Recovery of Cruise Ship Industry Continues as International Visitors Arriving in Japan Quadruple in 2024

In 2024, the number of cruise ships that called at Japanese ports increased by around a third to 2,479, according to figures from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism. This was 85% of the 2018 peak of 2,930. The number of international visitors entering Japan by cruise ship also grew, quadrupling to 1,438,000, or 57% of the 2017 record of 2,529,000.

Of the total port calls, 1,923 were by foreign-based cruise ships and 556 by Japan-based vessels. The port that saw the highest number of calls was Hakata with 204, followed by Naha (175), Nagasaki (160), Yokohama (147), and Ishigaki (120).

The number of international visitors reaching Japan by cruise ship rose sharply between 2015 and 2017 on increased demand from the Chinese cruise industry. The south of Japan was a popular destination, with many cruise ships from China calling at ports around Kyūshū and Okinawa. However, the industry came to a screeching halt as COVID-19 spread, with the government suspending international cruises in March 2020. Cruise ship operations did not resume again until 2023.

MLIT figures show that before the pandemic, the number of visitors to Japan on Chinese cruise ships accounted for more 80% of the total. The pace of recovery has been slow, however. In 2024, 951,000 visitors arrived in Japan aboard Chinese cruise ships, which was 44% of 2017 record high of 2,173,000.

Among the 1,923 port calls by foreign cruise ships, 1,099 (57%) of the total involved premium, luxury, or expedition class cruises, while 824 were casual class, showing a trend toward high-end cruises compared with before the pandemic. Ships visited a total of 97 ports.

Aiming at recovery in the Japan cruise industry, the government has set targets for 2025 of 2.5 million international visitors arriving by cruise ship and more than 2,000 calls by foreign-based vessels at 100 ports around Japan.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)