Shurijo: The World’s 10th Most Visited Castle

April 9, 2015 Wu Li Jun of the Ryukyu Shimpo

CNN’s “Travel + Leisure” website has ranked Shurijo Castle in Naha City as the 10th most visited Palace or Castle in the world. The ranking is based on visitor numbers obtained from tourist and government sources. Shurijo is the only monument in Japan to make the top ten.

The Forbidden City in Beijing, China, took first place with 15.34 million annual visitors. It was followed by the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, (9.33 million) and the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand (8 million.) Around 1.753 million people visit Shurijo Castle every year.

The website also provided a brief history of Shurijo, explaining how it was the seat of the Ryukyuan kings for over 400 years before being completely destroyed during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. It was rebuilt in 1992.

(English translation by T&CT and Sayaka Sakuma)

Go to Japanese


　


Previous Article:
Next Article:

[Similar Articles]