New Okinawa theme park aims to tap tourism boom, become springboard to Asian markets

Looking forward to going.

oh dear!

The TV commercials of the park look too suspicious, CG and animations all the time without showing what actually happens on the rides.

I was going to say. The TV commercials are so fake they should not be allowed as a representation of the experience.

I don't know what 'Power Vacance' mean, is it even a meaningful phrase?

But I do like the idea, ie buying an exceptional experience. I hope his maths is good 7ties billion yens, I am not even sure there's enough landing slots into Okinawa...or hotel beds in order to bring visitors to Okinawa.

He's going to need 5000 visitors a day to the park just to pay for the cost of capital.

Yay! Let's go to a tiny island so crowded we can't drive a few clicks north/south without waiting in traffic for hours to almost miss our flight back out.

Yay! Let's go to a tiny island so crowded we can't drive a few clicks north/south without waiting in traffic for hours to almost miss our flight back out.

Nearly 0% traffic during this last Golden Week, you can transverse most of the island in like 1h30min.

Free parking also fully available, never waited 1 min. to be seated anywhere. This during Golden Week.

Let's pray for this venture to be a success. It surely matters to all of us who live here.

glad we're all in agreement those commercials look too cheesy lol. Would've appreciated if they showed some previous of what the park would actually look like. Even their website looks like they asked Sora to come up with images: https://junglia.jp/

If this is what it actually looks like, I'm sold!

I imagine a lot of the customers will be the US military personnel and their family members residing in Okinawa. But I wonder will they be charged the local fee or the international visitor fee?

If you use the express highway, you can easily get to the north of the island quickly easily and fairly cheaply! Let's hope that Okinawa can open other tourist sites and prove that they don't need bases to exist economically!

They'd better be careful though. This was the same talk we had before the economic bubble burst in the late 80s. Lots of white elephant projects were built and developed only to have dozens and dozens of theme parks go out of business by the early 2000s.

Good, more money for Japan..

Bad idea! White elephant!

 6,930 yen per day pass for locals and 8,800 yen for international visitors.

Hang on a sec - WHY are Japanese people being charged LESS to enter Junglia? Since when did admission pricing become a game of blatant discrimination?

Let’s flip this around for a second: imagine a theme park in the U.S. or Europe charging ¥10,000 for white people, ¥6,000 for Asians, and ¥3,000 for Black visitors. It would be global headlines before lunch. People would be setting up change.org petitions in 12 languages and booking flights to protest in.

Also, can we talk about how insulting this pricing model is to Japanese people? They're telling us the logic is: “Well, Japanese people obviously can’t afford the same price as foreigners - they’re too poor.” Really? That’s the rationale? Not only does it assume every foreigner is rolling in yen, but it also quietly insults Japanese citizens by painting them as economically fragile - as if ¥1,870 is the thin line between attending Junglia and skipping meals.

This story sounds to me like advertising

> SpeedToday 10:52 am JST

They'd better be careful though. This was the same talk we had before the economic bubble burst in the late 80s. Lots of white elephant projects were built and developed only to have dozens and dozens of theme parks go out of business by the early 2000s.

Japan is so far from a bubble right now lol, but all I see on this website is people whining about tourism so I hope they enjoy what they get from this.

This will fail, for starters they thought about the traffic as an afterthought. It's tiny roads to get in and out, going to be really fun watching the tour buses navigate it. It's already overpriced, I give it one year.

Hang on a sec - WHY are Japanese people being charged LESS to enter Junglia? Since when did admission pricing become a game of blatant discrimination?

It's actually a different price for locals, as in people in the Okinawan prefecture. And this is not something being done which is unique to Japan. When I was in Argentina they charged a different price for many attractions for locals and overseas visitors.

ONe reason I would imagine is because they would hope locals would visit it more than once during off-peak season.

Sadly Okinawa is just to expensive. Flights are ridiculous most of the time and hotel accommodations are older and over priced. Not an affordable holiday at all. Can go to Phuket or Bali and stay in 5 star places for the same price. Theme park is just going to increase prices there even more.

True enough but it is still a great place.

Okinawa is a beautiful Island, but weather is always unpredictably bad, rainy, very windy, typhoons, or too hot.

not a predictable outdoorsy friendly Island weather wise, don't get me wrong the pictures of the beaches of Okinawa are accurate, but wait until you go there and have all your trip ruined by some bad weather.

"imagine a theme park in the U.S. or Europe charging"

I recall many places in Hawaii having cheaper fees for local residents upon presenting proof of address or similar. guessing its a similar thing in other states too

@thistle

It's actually a different price for locals, as in people in the Okinawan prefecture.

Nope. The article (and the website) states there are 2 separate prices: one for Japanese citizens (6980 yen):

https://ticket.junglia.jp/ticket/

And the more expensive one for non-Japanese citizens:

https://junglia.jp/en/ticket

And this is not something being done which is unique to Japan. When I was in Argentina they charged a different price for many attractions for locals and overseas visitors.

And? If double-pricing based on nationality is unfair in one country, it’s unfair everywhere. Pointing to another country doing the same thing just confirms it's a widespread bad habit, not a justified policy.

Let’s be honest: charging someone more money for the exact SAME experience, based solely on what flag is on their passport, is a SCAM with smile. You wouldn’t accept that at a restaurant, a hotel, or on a flight - so why is it suddenly okay here?

You can try to rationalize it all you want, but it still boils down to:

Two people walk up to the gate - one pays less, because they’re “from here.” The other? Cough up, Gaijin-san.

And the more expensive one for non-Japanese citizens:

From your own link

*Please check the Japanese page for ticket prices for residents of Japan.*

This means that foreign nationals would still have the right to buy the cheaper tickets as long as they are residents in Japan. So the pricing is not based on nationality.

The overhead is going to be a killer!

Nearly 0% traffic during this last Golden Week, you can transverse most of the island in like 1h30min.

Considering the location of the theme park, 90 minutes to cross the island, all depends upon the location. Traverse btw, means east to west, in the case here.

To travel around the island in 90 minutes is impossible! It's also impossible to go from Maeda Misaki in Itoman to Hedo Misaki at the northern tip of the island as well.

You must have been asleep, or travelling at 3 AM to have no traffic.

FYI I've been on this island longer than most, and there has NEVER been a Golden Week with "nearly 0%" traffic, even at 3 AM. Unless you live on Mt Yonaha!

Bankruptcy in the making. I give them 2 years of continued losses after the first 3 months. Japan’s depopulation, far out ways the temporary tourist boom and weak yen. And people go to Okinawa for sun and beach.

Shame. I was thinking of a trip to Okinawa because I've not made it there yet. I'm slowly going off the idea.

Looks rubbish.

Well, as someone else mentioned it ain’t half busy in many places there already. First time we went my partner rented a car and the traffic on the roads! It was awful, soooo many traffic jams. Now we just stick around Naha area and rent bicycles. Like to go in winter when it isn’t so warm but a nice break from the Cold weather in Osaka you see.

Happy for Okinawa to start experiencing the over tourism the rest of the country is suffering from.

There are already similar adventure style attractions all over the islands. Mostly catering to kids and families. The cost seems a little high to sit in an onsen in the swealtering heat of summer but folks are nutty about them anyway. Think hot. Very hot days and humid except in off season. There will be visitors. Lots of them. There's a reason attractions like these are built. For most folks, the resort hotels offer what they really want. A pool, a beach, ocean sports (can't miss a Banana Boat after all), and breakfast. Lots of options for true adventure tours around the island. Something for everyone in Okinawa, the nicest people in Japan, the best food without doubt. Can't wait to spend a few weeks later this year.

Build Jurassic Park

kiboushaToday 09:00 pm JST

Build Jurassic Park

Could start with the already brought back Dire wolves, add some Tasmanian Tigers, woolly mammoths and Dodo birds, work backwards from there.

Not as far fetched as it may seem.

But I do like the idea, ie buying an exceptional experience. I hope his maths is good 7ties billion yens, I am not even sure there's enough landing slots into Okinawa...or hotel beds in order to bring visitors to Okinawa.

He's going to need 5000 visitors a day to the park just to pay for the cost of capital.

Half that - 2500 visitors a day - for 350 days a year, each paying 8000 yen (averaged it out) for 10 years with all proceeds going toward paying it off... would pay it off.

But it doesn't account for running costs. Sure, there will be other sales, but... all I can say for certain is: it's not my problem!

Anyone that thinks Okinawa is a “Tiny Island” has obviously has never been there.

The ONE comment of my own, especially speaking of way up North is:

Wear your Habu Boots and Gloves….enjoy

I wish him the best. But a theme park in Okinawa trying to bank on tourists visiting Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo. I think 70% success chance is too optimistic.

Hang on a sec - WHY are Japanese people being charged LESS to enter Junglia? Since when did admission pricing become a game of blatant discrimination?

You see exactly the same sort of price variance at domestic US theme parks The demand curve for theme park consumption for a local resident is much different than it is for a visitor from abroad. The local resident has much more choices for entertainment and thus their price elasticity is much higher than it is for someone visiting from abroad. For the foreign visitor the price of admission to the theme park is a far smaller chunk of their total vacation expense than it is for someone who lives nearby and will not stay in a hotel overnight. In economics this is known as "Third Degree Price Discrimination".