Tourists from Taiwan head to Asakusa, while Akihabara is popular with Indians. Americans and Europeans, meanwhile, prefer Shibuya.
A survey of foreign tourists conducted by the Tokyo metropolitan government last year has revealed the top destinations in the city for visitors from abroad. The survey found that tourists' favorite areas differ depending on the country or region from which they come.
The difference in preferences is thought to be partly influenced by manga and movies.
A metropolitan government official said, "We want to come up with ways to promote places [in Tokyo] based on the survey results."
The metropolitan government surveyed foreign tourists at Haneda and Narita airports last year, analyzing the answers of about 13,000 respondents by home country or region.
The Shinjuku-Okubo area was the most popular destination in Tokyo, attracting 56 percent of foreign tourists to the city. Ginza was second, attracting 49.7 percent of foreign tourists, followed by Asakusa at 45.7 percent and Shibuya at 42.6 percent.
However, the order of preference changed depending on tourists' home country or region. For example, 53.7 percent of Taiwan tourists went to Asakusa, making it the most-visited area for such visitors.
Takahisa Yuge, director general of the Globe Trotter Travel Research Institute, explained the results, saying: "Taiwanese like the scenery of old residential and commercial areas. It seems that they're also influenced by the manga series, 'Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Koen-mae Hashutsujo' [This is the police station in front of Kameari Park in Katsushika Ward]," which is popular in Taiwan.
The series, widely known by the abbreviation "Kochikame," features a lead character from Asakusa named Kankichi Ryotsu. According to publisher Shueisha Inc., the manga is published in Taiwan under a different title.
Meanwhile, Shibuya was popular among tourists from Western countries, especially Spain and Italy. "In the United States and Europe, Shibuya is famous for appearing in American movies such as 'Lost in Translation' and 'The Fast and the Furious,'" Yuge said.
Akihabara was the most popular area for visitors from India. According to the survey, 64.4 percent of Indian respondents visited Akihabara for business purposes, a figure that exceeded the percentages for other reasons.
A metropolitan government official with authority on the matter said, "As the information technology industry is big in India, there may be many cases in which people with tech-related jobs visit Akihabara, which is famous for its concentration of electronics stores."
Chinese tourists, who are famous for their lavish shopping sprees, visited Ginza more than any other area, while visitors from South Korea and Hong Kong preferred Shinjuku and Okubo.
The survey also asked respondents how satisfied they were with their trip. More than 90 percent expressed high satisfaction with their visit to Tokyo.
However, respondents were relatively dissatisfied with such points as Tokyoites' ability to communicate in foreign languages and the convenience of exchanging money, highlighting areas for improvement.
According to the metropolitan government, the number of foreign tourists who visited Tokyo last year increased 5.1 percent from the previous year to a record high of about 13.77 million.
However, overall visitation to Japan rose 19.3 percent from the previous year to about 28.69 million, indicating Tokyo's rate of increase lagged behind the country as a whole.
A metropolitan government official in charge said, "We'll carefully promote the city and make improvements based on the survey results, such as by responding to language needs, so that as many foreign tourists as possible choose Tokyo for their trips."
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