Tag - tourism

 
 

TOURISM

When you stare into the abyss at the bottom of the No. 3 shaft of the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel, the abyss stares back.
LIFE / Travel
Apr 14, 2025
A new tour of Tokyo’s most underground attraction
From April, the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel will offer guided treks of areas previously inaccessible to the public.
People visit the Osaka Expo on the first day it opened to the public, in the city of Osaka on Sunday.
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2025
Osaka Expo throws open its doors as mega-event kicks off
A steady rain failed to dampen the spirits of organizers and expo early-birds as 160 countries, regions and organizations showed off their best tech and culture.
While Unzen Onsen's "hells" can be visually striking, locals describe them and their effects as "a source of emotional healing."
LIFE / Travel
Apr 12, 2025
Heaven from hells: The sulfuric pleasure of Unzen Onsen
Located deep within Kyushu’s Shimabara Peninsula, this hot spring town offers dramatic scenery worth the effort it takes to get there.
The Four Seasons Hotel Osaka opened in 2024, just one of many new luxury accommodations the city boasts ahead of the 2025 World Expo.
LIFE / Travel
Apr 12, 2025
Osaka Expo-bound? Take your pick of the city’s new luxury hotels.
Increased capacity makes lodging a buyer’s market, as intense competition keeps prices down and encourages hotels to differentiate themselves from the pack.
Shirakawa-go in Gifu Prefecture in 2017. Travel agencies catering to luxury tourists often include areas outside well-known cities such as Tokyo and Kyoto in their itineraries offered.
BUSINESS
Apr 11, 2025
A trip to remember: Japan answers the demand for curated luxury travel
Creating a unique experience that luxury travelers feel they can hold on to well after their trip is part of the challenge.
Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Apr 11, 2025
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.
On a man-made island in Osaka Bay, Japan stages a grand vision of the future — and a quiet test of relevance.
The flags of participating countries are displayed near the entrance during a media preview day for the 2025 Osaka Expo on Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 11, 2025
Japan’s second city is hosting a $66 billion coming-out party
First held in London in 1851, world expos have been promoted as venues to bring nations together and foster global coordination.
A large statue of Osaka Expo mascot Myaku Myaku sits near the east entrance of the event's venue in Yumeshima island, Osaka, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2025
After a tumultuous buildup, a first look at the Osaka Expo
Members of the media and other invited guests got a glimpse of the event's shiny pavilions spread over 155 hectares, and the signature Grand Ring overlooking them.
Hyogo police believe the handgun a U.S. tourist inadvertently brought into Japan slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 2, 2025
U.S. tourist arrested after bringing a handgun into Japan
The man has said the gun was for self-defense and that he had packed the firearm by mistake.
Rescue personnel and a search dog work at the site of a building that collapsed in Bangkok following a strong earthquake
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 30, 2025
Massive quake is latest blow to Thai tourism hit by safety woes
Any impact on tourism will hurt an economy where the industry employs one in five of the country’s workforce and accounts for about 13% of GDP.
The "Infinite Paradise" main lantern takes center stage at the 2025 Taiwan Lantern Festival, held in the city of Taoyuan between Feb. 12 and 23.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2025
Lantern festival lights up skies in Taiwan with Japanese flair
Japanese municipalities added sparkle to the celebration in Taoyuan, with decorations featuring local mascots and icons.
Scenes like this snow-covered bridge leading to the village of Shirakawa-go are what make the Three-Star Road worth traveling — its name notwithstanding.
LIFE / Travel
Mar 29, 2025
Traveling the Three-Star Road, the tourist route made from thin air
Linking mountainous Matsumoto and coastal Kanazawa, this clunkily named route includes nonetheless fantastic sites.
Travelers wait to check in at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Mar 28, 2025
Economic turbulence shakes U.S. airlines as travel demand falters
With demand slowing, airlines have started culling flights to avoid lowering fares and to protect margins.
The interior of a Sindbad submarine vessel at sea off Hurghada, Egypt, in August 2024, in this still image obtained from video.
WORLD
Mar 28, 2025
Tourist submarine sinks in Red Sea off Egypt, leaving six people dead
The Red Sea Governorate said the submarine, named Sindbad, had 50 people onboard.
Cherry blossoms along a road in Tokyo on Tuesday. The 2025 cherry blossom season is expected to have an economic impact of around ¥1.39 trillion on Japan.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2025
Hanami season to have record ¥1.39 trillion economic impact on Japan
The estimate is 22.2% higher than last year's ¥1.14 trillion, according to an annual report compiled by Kansai University economist Katsuhiro Miyamoto.
Tourists walk past shops and restaurants up the street leading to Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto. Kyoto plans to raise its maximum accommodation tax to combat overtourism.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2025
Kyoto to raise maximum hotel tax to ¥10,000
The amount will be the highest among areas using a flat-rate tax system across the country, according to the internal affairs ministry.
Blooms are seen on the Meteorological Agency's sample cherry tree at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 2025
Cherry blossom season kicks off in Tokyo after warm weekend
At approximately 2 p.m. Monday, the Meteorological Agency announced that its reference Somei-Yoshino cherry tree at Yasukuni Shrine was officially in bloom.
JNTO Delhi office head Ryo Bunno (fourth from left), exchanges views with major local travel agencies at a travel trade show held in Mumbai on Jan. 30.
JAPAN
Mar 21, 2025
India to showcase space prowess at Osaka Expo
Some Indian officials say Japan isn’t doing enough to drum up excitement for the expo.
Russians queue to apply for visas at the Japanese Embassy in Moscow on March 4.
JAPAN
Mar 20, 2025
Cherry blossoms and free visas draw Russians to Japan
The number of Russians holidaying in Japan is set to double this year from around 100,000 in 2024, helped by a strengthening ruble.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.