By AKINA NISHI/ Staff Writer
June 26, 2025 at 16:53 JST
A smoking area installed on the western side of the Great Ring at the Osaka Kansai Expo (Akina Nishi)
OSAKA—Organizers of the Osaka Kansai Expo have extinguished the event venue’s smoking ban, announcing that two smoking areas will open from the morning of June 28.
One area on the western side of the Grand Ring, the symbol of the expo, is intended to accommodate 68 people, while the other on the northern side of the towering wooden structure should fit 43.
Smokers have complained because they previously had to leave the venue to access one of two designated areas outside the east gate.
Some have been caught trying to light up within the gates.
The Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition initially banned onsite smoking in line with the expo’s theme, “Designing future society for our lives.”
The new smoking areas are walled off, but do not have roofs.
An association official said nonsmokers will be separated from smokers because the wind will carry away cigarette smoke and the smell.
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