Editing Economy of Japan (section)

==== Tourism ====
{{Main|Tourism in Japan}}
[[File:Himeji_castle_in_may_2015.jpg|thumbnail|right|Himeji Castle, in [[Himeji, Hyōgo|Himeji]], [[Hyōgo Prefecture]], is one of the most visited sights in Japan.]]
In 2012, Japan was the fifth most visited country in Asia and the Pacific, with over 8.3 million tourists.<ref name="Tourism Highlights 2013 Edition">{{cite web |url= http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/unwto_highlights13_en_hr.pdf |title=Tourism Highlights 2013 Edition |publisher=[[World Tourism Organization]] |access-date=8 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131030101107/http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/unwto_highlights13_en_hr.pdf |archive-date=30 October 2013}}</ref> In 2013, due to the weaker yen and easier visa requirements for southwest Asian countries, Japan received a record 11.25 million visitors, which was higher than the government's projected goal of 10 million visitors.<ref name="Japan marks new high in tourism">{{cite web |url= http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/388740/japan-marks-record-high-of-foreign-visitors |title=Japan marks new high in tourism |work=[[Bangkok Post]] |date=9 January 2014 |access-date=9 January 2014}}</ref><ref name="Attracting more tourists to Japan">{{cite web |url= http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2014/01/06/editorials/attracting-more-tourists-to-japan/ |title=Attracting more tourists to Japan |work=[[The Japan Times]] |date=6 January 2014 |access-date=9 January 2014 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160303221036/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2014/01/06/editorials/attracting-more-tourists-to-japan/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Record 2013 tourism in Japan despite islands spat, nuclear fallout">{{cite news |author=Williams, Carol |url= https://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-japan-tourism-record-20131211,0,6936589.story |title=Record 2013 tourism in Japan despite islands spat, nuclear fallout |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=11 December 2013 |access-date=9 January 2014 |archive-date=9 January 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140109140134/http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-japan-tourism-record-20131211,0,6936589.story |url-status=live}}</ref> The government hopes to attract 40 million visitors a year by the [[2020 Summer Olympics]] in Tokyo.<ref name="Attracting more tourists to Japan" /> Some of the most popular visited places include the [[Shinjuku]], [[Ginza]], [[Shibuya]] and [[Asakusa, Tokyo|Asakusa]] areas in [[Tokyo]], and the cities of [[Osaka]], [[Kobe]] and [[Kyoto]], as well as [[Himeji Castle]].<ref name="Japan's 10 Most Popular Tourist Attractions">{{cite news |author=Schoenberger, Chana R. |url= https://www.forbes.com/2008/07/03/japan-popular-attractions-summit08-forbeslife-cx_cs_0703travel.html |title=Japan's 10 Most Popular Tourist Attractions |work=[[Forbes]] |date=3 July 2008 |access-date=8 December 2013 |archive-date=12 December 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131212221836/http://www.forbes.com/2008/07/03/japan-popular-attractions-summit08-forbeslife-cx_cs_0703travel.html |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Hokkaido]] is also a popular winter destination for visitors with several ski resorts and luxury hotels being built there.<ref name="Attracting more tourists to Japan" /><ref name="Boom time for Hokkaido ski resort area">{{cite web |author=Takahara, Kanako |url= http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2008/07/08/news/boom-time-for-hokkaido-ski-resort-area/ |title=Boom time for Hokkaido ski resort area |work=[[The Japan Times]] |date=8 July 2008 |access-date=9 January 2014 |archive-date=22 October 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161022031639/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2008/07/08/news/boom-time-for-hokkaido-ski-resort-area/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Japan's economy is less dependent on international tourism than those of other G7 countries and OECD countries in general; from 1995 to 2014, it was by far the least visited country in the [[Group of Seven|G7]] despite being the second largest country in the group,<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.ARVL?end=2014&locations=US-JP-DE-GB-FR-IT-CA&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1995 |title=International tourism, number of arrivals - United States, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Canada {{!}} Data|work=data.worldbank.org|access-date=16 March 2020|archive-date=19 March 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200319012917/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.ARVL%3Fend%3D2014%26locations%3DUS-JP-DE-GB-FR-IT-CA%26most_recent_value_desc%3Dtrue%26start%3D1995|url-status=live}}</ref> and as of 2013 was one of the least visited countries in the [[OECD]] on a per capita basis.<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-countries-where-youre-surrounded-by-tourists/ |title=The Countries Where You're Surrounded By Tourists |last=Silver |first=Nate |date=18 August 2014 |work=FiveThirtyEight |access-date=16 March 2020 |archive-date=19 March 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200319012916/https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-countries-where-youre-surrounded-by-tourists/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2013, international tourist receipts was 0.3% of Japan's GDP, while the corresponding figure was 1.3% for the United States and 2.3% for France.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.RCPT.CD?end=2013&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1995 |title=International tourism, receipts (current US$) {{!}} Data|work=data.worldbank.org|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-date=31 July 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200731100254/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.RCPT.CD?end=2013&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1995|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?end=2013&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1960 |title=GDP (current US$) {{!}} Data|work=data.worldbank.org|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-date=31 July 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200731003111/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?end=2013&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1960|url-status=live}}</ref>