Osaka Expo attracts 119,000 visitors on opening day amid rain

The Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition said that more than 140,000 people had made reservations to visit the site on Sunday, but over 20,000 appear to have changed their dates to avoid bad weather.

On Monday, the first weekday since the opening, people lined up in front of the east gate near Yumeshima Station, which is directly connected to the expo site, in a scene reminiscent of the previous day. Entry, however, was smoother than on Sunday.

Inside the venue, a demonstration flight of a pilot-only flying car was held, reaching a height of about 10 meters and flying for around seven minutes as the audience cheered. The event had to be canceled on Sunday due to bad weather.

Later Monday, access to the top of the Grand Ring - a 2-kilometer-long structure recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's largest wooden building - was restricted due to concerns about lightning near the venue.

Opening day was not without hiccups, as internet connection issues caused headaches for some participants. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, the top government spokesman, told reporters, "We would like to increase visitor satisfaction through continuous improvements."

The expo will run through Oct. 13 on Yumeshima, an artificial island in Osaka Bay, with 158 countries and regions participating. Around 28.2 million visitors are expected, according to the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition.

The expo kicked off with a bang on Sunday, but soaring hotel prices and a shortage of rooms near the venue are casting a shadow over hopes of attracting more visitors and fueling concerns about the impact of overtourism, locals said.

The new hotels that have opened recently are mostly high-end, catering to wealthy travelers. The surge in foreign visitors has tightened supply and demand, driving up accommodation prices.

Earlier it was reported that Kyrgyzstan officially opened its pavilion at EXPO 2025 in Osaka on Sunday.