What is the Japanese taste that satisfies even foreigners? “Survey on foreign visitors in Japan 2009”

According to a 2009 survey targeting foreigners visiting Japan which was carried out by the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), their “greatest expectation” out of Japan during their stay was primarily the “meals.” This was the first time food ranked first over “shopping.”

Japanese gourmet is becoming one of the major attractions for tourism, and interests in foods are now widespread from traditional dishes such as sushi and tempura to typical casual foods such as yakitori, ramen, and okonomiyaki.

In addition, the survey results show that because there is an increasing popularity in other Japanese cultures such as tea and sake, there are more tourists who come to visit Shizuoka which is well known for tea leaf farming and Nigata for its sake production seeking for rare home produced products.

The survey was conducted three times in the same year during the winter, summer, and autumn season. The interviewees were 15,000 foreigners leaving Narita and Kansai Airport who stayed for more than two days. (JNTO)

Below are the results

*Percentage of areas visited

1, Kanto(64.5%)
2, Kansai(33.1%)
3, Chubu(20.8%)
4, Kyushu(10.1%)
5, Hokkaido(8.0%)

*Percentage of areas visited (prefecture)

1, Tokyo(58.8%)
2, Osaka(24.4%)
3, Kyoto(20.6%)
4, Kanagawa(16.7%)
5, Chiba(9.6%)

*Percentage of places visited (city)

1, Shinjuku(34.8%)
2, Ginza/Yurakucho (25.4%)
3, Asakusa(25.0%)
4, Osaka(23.5%)
5, Shibuya(20.3%)
6, Kyoto(20.2%)
6, Akihabara(20.2%)
8, Ueno(19.3%)
9, Harajuku(17.3%)
10, Roppongi(15.4%)

*Greatest expectation before visiting

1, Japanese Food(58.5%)
2, Shopping(48.5%)
3, Hot Spring(43.4%)
4, Nature, rice field scenery (41.8%)
5, Traditional sceneries and ruins (37.6%)

*Food enjoyed the most

1, Sushi(42.1%)
2, Ramen(20.8%)
3, Sashimi(19.8%)
4, Tempura (11.1%)
5, Udon(8.9%)
6, Seafood  (7.2%)
7, Soba (6.0%)
8, Shabu shabu(4.9%)
9, Yakiniki(BBQ) (4.5%)
10, Pork cutlet(4.1%)