Since its inception more than half a century ago, Japanese animation has become extremely popular, capturing not only the hearts and interests of the Japanese audience but becoming a favorite in countries abroad as well. With millions of fans around the world, anime is one lucrative market.
What's particularly interesting about anime is that its fans stayed faithful to the genre as the years went by. Such was the observation by critics when the first live-action "Rurouni Kenshin" movie came out internationally. Despite the movie being based off an anime, a significant number of moviegoers were adults aged 21 and above.
While it is true that anime is a force to be reckoned with, there are still a number of its aspects that have not been fully explored yet. One of these, of course, is tourism. Indeed, dedicated fans of anime have gone to Japan in order to sample the culture that has been featured in anime since its first years, but for the most part, anime and tourism have not converged officially.
Until now, of course.
Last Tuesday in Tokyo, a number of Japanese representatives from numerous regions in Japan, together with publishing giant Kadokawa Shoten, announced the possibility of creating an 88-stop anime "pilgrimage" for foreign fans. The planned tour would allegedly cover multiple locations in the Asian country, and it would be coordinated with local authorities.
Tsuguhito Kadokawa, Kadokawa's CEO, has stated that the goal of the planned project is to "connect" the different authorities across the country's regions, promoting each one and ultimately creating a definitive tour which is both cohesive and attractive.
If the planned tour does take off, it would greatly help the tourism sector of the country. According to Kadokawa, even with its current programs, about 20 percent of foreign tourists that come to the country are repeat visitors. With a unique, multi-stop tour added to its offerings, the number of tourists, including those who come back to the country, might very well increase.
While the itinerary for the planned tour has not been unveiled yet, one thing is quite certain. Japan widely considers anime and manga part of their culture; thus, the 88-stop anime "pilgrimage" would most certainly be an anime tour de force, organized by the very people who have, one way or another, contributed to the genre.
For anime fans, what else can one ask for?
