SUSHI BUS puts a working conveyor-belt sushi lane on the upper deck of an open-top double-decker and sends it around Tokyo from October 2026. Seventy minutes, all you can eat, 20 seats.
Odakyu Hakone will run a charter train on August 30, 2026 with every window pushed open on a 107-year-old railcar that has no air conditioning. The Hakone Tozan Railway's Type 100 retires in January 2028.
MIYAKO GALAXY-DOME, billed as Japan's first facility to pair a working observatory with an LED-dome planetarium, opened in June 2026 on Kurima Island, Okinawa. Southern Cross skies, live telescope-to-dome projection, prices and how to visit, explained for overseas readers.
Foreign visitors spent ¥2.07 trillion (~$12.9B) on food in Japan in 2025, 21.9% of all inbound spending. What 42 million tourists eat, the dietary-diversity gap, and how to plan a gourmet trip.
Niseko, Japan's premier ski resort, is moving beyond its winter-only image. We break down 'Niseko by Nature', the new brand from the Niseko Promotion Board (NPB), what a tourism DMO actually does, and how to enjoy Niseko's green season.
Printer and sewing-machine maker Brother opened BROTHER JOYFACTORY TOKYO in Kyobashi on June 30, 2026. Become a samurai, record a song, or do calligraphy, then walk out with a printed T-shirt or record. Prices, access, booking and what this maker-led tourism experiment means.
Mitsui Fudosan, Canada's Moment Factory, and The Pokémon Company International unveil a touring immersive experience that casts visitors as real Pokémon Trainers, debuting in Europe in spring 2027. Here's how it differs from Pokémon Centers and PokéPark, why it starts in Europe, and what fans hope for.
A new private tour called NINJA ORIGINS lets travelers train as real ninja in Iga and Koka, the birthplace of ninjutsu. From 200,000 yen (about $1,260) per person per night, guests sleep in restored historic buildings and join shrine rituals and a museum infiltration mission, as part of a model that funnels tourism revenue back into heritage conservation.
Eleven days, 44 countries, 400 delegates. We score the five expectations from our pre-meeting article against the MOFA outcome communique: emperor penguin protection blocked, tourism rules deferred, Annex VI stalled, only the transparency resolution delivered.
Japan welcomed 3.69 million foreign visitors in April 2026, down 5.5% from a year earlier, even as the yen sat near 159 to the dollar. We unpack the three forces behind the drop (China's travel advisory, an Easter calendar quirk, and Middle East flight cancellations) and ask whether this is actually the right moment for foreigners to book that long-postponed Japan trip.
Air Canada launches the first-ever direct flight between North America and Hokkaido in December 2026, connecting Vancouver and Sapporo's New Chitose Airport with three weekly Boeing 787 services. Who it targets, why now, and what makes Hokkaido a winter prize.