Language:
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government participated in the world's leading tourism trade event, "Tourism Expo Japan 2019 Osaka/Kansai," which was held from Thursday, October 24 to Sunday, October 27. We manned a booth and conveyed the appeal of Tokyo.
With the theme of "Islands of my Heart – Tokyo Islands," we conveyed the appeal of the islands and provided a shooting game to promote the Tama area, tastings of local products, and various kinds of workshops. Although it was the first time for us to participate in the Kansai region, we had a total of 30,000 visitors. Thank you very much for visiting our booth!
Just like last year, we held various kinds of workshops with the help of people from the Tama area and the Tokyo Islands. Our "theme workshops" are very popular every year. Visitors made their original "treasure boxes" by packing materials—including shells, sand and nuts—which came from the Tama area and the islands. There was a virtual reality (VR) experience section for visitors to experience nature and do some activities from the perspectives of creatures from Tama and the islands.
Workshops where visitors were able to make whatever they liked using materials brought from the islands also attracted many people. Through these workshops, we believe that we successfully conveyed the appeal of the Tokyo Islands.
| Area | Title | Content |
|---|---|---|
| Ōshima | Brooch Making | Make a one-of-a-kind brooch using camellia fruits from Ōshima Island. |
| Toshima | Butter Knife Making | Make your own butter knife by shaving and polishing a branch from a wild camellia tree from Toshima Island. |
| Niijima | Potted Plant Making | Make your own potted plant by making a Kōgaseki (Niijima-feldspar stone) pot, and plant your favorite succulents. |
| Miyakejima | Herbarium Craft | Make a herbarium using tropical flowers such as bougainvillea and lacecap hydrangea from Miyakejima Island. |
| Mikurashima | Moss Sphere Workshop | Make your own moss sphere using moss from Mikurashima Island. |
| Hachijōjima | Beach Glass Necklace Making | Make a necklace by stringing beads and wired beach glass pieces from Hachijōjima Island. |
| Kōzushima | Obsidian Accessory Making | Make a jewelry accessory using obsidian, a stone known as a high-tech material of the Old Stone Age. |
| Shikinejima | Sand Painting | Try sand painting using crushed Kōgaseki (Niijima-feldspar stone). It comes as a kit, so you can take the materials with you and finish painting them at home. |
| Aogashima | Shōchu Tasting | Taste various varieties of shōchu (alcoholic spirits) of Aogashima Island. |
| Ogasawara Islands (Chichijima & Hahajima) |
Bracelet Making | Make your own bracelet using leaves from the "Tako-no-ki" (Octopus Tree). |
With six large monitors installed above our bright white booth to broadcast the appeal of the islands, our booth was one of the most eye-catching booths at the Expo.
The 1.8 m x 3.6 m (5.9 ft x 11.81 ft) art wall "Map of Tokyo Islands for Tourists" was displayed inside the booth. It created an impressive feel and caught many visitors' eyes.
In the Tama area program, a shooting game was set up with pictures of tourist sites from the area as targets. Our staff members provided explanations of the sites visitors hit. The visitors enjoyed listening to the explanations and yelled when they got a high score.
Many people enjoyed a talk show with the title, "Let's Talk about the Appeal of the Eleven Islands by Island- Lover-Girls" by an editor/writer Kayo Yabushita, former Miss Camellia Queen and island tour specialist Erika Shimazu and residents from each island. The topics covered by the talk show ranged from things most people know to things known only by locals. We believe that the visitors learned a great deal about the Tokyo Islands.
We will treasure the feedback from approximately 30,000 visitors and continue to convey the appeal of the Tama area and the Tokyo Islands.
