Japan tourists in Phuket: arrivals by year and month

Japan accounted for 136,484 guest arrivals at Phuket accommodation establishments in 2025 — 1.4% of all foreign check-ins (10,085,407) and rank #19 among the 38 foreign rows (including the residual “Others”) the Ministry of Tourism and Sports publishes for the province. Against 2024 (162,772) that is −16.2%; against 2019, the last pre-pandemic year (267,320), it is −48.9%.

Over the whole series the market went from 235,717 in 2013 to 136,484 in 2025 (−42.1%). The best year on record is 2016 with 302,340 check-ins. The pandemic low was 2021 at 10,157. Japan’s share of foreign arrivals moved from 2.8% in 2019 to 1.4% in 2025, so other markets grew faster.

Seasonality: in 2025 the peak month was December (18,743) and the quietest February (3,652). Averaged over 2023–2025, arrivals are strongly seasonal (3.1× between December and February): November–March carries 44.7% of the year and June–August 25.3%, which makes Japan a year-round market for Phuket. Before the pandemic (2013–2019) the strongest month averaged 11.2% of the year, in December.

Definitions: a guest arrival is a check-in at a registered hotel, resort, guesthouse or serviced apartment in Phuket province, counted by the nationality given at check-in. It is not an airport arrival and not a count of people: someone who stays in two hotels is counted twice, someone in a private villa is not counted. The nationality series runs 2013–2025; the 2026 split will appear with the ministry’s 2026 annual file, expected mid-2027. Source: Thailand Ministry of Tourism and Sports, provincial statistics, retrieved September 2026; files refreshed 2026-09-05.