SAPPORO -- Foreign tourists and others forced to spend the night at New Chitose Airport formed long lines at airline ticket counters as international flights resumed Saturday.
Ninety-one flights were scheduled to take off and land that day, almost double the usual total.
A 25-year-old South Korean man from Seoul said he was staying in a Sapporo hotel at the end of a two-week trip when the earthquake struck.
He was scheduled to return home Thursday, but when his flight was canceled he had to sleep at the terminal with only a blanket lent by the airport.
"It was bright and I couldn't sleep at all. My body hurts all over. I want to get home quickly and relax," said the man, who was scheduled to return on a special flight Saturday afternoon.
About 1,200 people spent Friday night at the airport, according to the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry's office there.
About 1,500 blankets were distributed and convenience stores stayed open all night. Many people reportedly had to spend a second night at the airport, catching flights on Sunday.
The first international flight arrived at 9:15 a.m. Saturday from Bangkok.
A 23-year-old man who had been traveling in Thailand said he heard from friends, on Twitter and from other sources that the road in front of his home had been raised by the quake.
"I was worried the whole time. I want to get home quickly to make sure my house is ok," he said.
About 3.5 million people arrived and departed on international flights at the airport in fiscal 2017.
Domestic flights were expected to be operating at 93 percent of regular capacity on Saturday.
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