak of 20.08 million—the roughly 5-million gap the target aims to close. The timing is striking: with the yen weak near 161, overseas trips are pricier for Japanese, yet the government is acting now for two reasons—rebuilding the habit and confidence to travel ('momentum building'), and lowering barriers through cheaper passport fees and stronger overseas safety measures. A often-overlooked player is ANTOR-JAPAN, the council of foreign government tourism offices in Japan—essentially the team representing destinations that want Japanese travelers, Taiwan included. Japan reviving outbound travel opens a door for the whole world. For Taiwanese operators, now is the time to build Japan-facing products, position Taiwan as a near, safe, good-value choice for post-pandemic Japanese travelers, and partner via platforms like ANTOR. Watch the monthly outbound numbers, the yen, and the concrete JATA and tourism-office campaigns.