Cherry blossom season attracting record number of travelers to Japan

In the cherry blossom season in March and April, it is expected that a record number of Chinese visitors will travel to Japan to view the flowers, fueled by further relaxation of Japanese visa requirements, especially for college students.

According to Qunar, an online travel firm that was acquired by Ctrip, China's largest online travel agency, in the past three years, the number of Chinese people who booked trips though the platform to see cherry blossoms in spring in Japan jumped by more than 30 percent for three consecutive years.

As of November, the number of visitors from the Chinese mainland traveling to Japan surged to a record 8 million in 2018, with their total spending exceeded 100 billion yuan ($14.9 billion).