The number of reserved train seats for the Bon holiday season in mid-August totaled 3.06 million as of Wednesday, up 11 percent from the same period last year, the Japan Railway group said Thursday.
The nation's largest railway group attributed the increase to a slight recovery of the economy, which has pushed the number of passengers up so far throughout this year.
During the Bon season, millions of urban residents go back to their hometowns to visit their families, according to Buddhist custom.