The number of Japanese tourists who traveled to South Korea came to 156,000 over the same period, about one-fourth of the Korean tourists who went to Japan.

The rise in the figure for Korean tourists flooding into Japan is largely attributable to the depreciation of the Japanese currency in recent weeks, as a cheaper yen can lure more inflows of tourists.

The yen dropped to a yearly low against the won Wednesday, with the arbitrated won-yen exchange rate hovering around 900 won per 100 yen.

Industry watchers, however, were doubtful that such an increase will continue.

"More demand makes the airfare more expensive. So it's hard to say that the tourist numbers will keep rising," a spokesperson at a local travel agency said.

They said the Lunar New Year holiday late last month also encouraged the tourist outflow to Japan.

In January, the number of inbound foreign tourists in Korea is estimated to have reached 1.2 million, while that of Japan hit a record monthly high of 2.29 million, according to government data. (Yonhap)