A 4-day holiday in Japan saw bigger crowds at some places than were seen between mid-January and mid-February before the spread of coronavirus.
Mobile operator NTT Docomo gathered data on foot traffic while preserving privacy.
The Japanese government will go ahead with plans to ease restrictions on large events on Friday despite a surge in coronavirus cases in parts of the country, including Tokyo.
The government is raising the maximum attendance at spectator events from 1,000 to 5,000. Daily new cases continue to climb in Tokyo. The capital recorded 224 infections on Thursday, its highest daily total to date.
The Japanese government has instructed the country's 47 prefectures to take due measures as it approves a further easing of restrictions on events on Friday as planned.
The government maintains medical resources are available despite a surge in the number of coronavirus infections in Tokyo and its neighboring prefectures, and says a state of emergency need not be declared.
A giant panda was a star attraction at Tokyo's Ueno Zoological Gardens on Tuesday, when it reopened after a four-month-long closure amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Visitors flocked to see Xiang Xiang, who was born at the zoo and turned 3 this month.
A team of experts at Japan's health ministry say they found that most of the new coronavirus infections were spread in a closed environment where the air tends to be stagnant.
The experts say the spread of the new coronavirus can be contained by avoiding gatherings in small indoor spaces.