Japan's February Tourism Numbers Not Out Yet

Above, the Roppongi section of Tokyo. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It is now mid-March and, so far, neither the Japan Tourism Agency or the Japan National Tourist Organization have released any statistics on the number of foreign tourists to Japan for February, the month I visited.

I am curious to see how many foreign visitors came to Japan in February (and January), especially since Japan surpassed its goal of 10 million visitors in 2013. Are they on a pace to meet or exceed their foreign visitor goals this year?

I doubt the two heavy February snowstorms in Japan had any effect on the number of foreign tourists since most had purchased their airline tickets far in advance (I did in November).

The number of foreign tourists will likely jump as the cherry blossom season will be arriving in a month or so. Tourists have been historically drawn to Japan during the spring months to view the cherry blossoms.