Explain the Japanese animation sanctuary!

In Japan, there are many places called the sacred places of anime, which are the origins of the world that appears in anime.

This time it is a column that presents the charm of a famous anime sanctuary that is visited by many Japanese anime fans all over the world, even though it exists in the unexplored region of Japan! 

Introducing the unexplored anime sanctuary by dividing the column into three parts!

What kind of anime sanctuary is it?

First of all, the most famous anime “Natsume Yujincho”, which was set in Hitoyoshi City, the southernmost part of Kumamoto Prefecture, in Kyushu, Japan. Also, recently a new anime based on the railway called “Rail Romanesque” has made Hitoyoshi a famous anime destination.

The travel to the famous places of anime will start in front of Hitoyoshi Station in JR Kyushu, and all of Hitoyoshi, such as the city, vast rivers and mountains with abundant nature is the same as in anime. Anime fans who visit Hitoyoshi for the first time will be amazed that it looks exactly like in anime.

It feels like the characters from the anime are actually walking in front of you.

By the way, in the lobby of the hotel in front of the station a guide map called [Hitoyoshi Kuma Anime Rhythm Map] is distributed free of charge for people who travel to famous places from anime.

I actually took a walk around the rivers and mountains of Hitoyoshi city to visit the famous places from anime, and everywhere I looked, I could feel the anime around me and  I naturally cried because I was impressed by the scenery.

People from the  sanctuary who are very kind to fans all over the world

In fact, many anime fans from all over the world often visit Hitoyoshi City every year, so when people from Hitoyoshi City find a tourist from overseas they ask, “Are you sightseeing anime sanctuaries?”.

Therefore, even fans from overseas who visit Hitoyoshi City alone can feel at ease while visiting the famous places from anime.

In addition, the owner of the business hotel “Castle tower” in front of JR Hitoyoshi station can speak a foreign language, so if you have trouble understanding Japanese, we recommend visiting the business hotel “Castle tower”

In addition, in Hitoyoshi City there is a shop called “Daikichi Omiya” that sells Nyanko-sensei’s stuffed animals that appear in “Natsume Yujincho”, which is also secretly a famous places of anime scenery.

It seems that many fans bring stuffed mascot characters to Hitoyoshi City, so they take pictures with them at famous spots from anime.

It seems that it is really popular.

Overcoming difficulties and further evolving tourism and anime tourism

Unfortunately, Hitoyoshi City has been damaged by heavy rain disasters and river floods in recent years, and now it can only be visited by car or highway bus.

Moreover, due to the influence of the coronavirus, the number of domestic and foreign tourists is decreasing. In addition, the city of Hitoyoshi is in the state of recovery from the disaster, and despite the fact that there are so many wonderful sacred sites, it is a little difficult to go sightseeing and visit them.

However, the tourist spots in the city have been gradually recovered, and the famous “Kuma River rafting” has resumed.

When I interviewed everyone living in Hitoyoshi, they said, “We had a hard time recovering from the disaster, but Hitoyoshi has gradually settled down. Also, because the world is in a difficult situation because of the Corona, we have taken sufficient infection control measures. We want people to come and visit Hitoyoshi, which is full of nature. “

Even in difficult situations,  people from Hitoyoshi have awareness and compassion towards everyone and are really kind.

It is said that Hitoyoshi is often called “Hitoyoshi”(good people = Ohitoyoshi)

When I actually visited Hitoyoshi City, I felt that it would be a place that I would like all anime fans from around the world to come and visit once the situation with Corona will be settled.

In fact, the owner of the first business hotel “Tensyukaku” I already introduced is the director of the Hitoyoshi City Tourism Promotion Team “Aoi no Mori Gaien Town Planning Association”.

I interviewed the owner about future tourism plans in Hitoyoshi City.

 Me: “After recovering from the disaster, what kind of tourism destination do you want to make a Hitoyoshi City which is a famous anime sanctuary?”

The owner of the“Tensyukaku” :  “From now on, throughout Hitoyoshi City, I would like to hold a project that can be enjoyed by many fans from both Japan and overseas .

For example, we are planning a “Famous anime place tour event where you can feel the world view of the anime while cosplaying characters and sightseeing in the city” and “Anime music event for interaction between fans”. It would also be great if we could produce anime goods that are limited to those places. “

I want to make anime sanctuaries a tourist destination that will entertain fans more and more.

When He told us a valuable story that in the future visiting famous anime places and sightseeing  will become more interesting.

Postscript

I would be very happy if I could tell the readers about the charm of Hitoyoshi City, an anime sanctuary in the unexplored region of Japan. It’s difficult  to visit now, but it’s a wonderful tourist destination in Japan that I really want to recommend to everyone in the world.

If you come to Japan, why not visit Hitoyoshi City first?

There always will be a scenery of Japan that you are already imagining.

See you in the next article!