General News

3-Day Rehearsal for 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo in Japan Begins; Aiming to Confirm Smooth Operations Before Opening

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:24 JST, April 5, 2025

OSAKA — A three-day test run rehearsal of the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo started Friday at the venue on Yumeshima, an artificial island in Konohana Ward, Osaka, ahead of the official opening on April 13.

The expo will run until Oct. 13. A total of about 90,000 people are scheduled to participate in the rehearsal through Sunday.

The Japan Association for the 2025 World Expo is looking for potential ways to improve management of the event in preparation for the official opening.

On the first day of the test run, 26 of 27 domestic pavilions, including the Japan Pavilion, opened. Among the 47 countries which built their own Type-A pavilions, eight countries participated with eight pavilions opening.

Eating establishments and facilities for selling goods also opened.

About 10,000 visitors were invited to the rehearsal, including officials of sponsoring companies and local governments.

They toured the venue to see various facilities, including the Grand Ring, which measures 20 meters in height and two kilometers in circumference and acts as a symbol of the event.

On the second and third days of the rehearsal, Osaka Prefecture residents invited by lottery will be able to enter the venue.

The Expo association aims to confirm during the three-day period whether the entryways, reservation systems and cashless payments systems will work smoothly.