A surprisingly large number of Japanese say that traveling abroad is no longer a priority for them.

A survey conducted last year by Morning Consult showed that 35% of respondents, higher than in any other country, do not want to travel again.

However, as Tetsu Nakamura, a professor at Tamagawa University and a specialist in tourism psychology and behavior, acknowledges, this result is not at all surprising.

“In 2019, even before the coronavirus pandemic, the Japanese who traveled abroad at least once a year made up about 10% of the population,” he says.

According to another survey he conducted in 2016, there are those whom he calls “passive”, that is, those who say they want to go abroad, but do not want to, and “deniers”, that is, people who are not interested in traveling . and also not to travel.

These two groups together make up about 70% of the participants in his own pre-pandemic poll, where “deniers” themselves make up about 30%.

Japan is enough

Although Japan is considered to have one of the most powerful passports in the world, less than 20% of the population holds one, according to the Foreign Ministry.

To some of these “never travellers,” traveling in their own country seems like overkill.

“Many Japanese people find that traveling abroad is time-consuming, takes time, planning and energy,” says Nakamura. And Hiroo Ishida, 25, from Chiba, carer and Harley enthusiast, agrees.

“I would like to go to the United States, mainly because the Western media portrays it as a place where motorcyclists go, but I probably won’t go because just planning such a trip is a problem. There are plenty of places in Japan that attract motorcyclists,” says Ishida, who made his last trip in high school.

Kotaro Toriumi, an aviation and travel analyst, said the thought of complicated procedures and paperwork for overseas travel, and the pandemic, put Japanese people off. In addition, according to him, the coronavirus it changed the mentality of the Japanese.

“People who used to travel … are now afraid to travel abroad because of the risk of infection, but feel good traveling domestically. I think they are becoming more and more aware of how many spectacular tourist destinations there are in Japan where they can have a good time without going out,” he says.

He also believes that those who insist they will never travel abroad simply do not want to do so anytime soon, at least until the pandemic is finally over.

The cost is prohibitive

It is believed that another factor influencing their reluctance is the cost of the trip.

The Japanese currency, the yen, is at its weakest point in decades, many Japanese have not received a raise in thirty years, and inflation is driving down the value of many people’s incomes.

“Compared to the older generation, young people are less likely to go abroad because they do not have enough money. In addition, many people find online activities and video games/smartphone games more fun than traveling abroad,” Toriumi explains. On the other hand, “many older people would like to travel abroad again when Covid subsides.”

86.2% fewer travelers

Nakamura’s research shows that people who travel positively are not influenced by others.

“People who have always had a positive attitude towards traveling abroad will try to travel again when they have the opportunity. This is true both before and after the pandemic,” he says.

Yuma Kase, a 25-year-old financial worker, admits that he enjoys visiting other countries and meeting people from different cultures.

“Preparing to visit another country is part of the journey and the excitement that I experience. “Knowing that I need to practice what to say or explore the cultural differences of peoples is something I always look forward to,” she says. But her love of travel is not hereditary. Unlike her, her mother hates to travel: “The farthest distance she has traveled is 2022 at the mall,” the 25-year-old jokes.

According to the latest data from the National Tourism Organization, the number of Japanese travelers abroad fell by 86.2% in 2022 to just 2.7 million compared to 20 million who traveled in 2019.

Source: CNN