The 2016 issue of the White Paper on Leisure, issued annually by the Japan Productivity Center, notes that total outlays for recreation and leisure last year showed a gain of 1.0%, having reached ¥72.299 trillion.
In terms of the number of participants, the 10 most popular activities (with the 2014 ranking indicated in parentheses only when it differs from that of 2015), were as follows: domestic travel, eating out, motor trips (4); reading (3); cinema (7); visiting shopping centres and outlet malls; visiting zoos and museums (8); listening to music (12); walking and karaoke (13).
Among the gainers were athletic shoes and sportswear, which—reflecting the growing popularity of jogging and running in marathons—leapfrogged from 28th place in terms of the number of participants in 2014, to 19th last year. Visitors to theme parks and amusement parks grew for the third straight year, setting a new record for takings of ¥764 billion. Among those reporting a drop were pachinko businesses, down 1.5% year on year. The white paper reports that operators of pachinko parlours are attempting to bring back customers by installing machines with more generous payouts.
Tokyo’s hosting of the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games is expected to result in greater sports-related outlays over the next several years. The issue also features a special report on how the declining birth rate is affecting leisure activities among children.
The full, 192-page white paper may be ordered from Amazon Japan for ¥7,560.