Google’s Cherry Blossom Guide Might Be One of the Best Japan Tourism Initiatives Yet

Since last year’s earthquake, Japan has been struggling for ways to bring tourism back to normal. The number of visitors has been gradually improving, the way that the country showcases its best destinations and points of interest could certainly be improved. So I was really pleased to see this morning that Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) has a new initiative (in cooperation with the JTA and JNTO) aimed at spotlighting key areas around Japan that tourists might be interested in. And it’s just in time for cherry blossom season too.

Using its Google Street View technology, Google has created its Street View guide to Japan: Cherry Blossom Season Edition. It has spotlighted eight main tourist areas: Ginza, Tsukiji, Akihabara, Asakusa, Kamakura, Mt. Fuji, Kyoto, and Osaka. The photos displayed of each location are perhaps more beautiful than anything that I’ve seen on Street View to date, with a slow, automatic camera pan that you can stop if you want to explore yourself.

And while the attractive scenery draws you in, it’s perhaps the more detailed information off to the side, including descriptions, dining, and shopping information that makes this a valuable resource for any tourist. You can even get panoramic views of businesses nearby, often even getting a full view from the inside of a restaurant or cafe (like this maid cafe in Akihabara). According to Google, the guide includes 339 locations, including 26 cherry blosson spots in total.

Tucked away in the bottom right corner is a very important language selection tool, allowing you to view in Japanese, English, Korean, and traditional and simplified Chinese.

Looking at the Japan’s main tourism websites this morning, both the JTA and JNTO, I find no mention of the new Google Street View Guide, and that’s regrettable because its would certainly be worth passing on to interested tourists. Hopefully they are both busy promoting it through other channels, because it’d be an awful waste if no one sees this.

[Figures in chart above from JNTO]