Japanese love back on the radar for Gold Coast

Camera-clicking, koala-cuddling Japanese tourists once flocked to Queensland in their hundreds of thousands before being overtaken by China as our biggest international visitor market.

But with Chinese tourism tipped to nosedive in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Japanese could step up to help fill the void.

Japan’s ambassador to Australia, Shingo Yamagami, has talked up the potential for a Japanese tourism and investment revival during a visit to southeast Queensland.

Speaking on the Gold Coast, where the Japanese developed a swag of hotels and golf courses in the 1980s and ’90s, Mr Yamagami (pictured) said the post-pandemic tourism recovery and 2032 Brisbane Olympics presented a huge opportunity to entice Japanese tourists back.

At the peak of the Japanese tourism boom in the mid 1990s, Queensland attracted the lion’s share of the more than 800,000 visitors who came to Australia each year.

But Japanese visitor numbers have more than halved since then as China and New Zealand became the dominant international tourism markets.

Mr Yamagami said the Japanese were instrumental in helping develop Queensland’s international tourism industry and had a strong affection for Australia.

“Back in the 1980s, Japanese investment was huge here,” he said.

“We have developed golf courses, marinas, hotels, housing together.

“So I think now that Covid is almost behind us, (it’s) high time for Japanese tourists to have a renewed look at the potential of Gold Coast and Queensland.”

Flights from Queensland to Japan are yet to resume but Mr Yamagami said All Nippon Airways had continued to fly between Sydney and Tokyo throughout the pandemic, with Japan Airlines also currently operating services. Gold Coast-tokyo flights are scheduled to restart in August.