More foreign tourists to Japan, but fewer Chinese  

7月赴日外国游客超百万创新高 中国游客下降3成

[File photo]

(ECNS) -- Japan saw a decreased number of Chinese tourists in July, despite a record high number of foreign visitors, according to a Chinese-language website in Japan.

Jnocnews.jp cited the Japan National Tourism Organization, saying that the number of arrivals surpassed 1 million, breaking the previous record of 923,000 set in April and 18.4 percent more than in July 2012.

But the number of Chinese visitors fell 31.5 percent to 140,000, possibly due to strained bilateral ties.

July saw the start of a new waiver of visa requirements for short-term tourists from Thailand and Malaysia and multiple-entry visas for three years to visitors from the Philippines and Vietnam, it said.

South Korea ranked first with 244,000 visitors, up 28.6 percent. Visitors from Thailand marked an increase of 84.7 percent to 30,200, while those from Malaysia rose 25.2 percent to 9,900.