Same airports. Two very different recoveries.
Before calling Japan “inward-looking,” I would look at what a trip costs a household earning yen.
Using annual average exchange rates, a US$1,000 expense cost roughly:
- 2019: ¥109,000
- 2025: ¥149,600
That is 37% more yen for exactly the same dollar price—before any increase in hotel rates or restaurant bills.
For a family saving for a holiday, that difference can determine whether the trip happens at all.
JTB’s 2026 survey puts numbers behind that pressure. Among respondents planning no overseas travel:
- 36.5% cited high travel costs.
- 26.5% cited a tight household budget.
- 21.2% cited the weak yen.
Multiple answers were allowed.
Money is not the only reason people stay home. But choosing not to travel and being priced out are different things.
The weak yen that stretches a visitor’s budget in Japan also shrinks a Japanese household’s budget abroad.
What have you seen in your own country: people losing interest in overseas travel, or struggling to afford it?
Sources:
JNTO — Visitor arrivals and Japanese overseas departures
https://lnkd.in/gsbnjfXh
JTB — 2026 Travel Trends Outlook
https://lnkd.in/eNiCymD9
