Japan Redefines WFH with a One-of-a-Kind, Wi-Fi-Enabled Ferris Wheel

By Mike Richard Published April 20, 2021

Ferris Wheel at Yomiuriland in Tokyo — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The pandemic has managed to suck all the fun out of just about everything this year. Even working from home — once a dream for many cubicle workers — has become something of a hellish, Groundhog Day-esque routine we can’t wait to escape. One Japanese theme park is turning “remote working” during quarantine on its head with a one-of-a-kind experience that includes a Wi-Fi-enabled Ferris Wheel.

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Tokyo’s Yomiuriland is encouraging visitors to come experience an entirely different WFH workday. Starting this month, the theme park is selling Amusement Workation day packages for around $20 per person. Pass holders can relax poolside with a private work booth, including a table, patio or office chairs, power outlets, and lightning-fast Wi-Fi. If that’s not sexy enough, workers can opt for an hour-long work session on the park’s signature Ferris Wheel, Wi-Fi included. For an additional fee, visitors can extend their stay to check out the park’s main attractions, including roller coasters, a botanical garden, a haunted house, and laser tag.

It’s worth noting that Japan continues to take the pandemic quite seriously. The country is strongly encouraging — though not requiring — amusement park visitors to wear face masks. To help slow the spread of COVID, the country’s top theme park association is even asking park-goers not to scream while on amusement rides. Instead, it would rather you “scream in your heart.” Seriously.

Amid COVID-19, many popular destinations and consumer brands around the world are getting creative with new ways to attract digital nomads. Some companies have launched social-distancing-friendly travel campaigns, like Michelob’s Ultra Pure Gold CEO contest. Several islands in the Caribbean are promising more lax visa policies to allow foreign workers to stay almost indefinitely. One luxury resort in the Maldives recently announced a Workation Package with an office on a private sandbank in the middle of the Indian Ocean. It also includes a personal assistant, laundry service, and all the snacks and drinks you can stomach. The price tag? A perfectly reasonable $23,000.

If traveling to Japan (or the Maldives or the Caribbean) isn’t in the cards for you right now, check out our staff’s top tips for working from home.

Contributor

Mike Richard has traveled the world since 2008. He's kayaked in Antarctica, tracked endangered African wild dogs in South…

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