Japanese tourism sectors well-prepared to welcome Chinese tourists

Officials in Japan's tourism sector say they are prepared to welcome more Chinese tourists over the Spring Festival holiday, as more-and-more Chinese people choose to travel overseas to celebrate the festival.

Many regions in Japan like Osaka and Hokkaido, among others, are planning to hold Chinese New Year themed activities to attract Chinese tourists.

In 2014, over 2.4 million Chinese people visited the country, an increase of 83 percent compared with 2013.

Yoshinori Ochi is from the Japan Association of Travel Agents.

"I think this number is quite normal, because currently Chinese people make about one hundred million overseas trips each year. The Chinese market is very dynamic, with large potential. So it is not surprising to see more Chinese tourists traveling here to Japan."

Analysts show that depreciation of the Japanese yen and the expanded varieties of Japan's duty-free goods contributed to the increase of Chinese tourists.

In recent years, Japanese tourism sectors have been very active in attracting Chinese tourists during long holidays like National Day and Spring Festival.

Many department stores, restaurants, and major amusement parks are launching promotional policies that are specially targeting the Chinese market.

In 2014, the total spending of foreign tourists in Japan hit two trillion yen, or 17 billion US dollars, becoming a strong support for the country's shrinking domestic demand.