What's new in Japan, from theme parks to museums

In every corner of Japan, there are echoes of Ghibli film settings. The country’s most successful anime studio launched in 1985, and its films have become emblematic of Japan’s offbeat, inventive character. It’s no surprise the opening of the Ghibli Park in November 2022 proved so popular. Tickets are released three months in advance but, almost a year on, they’re still like gold dust due to high domestic demand. There are no rides at the park either. Instead, it’s been designed as a place to “take a stroll, feel the wind, and discover the wonders”, according to its founders.

Located in Nagakute city, a three-hour train ride from Tokyo, it offers exhibitions and a film room in the central Grand Warehouse, but the park’s main attractions bring to life the fantastical environments conjured through the films. The first phase includes zones where visitors can search out the soot spirits from cult classic My Neighbour Totoro and sit next to the no‑face entity from Spirited Away — the 2001 Academy Award-winning film by Ghibli’s founding director, Hayao Miyazaki. 

The park’s second phase, which follows the release of Ghibli’s new film The Boy and the Heron, will feature the ironworkers’ village from dystopian fantasy Princess Mononoke, slated to launch this autumn, and the Valley of the Witches, which has a two-storey replica of the flying structure from Howl’s Moving Castle, opening spring 2024. 

1. teamLab Borderless on the move

Ceilings lined with living orchids, wading ponds with darting fish — art collective teamLab is known for its immersive exhibitions. After its base in Tokyo Bay’s Odaiba island closed last summer, its Borderless digital art museum is set to relocate to the capital’s new Azabudai Hills — an ambitious multi-use urban development — in early 2024.

2. Eyes on anime

Tokyo’s Animate Ikebukuro flagship store, one of the world’s largest anime shops, celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2023 with a facelift. There are 10 freshly renovated floors dedicated to manga and character merch, while new spaces include a theatre for comic-related performances and a cafe specialising in latte art.

3. Cycling Kyushu

Set to become an annual fixture of the UCI Asia Tour, the Tour de Kyushu cycling race will take place for the first time this October. Stand in dedicated viewing areas to catch participants zooming past highlights of the most southerly of Japan’s four main islands, including Kokura Castle and Oita hot springs.

4. Shinkansen connections

From spring 2024, the high-speed Hokuriku Shinkansen railway that connects Tokyo, Nagano and Kanazawa will extend to Fukui and Tsuruga. Visit the area for Zen temples, such as Daihonzan Eiheiji, and Takayama Inari Shrine, where 201 red torii gates — traditional symbolic structures — stand over a winding path.

5. Tokyo onsen

The newest addition to Tokyo’s Toyosu neighbourhood, Edo-era-inspired Senkyaku Banrai will open in February 2024. The complex features an onsen with water sourced from the Hakone hot springs, as well as a shopping area and restaurants serving fish from nearby Toyosu Market.

6. Art in Kyoto

First opened in 1933, Kyoto’s Municipal Museum of Art unveiled a minimalist extension in 2020, rebranding as the Kyoto City Kyocera Museum of Art. Now accessible again for foreign visitors, expect intricate 18th- and 19th-century pieces including paintings, ceramics and sculptures.