Host city reps for Rugby World Cup brainstorm ways to draw tourists to Japan
Representatives of the 12 cities hosting matches for Rugby World Cup in 2019 met in Tokyo for the first time Monday to discuss ways to draw fans to their tourist spots during the 44-day sporting event. The tournament scheduled between Sept. 20 and Nov. 2 ...
Japanese tourists took 'incomprehensible' trip to Niger despite government warning
A Japanese travel company took about a dozen tourists to northern Niger in February despite a government request not to enter the area due to Islamist militant activity, a senior Foreign Ministry official said. All of the tourists returned safely from the two-week tour. Even so, ...
Tourism authorities eye travelers' tweets to fine-tune promotions
Japan is thinking of using Twitter, cellphone and GPS data to scope out tourists' wants and needs ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Fuji Shibazakura Festival extends prime blossom-viewing season
Alas, the yearly cherry blossom front has left the Kanto region, leaving tiny pink petals swirling about in the spring breeze. The good news for nature lovers, though, is that more blooms are set to appear. The Fuji Shibazakura Festival will be held from April ...
Adrift from Kyoto's Amanohashidate on Heaven's Floating Bridge
The Japanese have long had a fondness for categorizing impressive features of the world around them into numbered lists. And in this enterprise, trios hold particular fascination. Thus, in addition to the Three Great Festivals and the Three Great Night Views, among well over ...
Sipping on Heian history in Uji
In Uji, it's a tough job to go anywhere without consuming its famous product as green tea is liberally doled out on the streets.
Hitting the spectacular views and open-air baths Hakone
Autumn is probably the best season for travel, with the weather turning cooler but not too cold, and leaves imbuing the landscape with a rich kaleidoscope of color. Hakone in Kanagawa Prefecture is one of the best places to admire the autumn hues. And ...
Fujiya Hotel: At ease in a Miyanoshita time capsule
Most visits to the Hakone area of Kanagawa Prefecture begin at the heavily touristed town itself, from where numerous well-trodden routes head off through the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park of which it is the official center. Although Hakone is jam-packed with souvenir shops and resort hotels, ...
Visiting the Little Prince at Hakone
Breathtaking mountain scenery, a walk through a French village, Provencal cooking and a meeting with the doppelganger of a world-famous author -- sounds like a nice day trip. Especially when you can do it all without leaving Kanto. "The Little Prince," by the French author ...
Aichi's Meiji Mura: Remnants of the Meiji Era
Japan takes enormous pride in its culture but has a poor record on its preservation. This is particularly true of the Meiji Era (1868-1912), perhaps the most dynamic period in the country's history, when Japan emerged from more than 200 years of self-imposed isolation ...
