Planet-ta-kun’s Observations of New Japan

In this column, our original company character ‘Planet-ta-kun’ will travel to tourist spots in Japan that are popular with overseas visitors and will introduce some topics related to the charms and inbound expenditure of these places.

Miyagi is the most popular of the six prefectures that make up the Tohoku region. According to figures released by the Japan Tourism Agency, there were 202,370 foreign tourist guest nights in 2016. With Miyagi Stadium being chosen as a soccer venue for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the region is further attracting attention. In this issue, we will introduce the charms of Miyagi with the help of Mr.Hoshi and Mr. Abe from Toryusha Co., Ltd., a company based in Sendai which distributes consumables across the region, as well as personnel from two inbound tourism companies: Mr. Goto from Attract Tohoku and three people from VISIT Tohoku Inc.

Matsushima Bay

Along with Amanohashidate and Miyajima, Matsushima is celebrated as one of the Three Views of Japan. Matsushima has been heavily featured in guidebooks and websites aimed at foreign tourists and as such, when we visited, we saw people from many different countries lining up for the sightseeing cruises of the bay.

Next to Matsushima lies the town of Higashi-Matsushima which suffered extensive damage in the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and where over 1000 people lost their lives. A tour guide living in the city shared their experiences from that time as they guided us.

Zuihouden

A mausoleum built for the founder and first lord of Sendai Domain, Date Masamune, who laid the foundation for the ‘City of Trees’. Thanks to the influence of anime and games, the Warring States period has become popular overseas too! Masamune frequently ranks highly in popularity, and this has been drawing more and more foreign visitors to the area. Access is easy via Sendai’s sightseeing bus, the Loople Sendai.

Miyagi Zao Fox Village

Thanks to videos taken by foreign tourists being shared on social media, this has suddenly become a very popular spot! Despite being located on a mountain around 20 minutes by car from the nearest station, from opening at 9AM, there are continuous streams of foreign tourists! A love of animals is certainly worldwide.

Tashirojima

An island with a population of around 80 has attracted worldwide attention!
As the northernmost cat island, Tashirojima has always been popular with domestic cat fans. However, recently, cat lovers from overseas have also begun to descend upon the island.

Shiogama

A port town located between Sendai and Matsushima. Starting from Shiogama Shrine, sake breweries and sushi restaurants (the highest concentration in Japan!) are all within walking distance.
The number of foreign tourists visiting to eat sushi seems to have been increasing!

Miyagi's charm

Figures in this article are based on available information from relevant organizations at the time of publication.