Travel

Otsu Festival Parade Gets UNESCO Approval

SHIGA, Dec 14 (News On Japan) - Otsu’s centuries-old festival tradition has been approved for inscription on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list, marking a significant recognition of the cultural and communal value of the Otsu Festival’s Hikiyama parade.

UNESCO has decided to add four additional Japanese traditions, including Otsu’s Hikiyama procession, to its category of Mountain, Float and Pavilion Festivals, a group that highlights regional events built around elaborate floats and long-preserved community rituals.

The Otsu Festival, already designated as an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property by the Japanese government, has been celebrated since the Edo period and was praised for playing an essential role in shaping and sustaining the local community.

Furuya Hiroshi, chairman of the Otsu Festival Preservation Society, said the registration places the tradition on an even larger global stage, adding that people around the world will now see what generations of predecessors have carried on for hundreds of years, and that this responsibility must continue unchanged.

Within Shiga Prefecture, this marks the second festival to receive UNESCO intangible cultural heritage status.

Source: KTV NEWS

Kyoto Raises Lodging Tax as Peak Travel Season Begins

Kyoto City significantly raised its lodging tax from March 1st, increasing the maximum charge per person per night from 1,000 yen to as much as 10,000 yen, in a move aimed at tackling overtourism and funding the preservation of cultural assets, even as questions remain about its impact on visitors and the local economy.

Foreign Visitors and Ex-Rescuer Pull 80-Year-Old Woman From Hakuba Crashed Car

A former emergency responder and foreign tourists worked together to rescue a woman in her 80s who was trapped inside an overturned light vehicle in Hakuba Village, Nagano Prefecture.

Tokyo Metro Begins Touchless Ticket Gate Trial

Tokyo Metro and Toshiba have launched Japan’s first demonstration test allowing passengers to pass through ticket gates without touching them by using their smartphones’ Bluetooth function.

Himeji Castle Hikes Admission Fee for Non-Residents

The admission fee for the World Heritage-listed Himeji Castle in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture, was revised on March 1st for the first time in 11 years, introducing a dual pricing system that significantly raises costs for visitors from outside the city.

Australian Girl, 8, Dies After Snowmobile Overturns in Hakuba

An eight-year-old Australian girl died after a snowmobile overturned in Hakuba Village, Nagano Prefecture, at around 11 a.m. on February 28th, with authorities investigating the cause of the accident.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Travel NEWS

Imperial Hotel Kyoto to Open in Central Gion

The Imperial Hotel Kyoto is set to open on March 5th in the heart of Gion, one of Kyoto’s most renowned districts, with the interior unveiled to the media on March 2nd ahead of its debut.

Himeji Castle Hikes Admission Fee for Non-Residents

Tourists in Japan Flock to Capsule Toys and Food Replicas

As the number of foreign visitors to Japan continues to rise, two uniquely Japanese cultural phenomena — food replicas and capsule toys, known as gacha — are drawing growing attention as unexpected tourist attractions and potential new souvenir staples.