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Kadokawa to Open Interactive 'EJ Anime Hotel' in October
posted on by Kim Morrissy
Kadokawa will open its interactive anime concept hotel "EJ Anime Hotel" in Tokorozawa City, Saitama Prefecture on October 1. The hotel will contain 33 rooms altogether, and will open with rooms themed around the KonoSuba – God’s blessing on this wonderful world!!, A Certain Scientific Railgun T, BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense., Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out!, and Yuki Yuna Is a Hero franchises.
The hotel's theme is interactivity, and will include event spaces, museums, and a shop selling original merchandise. Every room will contain large-scale projectors and professional-quality lights and sound equipment, so that various audiovisual media can be enjoyed in a theater-like environment. Besides anime and games, the hotel will showcase other entertainment media popular in Japan such as comics, movies, tokusatsu, and idols. There will be a restaurant area called "Tiam," which will not only sell food and drink based on popular media properties, but can also be rented out for parties and weddings with a geek theme.
Details regarding booking reservations and the hotel's opening collaborations will be released on the official website on September 1.
The hotel will be part of the Tokorozawa Sakura Town facility, which itself is part of Kadokawa and Tokorozawa City's collaboration project "Cool Japan Forest Vision." The purpose is to draw foreign visitors to the often neglected Saitama area. The project is part of The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' "Cool Japan" initiative, and the name references the area's lush greenery. Initially announced in 2015 in anticipation of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the project is estimated to cost 30 billion yen (US$238.8 million).
The area already boasts several connections with anime and manga. Director Hayao Miyazaki once lived in Tokorozawa and was inspired to create My Neighbor Totoro from his memories of the area. It is also the home of horror manga creator Hideshi Hino. Saitama is also the setting of anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, Lucky Star, Kamisama Kiss, Crayon Shin-chan, and The Anthem of the Heart.
The grand opening for the Tokorozawa Sakura Town is scheduled for November 6. A part of the facilities opened on August 1 during the pre-opening period, and the EJ Anime Hotel will open on October 1.
Source: ITMedia (Rei Miyahara)
