Coronavirus: in Japan, Chinese tourists’ absence begins to bite

A guaranteed Chinese clientele was the backbone on which numerous Japanese hotels, retailers and restaurants built their businesses

But all that changed with the virus outbreak, which now threatens the Olympics, university admissions and cherry blossom viewings as well

Reading Time:4 minutes

People wearing face masks pictured in Tokyo’s upmarket shopping, dining and entertainment district of Ginza on Monday. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:00pm, 2 Mar 2020Updated: 6:00pm, 2 Mar 2020

A traditional Japanese inn that marketed itself almost exclusively to Chinese tour agencies has apparently become Japan’s first business to declare bankruptcy because of the novel coronavirus outbreak, although analysts warn that more firms will inevitably go under before the crisis passes.

Fujimosu ryokan in the resort town of Nishiura Onsen, on the coast south of Nagoya in central Japan, first opened its doors in 1956 and initially targeted Japanese travellers. Following a slump in domestic travel about seven years ago, however, the management of the 46-room property turned to the Chinese market.

According to market analysis firm Tokyo Shoko Research, the strategy was working well and the ryokan had as many as 50 tour groups from China. But that all came to a sudden halt on January 27, when the Chinese government imposed a ban on its citizens travelling abroad in groups.

“It is a precious ryokan that my forefathers kept going up until now, but with no customers, there is nothing that we can do,” Go Ito, the owner of the property, told the Mainichi newspaper.

A traditional Japanese ‘ryokan’ pictured in the snow. Photo: Japan Ryokan Association/ JNTO

The impact of the coronavirus outbreak is already being felt across Japan’s economy, but it is arguably the travel and transport sectors that are most exposed.