Japanese airlines see rising inbound demand for New Year holiday

All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines announced on Friday that the number of reservations for international flights for the New Year holiday had increased from the previous year by 35% and 15%, respectively, driven primarily by stronger demand from incoming travelers. From Dec. 28 to Jan. 3, ANA and JAL had 143,917 and 126,693 passengers booked for international flights, respectively. Both airlines have recovered to about two-thirds of their pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels of four years ago. Inbound travel is the driving force for demand recovery. According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, 2,440,800 people arrived in Japan in November, 2.6 times the number in the same month the previous year and almost the same level as in 2019. While many Japanese are reluctant to travel abroad due to inflation and the weak yen, there are signs of recovery in Japanese outbound travel. According to ANA, outbound demand during the New Year holiday is about 60% of the level four years earlier. Hawaii is one of the top destinations for Japanese travelers. For ANA, 15,571 people reserved flights on this route during the holiday, the highest ever number for the season. Demand was also strong for destinations close to Japan, such as South Korea and Taiwan. Many Japanese families spend the New Year's holiday together in their hometowns. ANA domestic reservations were up 2% to 883,832, while JAL reservations were down 2% to 695,202. These equated to 83% and 88%, respectively, of their pre-pandemic levels.<br/>