Festivals and food are the top two selling points that foreign nationals working at local Japanese governments use to convince friends to visit Japan, according to a Foreign Ministry survey.
Local tourist attractions came in third. Traditional arts such as kabuki and noh stood at eighth place out of 14 options.
The survey is based on responses the Foreign Ministry received by the end of November from 140 foreign nationals who work as coordinators of international exchange programs at prefectural governments and major cities.
For the top three reasons to visit Japan, 102 respondents chose festivals and other seasonal events, 97 cited the food and 90 selected local tourist attractions. The respondents were allowed to give multiple answers.
On a question about areas in which Japan has a good image, cars and high-technology gadgets received 95 votes, while 82 cited the politeness and courtesy of Japanese people.
Asked who they think is the most well-known Japanese around the world, 24 people chose Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. The late film director Akira Kurosawa was second with 23 votes, and Yoko Ono, widow of the Beatle John Lennon, was third with 16.
Outfielder Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners was fourth with 14 votes and international soccer player Hidetoshi Nakata was seventh with six votes.