Kyoto

Kyoto, Japan, scores 71 on the CIRA Index of tourism resilience, #40 of 309 destinations. 28 of 29 measures come from public sources, with 86% confidence. Every grade below states its value, period and source.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

• CIRA Index: 71
• OECD: 74
• UN Tourism: 81
• UNDRR: 73

Strongest

• Nights in the three busiest months: 27.8 % of annual nights (Kyoto City Tourism Association (DMO KYOTO), Kyoto City Tourism Association Monthly Data Reports, Trailing 12 months: August 2025–July 2026). At or below 30: grade 4/4.
• Recovery against 2019: 126 % of 2019 visitor nights reached in the latest full year (Kyoto City Government / Nippon.com, 2025). At or above 110: grade 4/4.
• Hotel bed or room occupancy: 78.5 % average annual occupancy (Kyoto City Tourism Association (DMO KYOTO), 2024). At or above 75: grade 4/4.

Weakest

• Average length of stay: 1.6 nights per visitor (Kyoto City (Kyoto City Tourism Survey 2023), 2023). Below 1.8: grade 0/4.
• Flood hazard: high (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 1/4.
• Tourism intensity: 20.7 visitor nights per resident per year (Kyoto Municipal Government (Tourism Survey) & Statistics Bureau of Japan / Kyoto City Population, 2025). Between 20 and 40: grade 1/4.

Japan in the World Economic Forum Travel & Tourism Development Index

Japan is #1 of 110 countries (5.27 of 7) in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026, which scores countries, not cities. Cities in countries with that WEF score average 70 on the CIRA Index; Kyoto is 1 above that.

Every measure, by theme

Demand and seasonality: 75

• Nights in the three busiest months: 27.8 % of annual nights (Kyoto City Tourism Association (DMO KYOTO), Kyoto City Tourism Association Monthly Data Reports, Trailing 12 months: August 2025–July 2026). At or below 30: grade 4/4. Source
• Domestic share of nights: 42 % of nights by residents of the same country (Kyoto City (Industry and Tourism Bureau), reported by Nippon.com, 2025). Between 35 and 45: grade 3/4. Source
• Largest foreign market: 20 % of international arrivals or nights (The Japan News / Kyoto Municipal Government Tourism Survey, 2025). Between 15 and 20: grade 3/4. Source
• Recovery against 2019: 126 % of 2019 visitor nights reached in the latest full year (Kyoto City Government / Nippon.com, 2025). At or above 110: grade 4/4. Source
• Average length of stay: 1.6 nights per visitor (Kyoto City (Kyoto City Tourism Survey 2023), 2023). Below 1.8: grade 0/4. Source
• Hotel bed or room occupancy: 78.5 % average annual occupancy (Kyoto City Tourism Association (DMO KYOTO), 2024). At or above 75: grade 4/4. Source

Economy and jobs: 83

• Jobs in tourism industries: 4.1 % of employment in accommodation and food services (country figure) (World Economic Forum, TTDI 2026 (data: Travel & Tourism Economic Impact Research by World Travel & Tourism Council; Travel & Tourism by World Travel & Tourism Council), 2026). At or below 8: grade 4/4. Source
• Unemployment rate: 2.5 % of the labour force (country figure) (World Bank WDI, 2025). At or below 5: grade 4/4. Source
• Income per head: 41,295 GDP per capita, USD PPP (region figure) (OECD Regional Statistics / Cabinet Office Japan, 2021). Between 30,000 and 45,000: grade 2/4. Source
• Economic diversity: not measured yet

Climate and hazards: 55

• Extreme heat days: 11.4 days a year at or above 35°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). Between 5 and 15: grade 3/4. Source
• Tropical nights: 91.6 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). Between 60 and 100: grade 1/4. Source
• Flood hazard: high (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 1/4. Source
• Wildfire and storm hazard: medium (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 2/4. Source
• Country disaster risk: 2 INFORM Risk index, 0–10 (country figure) (INFORM Risk (European Commission JRC), INFORM Risk Mid 2026, 2026). At or below 2: grade 4/4. Source

Water and environment: 88

• Water scarcity: low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 3/4. Source
• Wastewater safely treated: 99.8 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) / Kyoto Prefecture Sewerage Policy Division, FY2023). At or above 95: grade 4/4. Source
• Municipal waste per resident: 267.2 kg per resident per year (City of Kyoto Environmental Policy Bureau / Ministry of the Environment Survey, FY2024). At or below 350: grade 4/4. Source
• Green space: 35 % of the urban area that is green or tree-covered (City of Kyoto, 'Kyoto City Basic Green Plan' (京都市緑の基本計画), 2010). Between 30 and 40: grade 3/4. Source

Community and housing: 75

• Tourism intensity: 20.7 visitor nights per resident per year (Kyoto Municipal Government (Tourism Survey) & Statistics Bureau of Japan / Kyoto City Population, 2025). Between 20 and 40: grade 1/4. Source
• Cruise pressure: not measured yet
• Rent growth: 3.6 % change in rents over the last 12 months (Global Property Guide / Statistics Bureau of Japan (SBJ), Q3 2025). Between 3 and 6: grade 3/4. Source
• Short-let density: 0.5 short-term rental listings per 100 dwellings (AirDNA & Statistics Bureau of Japan (2023 Housing and Land Survey / Kyoto City), 2023–2026). At or below 0.5: grade 4/4. Source
• Resident support for tourism: 70.1 % of residents who say tourism benefits them or the city (City of Kyoto (Industry and Tourism Bureau), 'Reiwa 7 (2025) Survey on Citizen Attitudes Toward Kyoto Tourism', Sep–Oct 2025). At or above 70: grade 4/4. Source

Access and continuity: 83

• Access redundancy: 2 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (Kyoto City Official Travel Guide / Central Japan Railway Company & West Japan Railway Company, 2024). Between 2 and 3: grade 2/4. Source
• Air traffic recovery: not measured yet
• Rail share of intercity access: not measured yet
• Rail traffic recovery: not measured yet
• Largest airline group share: not measured yet
• Air route concentration: not measured yet
• Early warning and emergency plan: An updated, tested plan that names visitors and tourism operators, with warnings in several languages (Kyoto City Tourism Association (DMO KYOTO) & Kyoto City Disaster Prevention, 2024–2025). Grade 4/4. Source
• Tourism crisis and recovery plan: A plan with named owners, operators and recovery funding (Kyoto City Government, Kyoto Tourism Promotion Plan 2025, 2021–2025). Grade 3/4. Source
• Government effectiveness: 99.5 World Bank WGI percentile rank, 0–100 (country figure) (World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025). At or above 80: grade 4/4. Source
• Travel advisory: 1 stricter of the US and Canadian government advisory for the country, 1 (normal precautions) to 4 (do not travel) (country figure) (US State Department and Government of Canada travel advisories, 2026-09-29). At or below 1: grade 4/4. Source
• Dedicated tourism funding: A dedicated source partly ring-fenced for residents, infrastructure or sustainability (Kyoto City Official Guide / LIVE JAPAN, 2024–2026). Grade 3/4. Source

Compare Kyoto

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