TOKYO, May 20 (Reuters) – A new nature-themed adventure park in Okinawa is preparing to launch amid Japan’s record-breaking tourism surge, with ambitions to expand across Asia if its debut proves successful.
Junglia, a 60-hectare nature park featuring more than 20 attractions—including hot air balloon rides, buggy tours, treetop walks, and a “Dinosaur Safari”—is scheduled to open on July 25. Developed on the site of a former golf course, the park represents a 70 billion yen ($634 million) investment by Katana, an entertainment firm led by Tsuyoshi Morioka.
Morioka, a veteran in the theme park industry, previously played a pivotal role in revitalizing Universal Studios Japan (USJ) by introducing Harry Potter-themed attractions. He is now betting on Junglia to capture a share of Japan’s tourism boom, fueled by a weaker yen and a post-pandemic influx of international visitors.
Japan welcomed a record 36.9 million overseas tourists in 2023, a 47% increase from the previous year. Their spending climbed 53% to 8.1 trillion yen ($55.6 billion), making tourism the country’s second-largest export sector, trailing only the automobile industry.
While Japan’s theme parks, including Tokyo Disney Resort and USJ, have historically drawn strong attendance, the sector has also seen its share of failures. Yu Shioji, chairman of the Amusement Park Society of Japan, expressed skepticism about Junglia’s long-term viability, citing its relatively high ticket prices—6,930 yen ($48) for domestic visitors and 8,800 yen ($60) for international guests—and competition from other nature-based parks.
Despite these concerns, Morioka remains optimistic. Claiming a mathematical approach to business forecasting, he estimates Junglia has a more than 70% chance of success. He projects several thousand visitors daily and believes the park could be profitable even with half the annual attendance of the nearby Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium, which attracts around 3 million guests each year.
Morioka argued that the demand for premium tourism experiences in Japan is not solely dependent on currency fluctuations. “The weak yen is a tailwind, but the number of people who want to visit Japan will increase structurally regardless of the currency effect,” he said.
The Japanese government aims to raise the annual number of foreign visitors to 60 million by 2030, a goal that could further support ventures like Junglia.
Looking ahead, Morioka envisions replicating smaller-scale attractions—those costing less than 100 billion yen—in other Asian markets such as Taiwan and Indonesia. He also sees the potential for Katana to go public in order to finance future expansion, particularly projects centered on Japanese anime, if content creators are willing to license their intellectual property.
“I think it would be good if there was a third option in cities around the globe after Disney and Universal,” Morioka said. “I want to develop niches where they can’t go and create a third force in attractions in the world that originates from Japan.”
