Anime culture is proving to be a major driving force behind Japan’s tourism boom. A growing number of international travelers are visiting real-life locations featured in popular Japanese animation, contributing to a new tourism trend that not only promotes local culture but also energizes the country’s tourism industry.
According to media outlet The Straits Times, more and more foreign visitors are arriving in Japan with the specific goal of exploring iconic anime-related sites. From famous neighborhoods in Tokyo to lesser-known towns in regional Japan, these “anime pilgrimages” are reshaping the travel landscape.
Data from the Japan Tourism Agency shows that the percentage of international tourists visiting locations related to anime and film increased from 4.6% in 2019 to 7.5% in 2023.
One notable example is Noshiro City in Akita Prefecture. Noshiro Science and Technology High School, which served as the model for Sannoh Technical High School in the basketball anime “Slam Dunk”, has become a tourist attraction since the global success of “The First Slam Dunk” in 2022. Foreign tourists now regularly attend basketball team practice sessions, and the Noshiro Basketball Museum has reported a 5.5-fold increase in international visitors compared to 2019.
Kasukabe City in Saitama Prefecture, the setting of the beloved anime “Crayon Shin-chan”, also saw a surge in tourist numbers. In late 2024, fans flocked to visit the Ito-Yokado Kasukabe department store — the real-life inspiration for the series’ supermarket — before its closure. To assist international visitors, the city published multilingual sightseeing maps titled “Crayon Shinchan Kasukabe”, with certain local businesses even introducing digital payment options tailored for Chinese tourists.
At Chibi Maruko Chan Land, an amusement park in Shizuoka Prefecture, attractions have been adjusted to suit the preferences of Chinese tourists. For example, a sand art corner featuring Maruko and the popular character Hanawa-kun has been introduced, along with collectible magnets representing various Japanese cities.
The anime tourism boom is partly fueled by the Japanese government’s “Cool Japan” strategy, which promotes the nation’s creative industries worldwide. As of 2022, the anime and content industry had expanded to a market size of 4.7 trillion yen (approx 33 billion USD), over three times its value a decade earlier.
However, the rise in anime-related tourism has also brought challenges. Concerns over noise, obstructive photography, and crowd control have prompted some locations to enhance security. Animation studios like CoMix Wave Films, which is known for “Your Name”, have even refrained from disclosing real-world locations to prevent disturbances to local communities. According to Professor Takeshi Okamoto of Kindai University, while it is important for locations that welcome anime-loving tourists to “come up with gimmicks” to please those people, many of these “sanctuaries” aren’t actually spots for tourists, so the understanding of local residents and creation of proper guidelines are important.
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