2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo Opens, Draws Crowds; Visitors Flock to Attractions

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:03 JST, April 13, 2025

OSAKA — The 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo opened to the public on the artificial island of Yumeshima in Osaka Bay on Sunday with many visitors flocking to popular spots.

Under the theme of “Designing Future Society for Our Lives,” 158 countries and regions are participating in the expo, which is scheduled to last through Oct. 13.

“The Osaka-Kansai Expo is now open,” declared Masakazu Tokura at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the East Gate Zone. Tokura is chairperson of the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition and chairman of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren).

Immediately after Tokura’s declaration, Dimitri Kerkentzes, secretary general of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions that oversees the Expo, Yoshitaka Ito, minister in charge of the World Expo 2025, and others cut the ribbon.

Many visitors lined up in front of the gates, eagerly awaiting the opening. One said, “I’ll enjoy the feeling of traveling around the world,” while another mentioned, “I came here to make memories that I’ll never forget.”

As soon as the gates opened at 9 a.m., the attendees entered the venue one after another and quickly made their way to the pavilions they intended to visit.

There were long lines of visitors in front of the USA Pavilion, which displays a moon rock brought back by an astronaut who landed on the moon in 1972, as well as the France Pavilion, which features exhibits by famous fashion brands and other attractions.

At the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion, exhibits such as an update of a futuristic “human washing machine” that was all the rage at the 1970 Osaka Expo are on display. As of 10:15 a.m., about 300 people were waiting to enter the pavilion.

“I came [to the Osaka pavilion] since visitors can enter without reservations, but I didn’t expect it to be so crowded,” said a 47-year-old company employee of Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, who visited the expo with her son.