The Real Wall Maria: Surveying Hajime Isayama's Hometown for the 'Attack on Hita' Tourism Project

Years ago, when Attack on Titan manga creator Hajime Isayama was visiting his hometown of Hita City in Japan's Oita prefecture, he noticed many businesses had been shuttered and realized his hometown wasn't doing so well. He decided he "wanted to give something back to this town in which [he] came up with the idea for Attack on Titan."

Isayama has noted several times that Hita City served as the original inspiration for the scenery in his manga. The city is located in an insular basin surrounded by mountains and forests that let you feel like you could see someone emerging from them using the vertical maneuvering equipment at any moment.

In 2014, Isayama was named "Tourism Friendship Ambassador to the 'Beautiful Riverside Location of Hita.'" In the years since then, the city has embraced itself as the hometown of Isayama and has leaned into anime tourism, launching the "Attack on Titan in HITA -Attack on Hita-" project.

The city crowdfunded several projects to erect statues of the characters from the franchise, which opened in 2020 and 2021. All around the city, you can find Isayama's signature and doodles hanging in shops from hair salons to cafés, and lamp posts feature Attack on Titan flags. Many shops sell local specialties branded with Attack on Titan logos and images. There's even a museum dedicated to Attack on Titan on the site of a local farmer's market.

A new bus tour of the area is scheduled to launch at the end of April, and ANN was given a preview of the tour before its opening.

The tour started off in Fukuoka, a city in northern Kyushu that's a stop on the bullet train, about three hours away from Kyoto or five hours away from Tokyo. The city also has an international airport. From there, a bus fully decked out in Attack on Titan decoration takes visitors on the one-hour drive to Hita City.

The city has also provided an app for tourists to use, which is available for iOS and Android in Japanese and English (unfortunately, the app is currently unavailable worldwide, but the staff stated they would look into expanding its availability). At many establishments in the area, from restaurants to hotels and shops, fans can scan a QR code to get a stamp as part of a stamp rally. For every three stamps, fans can choose a prize via lottery and show it to certain establishments to receive it in person (such as a postcard). And at 13 spots, fans can use the app to take AR pictures, making it seem like characters are right there with you. The app also includes coupons that can be used at area establishments.

The first stop on the tour is at Hita City station, where there is a bronze statue of Levi. The AR attraction in the area also lets fans pose in front of the station while being attacked by the Beast Titan.

The Levi statue was unveiled in March 2021 and stands 1.52 meters (about 5 feet) tall and weighs 200 kg (about 440 lb).

The next stop on the tour is the Patria Hita "Attack on Hita Café," which includes a bento lunch and lots of merchandise for sale.

The AR experience at the café features Erwin and Levi. The bento includes themed dishes such as "Sasha stole potatoes from the kitchen," "Sasha stole meat from the food storage of a superior officer," and "marinated seafood caught in the sea of Marley," but also includes Hita City specialties and favorite foods of Isayama's, such as Hita Yakisoba, fried chicken, and tamagoyaki.

The café also sells a gelato dessert using local fruits. Everything is, of course, branded in Attack on Titan.

The café and museum house a copy of the Attack on Titan manga volume that holds the Guinness World Record for "the largest comic book published," measuring 7,030 cm squared.

The bus tour then takes visitors to the "Hita Kusu Chiiki Sangyo Sinko Center" for shopping and photos. The store features lots of Attack on Titan goods, such as those made from Hita lumber, a specialty in the area. In addition, the shop has many character panels, tapestries, and even a recreation of a chair that Levi sits on in one of Isayama's illustrations.

The panel on the right in the above image says, "You have large-size Hita-made geta (wooden sandals)!? (*We do)." The panel on the left says, "You can look at an AR of vertical maneuvering equipment."

The next stop at the 72-meter-tall Oyama Dam is easily the highlight of the trip, with bronze statues of Eren, Mikasa, and Armin as children looking at the dam.

The AR experience at the dam features the Colossus Titan itself, reenacting a scene from the beginning of the manga where it peers over a partially broken Wall Maria.

Isayama advised the staff in the creation of the statues, and he even has his handprint and signature near the base.

Isayama has said in an interview that as a child, he would visit the waters around the dam nearly every day to play.

The area of the dam is where you can most feel the oppressive atmosphere of the mountains surrounding you, and it gives a true feeling of being in the world of Attack on Titan.

The next stop is the Attack on Titan in HITA Museum, located in a rest area and a farmer's market. The museum opened in March 2021, and cherry blossom trees surround the area.

The museum is free to enter, and while the signage is only in Japanese, a video featuring interviews with Isayama plays that includes English subtitles. The interviews highlight Isayama discussing his creative process, his thoughts on the drawings on exhibit at the museum, his childhood in Hita City, and more.

The museum also features doodles and drawings Isayama drew as a child in junior high school and high school. Isayama said at first he did not want those drawings in the museum as he was embarrassed by them. However, he said he wanted to move past the feelings of being embarrassed by his past, stating, "To draw manga is to expose the embarrassing parts of yourself to the world." He realized that without those embarrassing doodles, he would never have been able to create Attack on Titan, so he decided the museum could put them on display.

The museum also features the desk Isayama used when he debuted, various other drawings, storyboards, unused images, and more.

The museum also has an AR experience featuring the Female Titan and has more limited Attack on Titan merchandise and local souvenirs.

The museum was listed on the 2023 edition of the Anime Tourism Association's "Japanese Anime 88-Spots."

The final stop on the tour is the appropriately (but coincidentally) named Paradiso Oita, a restaurant at a campground. The dinner at Paradiso Oita didn't feature any Attack on Titan-themed items. Instead, it showcased many local specialties such as Bungo-gyu (Oita's Wagyu beef), tomatoes, mushrooms, and kabosu citrus. The stop had an AR experience with a 3D Levi.

Plus, the area gives a fantastic view of the surrounding mountains.

While some places on the tour are available by train or on foot, the most interesting ones, such as Oyama Dam, are not. If you have a car, you can easily get around to many of the main tourist spots within Hita City and its surrounding areas, but for those without, the organized bus tour is the best way to see all the main spots.

There is also much more to explore for Attack on Titan fans in the city. Aside from the 13 AR attractions, more than two dozen places feature collaborations with Attack on Titan, from shops to restaurants. Everything you need to know about the "Attack on Titan in HITA -Attack on Hita-" project is available on its English website. The upcoming tour will cost 17,500 yen (about US$132) per person for those who wish to start and end the tour in Fukuoka and 16,500 yen (about US$125) per person for those who wish to start and end the tour in Hita City.

As part of the 10th anniversary project for the anime franchise that was announced at AnimeJapan 2023 last month, Hita City and Isayama will host a tree-planting ceremony later this year, which seems appropriate in light of the anime's upcoming finale this fall.

Disclosure: Tour organizers paid for domestic travel and one night of accommodation for this media tour.