Snaplace, a Japanese website that analyzes and compiles the most popular SNS posts categorized by location and genre, has over 10,000 Japanese spots in its database.

By analyzing all of the data for 2020, they came up with a list of the top Twitterable spots in the land.

2020 Twitterable Spot Trends

But before diving into the ranking, you may be curious to know how this tumultuous year has impacted Japanese Twitter users. Here are the trends which emerged in 2020:

Rediscovery

Since it was difficult to go on journeys or travel long distances this year, more Twitter users in Japan focused their attention on things and places which aren't sightseeing spots but rather elements found in their daily lives, along their usual walking path, for example, but things which tell a story.

Good deals

Since the Japanese government implemented the Go To Travel campaign, tweets relating to hotels and accommodations tended to be easier to go viral this year, with many users reacting particularly well to good deals and special prices on nice-looking hotels, rooms, facilities and the views they provide.

Shock value

The pandemic has and continues to create a dark mood, encouraging many to engage in self-restraint this year. Therefore, things which provide a shock and help people momentarily forget all that stood out on Twitter in 2020.

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Ten most Twitterable spots in 2020

1. Transparent Toilet (Shibuya)

A spot that became a hot topic mainly on Twitter because of its shock value was this toilet which appeared in Shibuya Ward this year with special translucent colored glass which turns opaque only when occupied, thus allowing anyone to check the cleanliness of the facility and whether or not it is occupied at a glance. The surprising change from transparent to opaque made for a good video post.

Link

2. Ashinomaki Onsen Ōkawasō (Aizu Wakamatsu, Fukushima Pref.)

2020 was definitely the year of Demon Slayer, so this hotel's interior, with its striking similarity to the "Infinity Castle," caught many Twitter users' attention. Helping generate even more buzz was the appearance of a woman playing the shamisen on the facility's "floating stage," which apparently was reminiscent of the story's worldview.

3. Meeting point of three prefectural borders

With long journeys restricted due to the pandemic, this spot relatively close to Tokyo where the three prefectural borders of Saitama, Gunma and Tochigi converge, attraction attention this year. The fact that you can move between three prefectures by just taking a step, or even "be in three prefectures at once" if you're flexible enough, was reason enough to make it go viral.

4th to 10 place

• 4. Fujimizaka and Hinashizaka (Toyoshima Ward and Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo)
• 5. Yawata no Yabushirazu (Ichikawa City, Chiba Pref.)
• 6. Cosmo Isle Hakui (Hakui City, Ishikawa Pref.)
• 7. "Statue of a mother taking Twitter away from her child" (Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo)
• 8. Caution, Kids at Play sign dressed like Takanori Nishikawa of TM Revolution in the MV for "HOT LIMIT" (Hikone City, Shiga Pref.) [see image below]
• 9. Tsutsuishi Station (Itoigata, Niigata Pref.)
• 10. Arayayama Shrine (Fujiyoshida City, Yamanashi Pref.)

For more information about Snaplace's ranking of most Twitterable spots in 2020, visit their website here.