Drive-through strawberry picking pops up in Japan

Socially distanced Japanese fruit picking in the heart of Tokyo. 

With coronavirus cases steadily rising in Tokyo, and officials asking residents in the capital to avoid unnecessary travel around Japan during the holiday period, families are facing a long winter inside small houses with not a lot of fun-day-out options available to them.

Event co-ordinator Afromance, however, has been brainstorming ideas for safe outdoor activities that the whole family can enjoy during Japan’s new normal, and his latest concept is both weird and brilliant at the same time: Drive-through Strawberry Picking.

Created in conjunction with Saga Prefecture’s Japan Agricultural Cooperative, the new fruit-picking project brings the country experience to the big city, popping up at the foot of Tokyo Tower.

▼ Fruit-picking doesn’t get any more central than this.

Called “Ichigo-san”, which adds the honorofic “san” to ichigo, the Japanese word for “strawberry”, the new drive-through allows passengers to pick the sweet fruits from their windows, without having to get out of their cars.

That’s not the only thing drivers and their passengers can enjoy from the comfort of their vehicles, as tickets to the event include two “exquisite sweets”. There’ll be the “Premium Ichigo-san Sandwich“, made by popular bread specialty store Takasho, which frequently sells out of them at department store pop-up events, and the “Special Ichigo-san Smoothie“, which has been created under the supervision of “bebible“, a store that specialises in making high-quality smoothies without artificial additives.

▼ The sandwiches (left) are filled with regular and strawberry cream.

The sweets will be served from trucks after passenger vehicles pass through the strawberry-picking tent, which will be equipped with fans for thorough ventilation.

The strawberry-picking event will be held at Tokyo Tower for two days only, from 15-16 January. Tickets, which can be purchased online from noon 17 December (Japan Standard Time), cost 2,800 yen for adults, which includes strawberry picking, the two exclusive sweets, and a Tokyo Tower main deck observation ticket.

Tickets are limited to 153 pairs for the two days, so you’ll have to get in quick if you want to enjoy strawberry-picking in the heart of Tokyo. Sweets can be purchased for takeout with or without a car, although event organisers point out that rental cars aren’t available at the site, so you’ll have to bring your own.

After making out-of-the box ideas like the Sakura Chill Bar and Bathtub Cinema a reality, we can’t wait to find out what weird and wonderful experiences Afromance has in store for us next!

Source, images: PR Times
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