Itsukushima Shrine ranks second and A-Bomb Dome eighth as popular World Heritage sites among Japanese
Apr. 4, 2016
by Takahiro Yamase, Staff Writer
Tokyo-based Rakuten Travel, which operates travel reservation sites, released a ranking for popular World Heritage sites among Japanese residents on March 8. The ranking finds Itsukushima Shinto Shrine, located in Miyajima, Hiroshima Prefecture, in the second spot and the Atomic Bomb Dome, in Naka Ward, Hiroshima, ranking eighth. Both sites will observe their 2oth year of designation as World Heritage sites this December. Those connected to these two places expressed hopes that the ranking will help increase visibility for the sites both in and out of Japan.
The ranking was the result of the company’s first survey using its mail magazine, where subscribers were asked to choose one favorite place among 19 World Heritage sites. Of the 3,976 respondents, 337 people, or about 10 percent, chose Itsukushima Shrine. Some comments were also made about the shrine, such as “The ebb and flow of the tide looks mysterious.” Rakuten Travel believes that visitors enjoy two sights there: When the tide is high, the shrine buildings and corridors appear to float on the sea, and when the tide is low, the tidal flat stretches beyond the big torii gate.
Katsuhiko Iida, the executive director of the Miyajima Tourism Association, commented, “I hope the ranking will add to the number of fans of the island, with its preserved nature and old streets.”
Meanwhile, 156 people chose the Atomic Bomb Dome as their favorite World Heritage site. Currently, the Tourism Department of the City of Hiroshima is leading a tourism campaign to commemorate the 20th year of World Heritage registration for the Atomic Bomb Dome, along with Itsukushima Shrine. One official at the department said, “We would like to make use of Hiroshima’s strength with two World Heritage sites.”
Ranked first are the “Historic Monuments in Ancient Kyoto,” located in Kyoto Prefecture, and third is Himeji Castle in Hyogo Prefecture. In the Chugoku region, the “Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution: Iron and Steel, Shipbuilding and Coal Mining,” including five facilities in the city of Hagi, Yamaguchi Prefecture, is ranked 17th and the “Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine and its Cultural Landscape” is ranked 18th.
(Originally published on March 9, 2016)
Tokyo-based Rakuten Travel, which operates travel reservation sites, released a ranking for popular World Heritage sites among Japanese residents on March 8. The ranking finds Itsukushima Shinto Shrine, located in Miyajima, Hiroshima Prefecture, in the second spot and the Atomic Bomb Dome, in Naka Ward, Hiroshima, ranking eighth. Both sites will observe their 2oth year of designation as World Heritage sites this December. Those connected to these two places expressed hopes that the ranking will help increase visibility for the sites both in and out of Japan.
The ranking was the result of the company’s first survey using its mail magazine, where subscribers were asked to choose one favorite place among 19 World Heritage sites. Of the 3,976 respondents, 337 people, or about 10 percent, chose Itsukushima Shrine. Some comments were also made about the shrine, such as “The ebb and flow of the tide looks mysterious.” Rakuten Travel believes that visitors enjoy two sights there: When the tide is high, the shrine buildings and corridors appear to float on the sea, and when the tide is low, the tidal flat stretches beyond the big torii gate.
Katsuhiko Iida, the executive director of the Miyajima Tourism Association, commented, “I hope the ranking will add to the number of fans of the island, with its preserved nature and old streets.”
Meanwhile, 156 people chose the Atomic Bomb Dome as their favorite World Heritage site. Currently, the Tourism Department of the City of Hiroshima is leading a tourism campaign to commemorate the 20th year of World Heritage registration for the Atomic Bomb Dome, along with Itsukushima Shrine. One official at the department said, “We would like to make use of Hiroshima’s strength with two World Heritage sites.”
Ranked first are the “Historic Monuments in Ancient Kyoto,” located in Kyoto Prefecture, and third is Himeji Castle in Hyogo Prefecture. In the Chugoku region, the “Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution: Iron and Steel, Shipbuilding and Coal Mining,” including five facilities in the city of Hagi, Yamaguchi Prefecture, is ranked 17th and the “Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine and its Cultural Landscape” is ranked 18th.
(Originally published on March 9, 2016)
