Q.How many tourists visit Nara each year? Has it recovered to pre-COVID levels?
Published 2026-06-19
Answer
Nara Prefecture welcomed 42.62 million tourists (cumulative) in 2024, up 9.3% (3.71 million) year on year — and 3.1% (1.40 million) above the pre-COVID figure of 2019. At the prefecture level, tourism has not just recovered but surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Nara City alone, however, drew 14.87 million in 2024, only about 85% of its 2019 level — so the city itself has not fully bounced back.
The prefecture topped its pre-COVID peak in 2024
According to the Nara Prefecture tourism dynamics survey, the prefecture recorded 42.62 million tourists (cumulative) in 2024 — up 3.71 million, or 9.3%, from 39.91 million in 2023. The key comparison is with the pre-pandemic baseline: 2024 was 1.40 million (3.1%) higher than 2019, meaning the prefecture as a whole has fully recovered and then some. Only a year earlier, in 2023, the count was still 11.4% below 2019 (about 90% of the level), so 2024 marked the leap past the pre-COVID mark.
42.62MNara Prefecture tourists (2024, cumulative)
+3.1%vs. 2019 (pre-COVID)
+9.3%vs. previous year (2023)
- 2023399110k people
- 2024436210k people
Nara City alone is still at about 85%
In contrast to the prefecture, Nara City alone has not yet returned to pre-COVID levels. The Nara City tourism survey put 2024 visitor numbers at 14.87 million — a strong 21.9% jump year on year — but still only about 85% of the 17.41 million recorded in 2019. As recently as 2023 the city stood at roughly 70% of pre-COVID, so the recovery is steadily progressing. The gap between the prefecture total (42.62M) and Nara City (14.87M) shows tourism spreading across the wider region.
14.87MNara City visitors (2024)
17.41MNara City visitors (2019, pre-COVID)
~85%2024 recovery rate vs. 2019
- 2019 (pre-COVID)1741.110k people
- 2024148710k people
Lodging hit a 15-year high; foreign visitors are nearly there
Breaking down Nara City's figures reveals a split. Overnight visitors reached 2.038 million in 2024 — surpassing the 1.956 million of the 2010 Heijo Capital 1300th Anniversary and marking a 15-year high — and topping the 1.738 million of pre-COVID 2019. Foreign overnight guests also hit a record 445,000. Total foreign visitors (including day-trippers), however, rebounded sharply to 2.977 million in 2024 (up 61.4% year on year) but still fell short of 2019's 3.318 million, at about 90%.
2.04MNara City overnight visitors (2024, 15-year high)
2.98MNara City foreign visitors (2024)
3.32Msame, 2019 (pre-COVID)
445kforeign overnight guests (2024, record high)