A bright idea to boost tourism: Japanese city’s new night view

YOKOHAMA, Japan

Aproject to establish a “gaslight promenade” nearly two miles long is about to kick off in Yokohama, where the first gaslights in Japan were introduced 145 years ago.

The promenade will connect Yamashita Park, a famous sightseeing spot, and the Kannai area, where a historical streetscape remains. The Yokohama municipal government has allotted $17,500 in its fiscal 2017 budget as a design fee to embark on a night view creation project to add the promenade to the many charms of the city.

The aim of the project is to encourage tourists to stay overnight in Yokohama, where day-trippers outnumber overnight visitors.

Japan’s first gaslights were installed around the area currently known as Bashamichi in 1872, shortly after the port of Yokohama was opened to foreign ships. Bashamichi means carriage drive.

A total of about 300 gaslights were installed that year, but they were devastated in the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake. Gaslights then disappeared as electric ones became widely used.

“We want to make the area a place where people can enjoy strolling at night while getting to know the history of Yokohama,” a representative of the city’s Urban Development Bureau said. Construction is expected to start as early as fiscal 2018, and the city will consider the number of gaslights to install.

According to statistics compiled by local governments, Yokohama welcomed 37.6 million visitors in 2015, about 90 percent of whom were day-trippers. This is because many people come from the Tokyo metropolitan area.

The average spending per person was about $45 for day-trippers, while visitors who stayed overnight spent about $245 on average. The municipal government is aiming to make day-trippers change their minds and stay overnight by creating a new night view.

The aim of Yokohama’s gaslight project is to encourage tourists to stay overnight in the city, where day-trippers outnumber overnight visitors.