Heating Up Situation, Chinese Tourists Start Transferring Destinations From Japan To Domestic

Road illustration (Photo: Freepik/Freepik)

JAKARTA Within days of the Chinese government urging its citizens not to visit Japan due to tensions between the two countries, Tokyo tour guide Xie Shanpeng has received four cancellations from Chinese tourists. Even so, more than 90 percent of other customers continue their travel plans.

Xie, who has been managing its own tourist business in Japan since 2013, usually handles between a thousand and two thousand Chinese tourists every month.

"The impact in November has not actually been felt too much. Hotels and transportation companies usually apply high cancellation fees when they are close to the date of departure, so canceling travel now is not profitable," Xie told The Straits Times.

"But for new demand, including travel on the Lunar New Year holiday next year, it will definitely be affected," he added.

This cancellation comes as a result of a continuing reaction from Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's statement on November 7 in the Japanese Parliament. He said Tokyo could respond militarily if China attacked Taiwan.

His remarks, as well as his reluctance to withdraw the comments, sparked Beijing's anger that sees Taiwan as part of its territory.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the statement a form of blatant interference in China's internal affairs and on November 13 summoned the Japanese ambassador to protest strongly.

As a form of dissatisfaction, Beijing issued an official appeal that advised its citizens not to travel for tourism or education to Japan. On November 14, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a notification that the highly provocative Japanese leader's comments had damaged the atmosphere of relations between the two countries and pose a risk to the safety of Chinese citizens in Japan.

China's Ministry of Education also reminded students planning to study in Japan to closely monitor the security situation there.

On the weekend of November 15 '16, several major Chinese airlines including Air China announced full refunds for passengers canceling flights to and from Japan until December 31, 2025.

One ski tour operator in Shenzhen said six of its customers who were originally scheduled for a vacation to Hokkaido at the end of November canceled their trip and opted for Xinjiang. According to him, the decision did not represent all tourists, as many continued their ski trip plans to Japan in early December.

Several Chinese tourism agents stopped selling tour packages to Japan, while others chose to wait and see.

On November 17, agents of the Qinghai Modern International Travel Agency posted an announcement on WeChat stating that they were responding to government directives by stopping all tourism products to Japan.

Beijing Huatu International Travel Service also told local media that in the meantime they do not accept customers who want to go to Japan.

"For flights, hotels, and visas that have been issued in the near future, it is certainly more difficult to cancel them", said the company's representative.