‘Laid-Back Camp’ Leads to a Boom in Winter Camping

Laid-Back Camp (Yuru CampΔ) is making a positive impact on Japan’s campgrounds. Sankei Shimbun is reporting that the number of winter campers has tripled since Laid-Back Camp debuted in January.

Hirofumi Akaike, the owner of the Koan Camping Ground that appears in the anime, said that most campers stay home since the Minobu area gets too chilly during the winter months. However, the number of visitors has tripled since fans want to visit the areas that inspired the anime’s visuals.

The Suimeiso campground in Ichikawamisato has also seen an influx of visitors. Campground staff to Sankei Shimbun that they have been winters without visitors in the past, but strong word-of-mouth reviews have turned it into a pilgrimage destination.

Laid-Back Camp became a viral hit in Japan due to the C-Station staff’s attention to detail. One producer said the staff partook in winter camping to create the anime’s realistic atmosphere and to gather reference material for the setting. The effort paid off as fans became obsessed with sharing scenery shots and visiting the real-world campgrounds shown in the anime.

The Yamanashi Tourism Promotion Organization has been using the anime to advertise the area to visitors. They’ve created a website dedicated to highlighting the real-world locations that are shown in Laid-Back Camp.