Japan saw 3.78 million foreign tourists in January, the highest monthly total ever recorded, data from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) showed Wednesday.

A key driver of the growth was a sharp rise in tourists from Chinese mainland during the Lunar New Year, whose numbers more than doubled year-on-year to 980,300 for the month.

The United States and several European nations also reported record-breaking January visitor numbers.

According to JNTO, factors such as a recent airline accident in South Korea and concerns over safety in other Asian destinations may have influenced Chinese travelers to choose Japan.

The Japanese government has set a target of attracting 60 million annual visitors and 15 trillion yen in spending by 2030. (1 U.S. dollar equals 151 yen).

xinhua