In contrast to travelers from the other markets, a notably higher proportion of Japanese poll participants—more specifically, 28% of them—have not yet decided where they will go to in Europe in the coming months.
The European Travel Commission (ETC) reports that among potential Japanese tourists, the most popular destinations are France, Italy, and Germany. France and Italy are chosen by equal amounts of respondents (23%) and Germany is a close second with 19%, according to EU Helpers.
With 13 percent of the total, the United Kingdom and Austria are tied for third place in the preferences of Japanese respondents. Spain comes in second with 9%, followed by a tie for last place with 5% each from Czechia, Croatia, the Netherlands, and Sweden.
Furthermore, as ETC notes, Japanese respondents had a variety of preferences for modes of transportation when they travel inside Europe, which reflects the different priorities and types of trips that they take.
Most Japanese people would rather travel by plane, maybe to see two or more locations in Europe in a short period of time—roughly half of the planned journeys last less than a week.
Of the Japanese respondents, 40% select full-service airlines and 42% choose low-cost airlines as their preferred means of transportation.
A sizable portion of respondents also expressed interest in rail travel, with 38% thinking about buying a single ticket and 29% intending to buy a train pass.
The high numbers show a willingness to travel by rail, which provides a more immersive and relaxed travel experience than flying.
Just 6% of Japanese people prefer to travel by bus or motorcoach, whereas 15% prefer to use RVs, including campervans or truck campers.
Cultural and historical exploration is the most popular activity that Japanese travelers choose when arranging vacations to Europe; 46% of the respondents, or over half of the sample, chose this option.
Closely behind, chosen by 41% of Japanese respondents, are culinary experiences, while 38% are interested in leisurely travel.
15% of respondents ranked creative art activities—such as photography workshops—as the second-to-last option, while 14% ranked luxury shopping at the bottom of the list.