Weak yen slows overseas summer travel recovery

The yen — now at historic lows — is slowing the recovery of oversea travel during the summer break, according to estimates released Thursday by JTB, Japan’s largest travel agency.

The number of travelers going abroad between July 15 and Aug. 31 is expected to go up slightly, a mere 1% increase from last year, and make a recovery to around 65% of prepandemic levels, the survey said.

The JTB survey showed that short trips to neighboring destinations such as South Korea and Taiwan remain popular, but there has also been an increase in the number of travelers taking longer trips to destinations that are farther away this year.