World-record-breaking roller coasters and recreations of eras long past. Gargantuan video-game paradises and maze-like odes to anime. Mini versions of a quaint Dutch town and the long-demolished Kowloon Walled City.<\/p>\r\n
Theme parks like these could only exist in Japan \u2013 a country that embraces niche interests and encourages strange tastes while others obsess over the mainstream.<\/p>\r\n
Though eccentric parks exist in other countries \u2013 Hong Kong included, with Park Island\u2019s Noah\u2019s Ark \u2013 nowhere beats Japan for their sheer proliferation, with dozens scattered across the country. Here we look at six of the best, with backup options for each should you choose to dig even deeper into the country\u2019s wealth of weirdness.<\/p>\r\n
For death-wish thrill seekers: Fuji-Q Highland<\/strong> It\u2019s got a roller coaster with a 121-degree angle drop (the steepest in the world), a \u201c4th Dimension\u201d one with seats that spin riders independent of the track (it also holds the joint world record for most times it turns riders upside down), and another with the highest acceleration at launch (32.1 metres per second squared).<\/p>\r\n The park also has classic fairground attractions \u2013 merry-go-rounds, tower drops, Ferris wheels. And then there is the Fortress of Despair challenge \u2013 an all-but-impossible \u201cbreak-in\u201d game that has never been successfully completed by any visitor \u2013 the Super Scary Labyrinth of Fear (the longest haunted house in the world, which takes 50 minutes to finish), and a virtual flight simulator around Fuji.<\/p>\r\n Be warned, though \u2013 Fuji Q is one of Japan\u2019s most popular theme parks, so it is worth investing in fast passes to beat the crowds.\u00a0fujiq.jp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n If you like this: also check out Nagashima Spa Land, the Kansai region\u2019s answer to Fuji-Q, which has over a dozen roller coasters.\u00a0nagashima-onsen.co.jp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n For dreams of old Japan: Toei Kyoto Studio Park<\/strong> Random sword fights break out in the streets between its costumed actor attendants, while 3D theatres and a haunted house allow you to relive some of the most famous films shot in the area.\u00a0toei-eigamura.com<\/span><\/a><\/p>\r\n If you like this: you\u2019ll also like Meiji Mura in Inuyama, an open-air architectural museum and theme park. It was built in the mid-1960s with the sole purpose of preserving the area\u2019s historic buildings at a time when Japan was in the throes of modernisation after the second world war. Over 65 structures are perfectly recreated.\u00a0meijimura.com<\/span><\/a><\/p>\r\n For surreal button-mashing games: Namco Namja Town<\/strong> On the surface, this theme park is dedicated to Namco video games \u2013 everything from the original Pac-Man<\/em>\u00a0through to Tekken<\/em>,\u00a0Time Crisis<\/em>\u00a0and Soulcalibur<\/em>. But alongside the chance to replay your favourite games are surreal asides that have nothing to do with them.<\/p>\r\n Here you\u2019ll find an entire \u201cmuseum\u201d on gyoza<\/em>\u00a0(Japanese pork dumplings), single-malt-whisky ice cream, and a frightening haunted house made to look like an abandoned village that often isn\u2019t in keeping with the otherwise family-friendly park.<\/p>\r\n Also in Sunshine City is J-World Tokyo, a park dedicated to Namco\u2019s anime wing of Dragon Ball<\/em>,\u00a0One Piece<\/em>\u00a0and Naruto<\/em>, but it\u2019s a more sedate affair.\u00a0bandainamco-am.co.jp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n If you like this: visit Joypolis, Sega\u2019s answer to Namco Namja Town, which has parks scattered all across Japan and features interactive odes to Sonic<\/em>,\u00a0Initial D<\/em>\u00a0and other franchises.\u00a0tokyo-joypolis.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n For the anime-obsessed: Ghibli Museum<\/strong> The name is a bit of a misnomer, as it\u2019s more of a theme park about the famed Japanese film studio than an exhibition. Designed by Studio Ghibli co-founder and director Hayao Miyazaki himself, the aim is to immerse visitors in the Ghibli films\u2019 particular brand of dreamlike charm, with the park designed as a mazelike adventure that allows you to go your own way.<\/p>\r\n Sprinkled throughout are odes to My Neighbour Totoro<\/em>,\u00a0Spirited Away<\/em>\u00a0and other famous studio productions. There\u2019s also an exhibition detailing Miyazaki\u2019s method which features journals, sketches and final works.\u00a0ghibli-museum.jp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n If you like this: check out Tokyo\u2019s Sanrio Puroland, which is like the Ghibli Museum but for Hello Kitty, Little Twin Stars, Chococat and other staple characters from the Sanrio world.\u00a0puroland.jp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n For a whole new world: Huis Ten Bosch<\/strong> The disorder can manifest itself in symptoms as severe as hallucinations, feelings of persecution and even vomiting. There never will be a \u201cDutch syndrome\u201d, however, thanks to Huis Ten Bosch, a dreamlike vision of a 17th-century Dutch town set just outside Nagasaki and named after one of The Hague\u2019s royal residences.<\/p>\r\n Located on a seafront property the size of Monaco, the vast park is impeccably designed, with windmills, canals, narrow houses and steepled churches, forests and lakes like those the Netherlands is famed for.<\/p>\r\n The park has attempted to bring in more mainstream crowds through virtual reality experiences and surreal parades since its founding in 1992, but it is still its technicolour vision of Holland that is the main attraction.\u00a0huistenbosch.co.jp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n If you like this: you should also see Shima Spain Village, a ride-heavy theme park in Mie prefecture modelled on the European country. It includes recreated castles highlighting Spanish history and symbolically appropriate rides such as the Iron Bull roller coaster.\u00a0parque-net.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n For the slightly deranged: Kawasaki Warehouse<\/strong> To the founders of Kawasaki Warehouse, located on the outskirts of Tokyo, the famed Walled City is a place of such myth and wonderment that they have attempted to recreate it. Their effort features such obsessive attention to detail that they even imported trash straight from Hong Kong.<\/p>\r\n Recordings of people arguing in Cantonese are piped through speakers, neon lights illuminate decrepit signs and torn posters, red butcher\u2019s lamps glow over barbecued meat stalls, and a peek inside a grimy window reveals a (plastic) prostitute laid waiting on her back.<\/p>\r\n Kawasaki Warehouse is actually a four-level video game arcade and pool hall, its interiors nothing more than a steampunk-like facade for its unbeknown neighbourhood players. But for Hongkongers making the pilgrimage, it could be all too familiar.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Sitting in the shadow of Mount Fuji, Fuji-Q Highland is a gift from the roller-coaster gods. It is a place of pure thrills, with stomach-churning rides set against stunning mountain views.<\/p>\r\n
Detailed recreations of Meiji-era buildings line the streets, from the city centre (where the courthouse stands) to the suburbs, with their period homes, and even an authentically recreated red-light district (minus the women of the night, of course).<\/p>\r\n
Japan\u2019s malls are unlike any you\u2019ll find in the world, and Tokyo\u2019s Sunshine City, a sprawling complex on the city\u2019s outskirts, is no exception. It has standard shops, restaurants and hotels, but there is also a museum on ancient Greco-Buddhist artwork, a planetarium, an aquarium and \u2013 most bizarrely of all \u2013 Namco Namja Town.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWeebs\u201d, as they are popularly known online, are non-Japanese folk obsessed with the land of the rising sun \u2013 and, in particular, anime. That makes the Ghibli Museum such a hot ticket in Tokyo, with fans having to book months in advance to secure entrance.<\/p>\r\n
There exists a mental affliction called \u201cParis syndrome\u201d, a disorder that predominantly affects Japanese tourists when they realise that their fairy-tale visions of the French capital don\u2019t conform to the warts-and-all reality of the city.<\/p>\r\n
Some say the Kowloon Walled City was Hong Kong\u2019s last beacon of nonconformity, a symbol of independence and a lawless place where anything was possible. Others thought it was just another slum.<\/p>\r\n