Fireflies are a rare beauty in Japanese culture and are a welcomed aspect of the summer months. Wondering how will the sparkles and twinkles be in 3D?
These seasonal activities are being featured at the Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, as well as three additional properties.
Japanese Summer Joy: Fujita Kanko Offers Firefly Season Activities at Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo
May 30, 2013, Tokyo – Fujita Kanko, a leading Japanese hospitality company, announced that four of its properties are now offering special accommodation and dining plans for firefly season. Fireflies have had an honored place in Japanese culture for over a thousand years, cherished as a symbol of the beauty of summer.
Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, the company’s iconic five-star flagship property known for its lush majestic botanical garden, becomes home to numerous fireflies from May to July – extremely rare in the center of Tokyo. In 1953, Fujita Kanko started hosting firefly-viewing in the Chinzanso garden as part of the company’s mission to offer people places to relax and enjoy themselves after many parts of Japan were destroyed during World War II.
“Our Chinzanso garden is blessed with a rich natural environment right in the middle of a big city, and we feel it’s our responsibility to share that with our community as well as our guests,” said Akira Segawa, president of Fujita Kanko. “Our annual firefly festivities are very popular with urban dwellers who ordinarily don’t have a chance to see fireflies.”
At Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, the care of fireflies is a year-round business. After the fireflies lay eggs in the garden, the hotel keeps them in an incubator. In January, the larvae are returned to the creek where the eggs were laid. Every year, the hotel invites local children to participate in this larvae ritual with a class on the ecology of fireflies, and then invites them back to see dancing fireflies in the summer.
In addition, three other properties are offering special firefly plans: Hakone Hotel Kowaki-en (accommodations), Ito Kowaki-en (accommodations) and Taiko-en (dining). Information can be obtained by calling each property. Fujita Kanko donates part of the proceeds to Forestock, a Japanese charity that preserves forests in Japan’s Tohoku region, a firefly habitat.
About Fujita Kanko Inc.
Fujita Kanko Inc., a publicly-traded tourism industry corporation headquartered in Tokyo, was established in 1955. In addition to its core hospitality business, the company’s subsidiaries include wedding and banquet facilities, high-end resorts, leisure facilities and related services. The company has approximately 60 properties/facilities, including 30 mid-priced hotels throughout Japan in two chains: Gracery Hotels and Washington Hotels.