Japan's Amusement Parks & Theme Parks

About this book

Beyond the two famous giants lies a whole civilisation of play. This is the first complete English guide to Japan's amusement world: 200 entries covering the great theme parks, the beloved local yuenchi run by railways and cities, the Ferris wheels that serve as city clocks from Yokohama to Kagoshima, the coasters from the oldest surviving circuit of 1953 to the newest launch machines, and the culture itself — illuminations, park food, mascots, preservation movements and the three-generation day out. Lost parks are honoured as memorials, living parks are read as gardens, and every entry follows one consistent format of story, rides, the rhythm of a day and practical notes, so two hundred parks can be compared on a single measure.