INTERVIEW: New USJ Head Vows to Promote Kansai Tourism
Osaka, June 2 (Jiji Press)--The new chief of theme park operator Universal Studios Japan LLC is eager to further promote tourism in the Kansai region, western Japan, in cooperation with the Osaka city government.
"I'm determined to develop local tourism over the next five to 10 years," Taku Murayama, who took office as USJ president Sunday at age 53, said in a recent interview.
Murayama, who started his work career at the company and became its first Japanese president in 21 years, noted that he has long been willing to leverage the globally popular theme park to change the state of "one pole concentration" to Tokyo.
Recovering from the COVID crisis, USJ ranked third in the list of most-visited theme parks in the world in 2023.
"Visitors always make fresh discoveries at USJ as they experience totally new seasonal events and services, such as those in the Christmas and Halloween seasons," Murayama explained.
(2025/06/02-13:22)
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