19 Sep 2016
Japan designating 88 anime 'sacred spots' in effort to boost international tourism
BY Tom Anstey
Japan’s government wants the nation's popular anime and manga franchises to boost tourism in the country, with plans to designate 88 “animation spots” nationwide in places where popular characters are presented.
The heritage plan will identify train stations, school campuses, shrines and other Japanese landmarks depicted in manga or anime as “seichi” – translated into “sacred spots”.
Anime and manga fans worldwide can now vote on which landmarks are designated, through a website set up in several languages including Chinese and English.
"It is impressive that the presence of Japan’s pop culture in the world has grown into something that can be on par with Hollywood," said Tsugihiko Kadokawa, vice president of the Anime Tourism Association and the chair of publisher Kadokawa Corp, which is backing the scheme. "Animation can change the times."
In addition to Kadokawa Corp, travel agency JTB Corp., Narita International Airport Corp. and Japan Airlines Co are backing the effort, which will include package holidays built around visits to the locations.
Anime tourism has proved popular for Japan on an unofficial basis, with examples of popular destinations including a railroad crossing near Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, which is popular with fans of anime series Slam Dunk, and a stairway leading to a shrine in Tokyo, which has seen an increase in visitor numbers thanks to the runaway success of Your Name.
Japan welcomed a record 19.73 million tourists in 2015. As of July, the total was 14 million people – an increase of 26.7 per cent year-on-year according to statistics from the Japan National Tourism Organisation.
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