The number of vessels calling at the Tokyo International Cruise Terminal in the Odaiba waterfront area is scheduled to increase from March onward at a pace exceeding that of last year, thanks to robust demand from foreign visitors.
The terminal, whose opening four years ago coincided with the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, is now coming into its own as Tokyo's maritime gateway.
On Wednesday, a Japanese drum performance on the terminal's fourth floor deck welcomed passengers of a large Dutch cruise ship as they disembarked one by one.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government originally planned to build the new terminal in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, which was subsequently postponed for a year. The construction, at a cost of about ¥39 billion ($260 million), began in 2015 and was completed in June 2020.
However, the pandemic halted the arrival of foreign cruise ships, and the scheduled July 2020 opening was postponed until September. The "hotel ship," a large cruise ship docked at the terminal during the Olympics that was to be used as an accommodation facility, was never able to receive guests, and the ship remained unused for a long period of time.
Foreign cruise ships resumed docking at the terminal last year, with 10 port calls in March and nine in April. This year, 11 are scheduled for March and 13 for April, reaching half of last year's total in two months alone. In late March, the Queen Elizabeth, a large British cruise ship, will be in port for the first time.
Metropolitan government officials are enthusiastic, saying, "We want to create an exciting atmosphere so more and more people come.”