Vietnamese tourists in Japan. Japan welcomed 21,800 Vietnamese visitors during the first two months of 2015. -- Photo vietnamtourism.gov.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Japan welcomed 21,800 Vietnamese visitors during the first two months of 2015, an annual surge of 54.3 per cent, revealed the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO).

The number of Vietnamese tourists ranked 13th among international arrivals to Japan, but the third in terms of growth rate, after China and the Philippines, with 99.2 per cent and 71.7 per cent, respectively.

Foreign arrivals to Japan hit 1.39 million in February, up 57.6 per cent annually, owing to the easing Japan-China tension and the Lunar New Year holiday.

The figure was the highest of the last 4 months, having remained above 1 million for 12 consecutive months.

Yen devaluation and increasing numbers of international flights to Haneda Airport since March last year are also contributing factors to the nation's tourism industry spike.

Last year, the highest number of visitors came from China with 359,100 million tourists, a 2.6-fold increase from 2013 and overtaking the Republic of Korea. — VNS