“Otaku Tourism and the Anime Pilgrimage Phenomenon in Japan”, 2014-12-11 (; backlinks):
This article analyses one aspect of the emerging phenomenon of otaku tourism: travel by mainly male fans of otaku subculture to anime ‘sacred sites’ (the locations that feature in favorite anime) [as part of a media mix].
It starts by placing discussion of otaku culture in the discourse of post-modernity and elaborating on how otaku subculture is generating new forms of communication.
Then, the origins and characteristics of anime pilgrimage are traced. [Using surveys of tourists; includes examples/photographs of primarily Kyoto Animation anime like Lucky Star, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, K-On!, AnoHana, but also Onegai Teacher & Higurashi. cf. the Anime Tourism Association’s “Japanese Anime 88-Spots (2023 Edition)”]
The article concludes by explaining how otaku tourism and anime pilgrimage generate distinctive forms of communication both among fans and between fans and the communities that experience influxes of anime tourists.
[Keywords: otaku, tourism, anime pilgrimage, communication]