Where do Japanese school students want to go for school trips?

After living in Japan for years, I've become accustomed to seeing school groups everywhere from Tokyo and Kyoto to smaller regional destinations. Because of that, I was curious to see the results of a recent survey where Japanese high school students picked where they'd choose to go if they could pick their ideal school-trip destination.

The survey polled 750 high school students around Japan, and Okinawa came out on top. It was chosen by 33.1 percent of respondents, with the ocean and tourist attractions among the biggest draws.

Hokkaido came in second with 21.2 percent, with food and seafood frequently mentioned as reasons for choosing it. Tokyo followed at 11.6 percent, while Kyoto and Osaka rounded out the top five with 10.0 and 9.9 percent respectively.

The reasons for choosing the big-name destinations were interesting, too. Tokyo appealed to students who wanted the experience of visiting a huge city or simply had never been there. Kyoto was popular for its history and status as a classic school-trip destination, while some students wanted another chance to see places they missed during their middle school trip.

Chiba ranked sixth, partly thanks to Tokyo Disneyland, followed by Hiroshima, Fukuoka, and Kanagawa.