Japanese Theme Parks Offer an “Abridged Grand Tour For the Fast-Food Generation”

Travel Blog  •  Michael Yessis  •  08.04.06 | 3:02 AM ET

One of the highlights of a trip I took to Japan a few years ago was a visit to Spa World, an eight-story resort located in the Shin-Sekai section of Osaka that aims to transport its visitors to far-off countries and continents and, sometimes, back through time via re-creations of spa and bathing experiences from around the globe. Like the smiling mechanical crabs I saw hanging on restaurant walls and the “Three Minutes Happiness” store I visited, I chalked it up as just another piece of Japanese kitsch. Earlier this week, though, the New York Times added some perspective with an interesting story about the country’s penchant for building meticulous theme-park re-creations of other countries, including the Netherlands, Spain and Italy. “These parks, some of which cost as much as $2.5 billion to build, are by and large a product of Japan’s ‘bubble economy’ of the 1980’s, a response to the newfound interest in travel that was spawned during this period of frenzied economic growth,” writes Katie Kitamura. “Many opened shortly after the 1990 crash of the Japanese economy.”

Kitamura continues:

Though visiting a series of artificially constructed “foreign” environments may not seem the most obvious answer to a strong case of wanderlust, the parks, which were created with an eye for detail and authenticity, seem to satiate some of Japan’s longing for travel. Rather than the broad pastiche that characterizes, say, Disneyland, the mini-monuments of Japan’s cultural theme parks are faithful reproductions executed with stunning accuracy. From bricks to tiles and balcony railings, many of the parks import their raw materials directly from Europe.

“The crowds won’t come unless it’s real,’ said Mr. Fujiwara. “It’s very important to us that somebody who has been to Italy can come here and feel like it’s the real thing.”

Nonetheless, the visitor’s convenience remains at the forefront. With perennially smiling staff, clean streets, and restaurants that never fail to accommodate diners with a pair of chopsticks and steaming oshibori (hot wet towels), the parks aim to make their visitors feel right at home—and who could promise the same from a trip abroad?

And just how popular are some of these parks? According to Kitamura, Italian Village, an Italian-themed shopping mall in Tokyo, drew 4.35 million visitors in its first year.

 

Tags: Pop Culture Travel, Asia, Japan, News and Briefs


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