List of Overseas Visits by the Emperor, Empress and Imperial Family (1999 - 2008)

1999

Date Name Country Comments
February 8 - February 9 Their Imperial Highnesses the Crown Prince and Crown Princess Jordan Visit to attend the funeral of His Majesty King Hussein of Jordan
March 17 - March 30 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi Greece,
Monaco
Visit to foster friendly relations to celebrate the centennial of the establishment of official relations between Japan and Greece at the invitation of Greece
Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Monaco (Visit to Germany and France)
May 26 - June 9 Her Imperial Highness Princess Sayako Peru,
Bolivia
Visits to attend events celebrating a century of Japanese emigration to Peru and to Bolivia at the invitation of Peru and Bolivia (Visit to the United States)
June 1 - June 4 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Tomohito of Mikasa Australia Visit to attend charity events for medical research institutions
June 2 - June 6 His Imperial Highness Prince Katsura Australia Visit to attend charity events for medical research institutions
June 4 - June 14 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi United States,
Canada
Visits to attend events related to the Praemium Imperiale in the United States and to observe the state of overseas nations
June 24 - July 2 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Takamado United States,
Paraguay
Visits to observe the FIFA Women's World Cup 1999 in the United States and the 1999 Copa America in Paraguay
June 27 - July 8 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Vietnam,
Laos,
Thailand
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Vietnam, Laos and Thailand
July 5 - July 14 His Imperial Highness Prince Katsura New Zealand Visit to observe the second New Zealand-Japan international friendship Soccer Championship
July 20 - July 29 Her Imperial Highness Princess Tsuguko United Kingdom Visit (While in her second year at the Gakushuin Girls' Junior High School)
July 25 - July 26 His Imperial Highness Prince Takamado Morocco Visit to attend the funeral of His Majesty King Hassan II of Morocco
August 13 - August 19 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Takamado Canada Visit to attend the opening ceremony of the International Congress on Telehealth and Multimedia Technologies
September 12 - September 20 Her Imperial Highness Princess Sayako United States (Hawaii) Visit to attend the celebration of 40th anniversary of the Crown Prince Scholarship Foundation and the completion ceremony of the optical-infrared Subaru Telescope of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
September 26 - September 29 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Germany Visit to attend the opening ceremony of the Year of Japan in Germany at the invitation of Germany
December 3 - December 7 Their Imperial Highnesses the Crown Prince and Crown Princess Belgium Visit to attend the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness Prince Philippe of Belgium at the invitation of Belgium
December 3 - December 21 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Takamado Zambia,
Kenya,
Tanzania
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Zambia, Kenya and Tanzania (Visit to the United Kingdom)

2000

Date Name Country Comments
May 20 - June 1 Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress The Netherlands,
Sweden
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of the Netherlands and Sweden (Visit to Switzerland and Finland)
May 27 - June 8 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Takamado Egypt,
Morocco
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Egypt and Morocco
July 28 - August 8 Her Imperial Highness Princess Tsuguko United States Visit (While in her third year at the Gakushuin Girls' Junior High School)
September 6 - September 14 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi Malaysia,
Singapore
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Malaysia and Singapore
October 4 - October 16 Her Imperial Highness Princess Sayako Slovakia,
Slovenia,
Ireland
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Slovakia, Slovenia and Ireland

2001

Date Name Country Comments
April 17 - April 27 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi Panama Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Panama (Visit to the United States)
May 17 - May 20 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino The Netherlands Visit to attend the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands at the invitation of the Netherlands
May 18 - May 25 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince United Kingdom Visit to attend the opening events of Japan 2001 at the invitation of the United Kingdom
June 21 - June 28 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Cambodia Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Cambodia
July 15 - July 22 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Takamado United States (Hawaii) Visit to attend commemorative events related to the tea ceremony
August 2 - August 5 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Thailand Visit to attend the conferment ceremony of honorary doctorates from Srinakharinwirot University and Chulalongkorn University
August 5 - August 16 His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino Laos Visit for research on ornithology
September 1 - August 17, 2002 Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko United Kingdom,
Switzerland,
Norway,
Czech Republic,
Greece
Study abroad (Merton College, University of Oxford, England)(While in her second year in the Faculty of Letters, Gakushuin University)

2002

Date Name Country Comments
January 30 - February 4 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince The Netherlands Visit to attend the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness Prince Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange at the invitation of the Netherlands
May 29 - June 3 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Takamado Korea Visit to attend the opening ceremony of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan at the invitation of Korea
June 19 - June 28 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Mongolia Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Mongolia
July 6 - July 20 Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress Poland,
Hungary
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Poland and Hungary (Visit to the Czech Republic and Austria)
August 8 - August 21 Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko United Kingdom Visit (While in her second year at the Gakushuin Girls' Junior High School)
September 28 - October 3 Her Majesty the Empress Switzerland Visit to attend as patron of the Jubilee Congress of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) at the invitation of IBBY and the city of Basel
October 1 - October 11 His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa Turkey Visit to observe archeological monuments
October 6 - October 18 Her Imperial Highness Princess Sayako Romania,
Croatia
Visit to foster friendly relations to celebrate a century of relations between Japan and Romania at the invitation of Romania
Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Croatia (Visit to Italy)
October 14 - October 17 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino The Netherlands Visit to attend the funeral of His Royal Highness Prince Consort Claus of the Netherlands
December 11 - December 19 Their Imperial Highnesses the Crown Prince and Crown Princess New Zealand,
Australia
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of New Zealand and Australia

2003

Date Name Country Comments
April 2 - April 7 His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa,
Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko
Norway Visit to attend the 40th Anniversary of Ridderrennet, World Cross Country Ski Championships for the Visually Disabled at the invitation of Norway
June 18 - June 29 His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa,
Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko
Turkey Visit to observe archeological monuments
June 26 - July 3 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Ireland,
United Kingdom
Visit to attend events related to the 2003 11th Special Olympics World Summer Games in Ireland
Visit to attend memorial events in honor of His Imperial Highness Prince Takamado by the Japan Society in the United Kingdom
June 29 - July 9 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi France,
Italy
Visits to attend events related to the Praemium Imperiale in Italy and to observe the state of overseas nations
July 13 - July 26 Her Imperial Highness Princess Tomohito of Mikasa United Kingdom Visit to attend events related to the World Rose Convention and to observe the state of overseas nations
July 21 - August 4 Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko United Kingdom Visit (While in her fourth year in the Faculty of Letters, Gakushuin University)
August 7 - August 21 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino,
Her Imperial Highness Princess Mako,
Her Imperial Highness Princess Kako
Thailand Visit to express a congratulatory message to Her Majesty Queen Sirikit on her 72nd birthday
Visit to attend the conferment ceremony of an honorary doctorate from Ubon Ratchathani University and for joint research on domesticated fowls
September 27 - October 7 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Fiji Islands,
Tonga,
Samoa
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Fiji Islands, Tonga and Samoa (Visit to New Zealand)
October 1 - October 12 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Tomohito of Mikasa Turkey Visit to observe archeological monuments
November 14 - November 28 Her Imperial Highness Princess Sayako Uruguay,
Honduras
Visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Uruguay and Honduras (Visit to France, Argentina and the United States)

2004

Date Name Country Comments
January 22 - January 28 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi United States (Hawaii) Visit to attend events related to the Joint Conference of the Japanese Cancer Association and the American Association for Cancer Research and to observe the state of overseas nations
March 25 - March 29 His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa United Kingdom Visit to attend the wedding ceremony of a classmate of Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko during her studies in the United Kingdom
March 25 - March 31 Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko United Kingdom As above
March 29 - March 31 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino The Netherlands Visit to attend the funeral of Her Royal Highness Princess Juliana of the Netherlands
April 13, 2004 - July 1, 2008 Her Imperial Highness Princess Tsuguko United Kingdom,
Italy,
Norway,
Germany,
Luxembourg,
Canada,
Croatia,
Spain,
France,
Austria,
Czech Republic,
Hungary,
Montenegro,
Slovenia,
Romania,
Jordan,
Egypt
Study abroad (University of Edinburgh, Scotland)
May 12 - May 24 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Denmark,
Portugal,
Spain
Visits to attend the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark at the invitation of Denmark and to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Portugal
Visit to attend the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness Felipe, Prince of Asturias at the invitation of Spain
June 7 - June 27 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Canada Visit to foster friendly relations to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between Japan and Canada at the invitation of Canada (Visit to the United Kingdom)
July 13 - July 16 His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa Turkey Visit to attend the ground-breaking ceremony for the Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology of the Middle Eastern Culture Center
August 23 - August 30 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi Greece Visit to observe the 28th Olympic Games and to observe the state of overseas nation
September 8 - September 11 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Brunei Darussalam Visit to attend the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Billah of Brunei Darussalam at the invitation of Brunei Darussalam
September 25, 2004 - January 31, 2010 Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko United Kingdom,
Italy,
France,
United States,
Turkey,
Switzerland,
the Netherlands,
Belgium,
Germany
Study abroad (Merton College, Oxford University, England)
November 14 -November 19 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Thailand Visit to attend events related to the Third IUCN World Conservation Congress and to observe the state of overseas nations
December 24, 2004 - January 4, 2005 Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko United Kingdom Visit (While in her first year at the Gakushuin Girls' Senior High School)

2005

Date Name Country Comments
January 14 - January 16 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Luxembourg Visit to attend the funeral of Her Royal Highness Grand Duchess Josephine-Charlotte of Luxembourg
March 8 - March 22 Her Imperial Highness Princess Yohko Germany,
France
Visits to participate in the second Japanese-European goodwill tournament of the Kanto Student Kendo Association
April 13 - April 17 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi Monaco Visit to attend, as a dispatch, the funeral of His Royal Highness Prince Rainier III of Monaco (Visit to France)
May 7 - May 14 Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress Norway Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Norway (Visit to Ireland)
June 21 - June 28 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Germany,
Jordan
Visits to observe the FIFA Confederations Cup Germany 2005 and to attend the wedding ceremony of Princess Badiya of Jordan (Visit to the United Kingdom)
June 27 - June 28 Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress United States (Saipan) Visit to mourn and pay tribute to those who died in the war and to pray for world peace in the 60th year after the end of the war
July 4 - July 9 His Imperial Highness Prince Katsura France Visit to attend the opening ceremony of an exhibition of Ukiyoe artworks and to observe the state of overseas nations
August 3 - August 4 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Saudi Arabia Visit to pay condolences on the demise of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques
August 17 - August 24 His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino Thailand Visit for joint Japanese-Thai research on domesticated fowls
September 29 - October 6 His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa Turkey Visit to attend the dedication ceremony for the Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology of the Middle Eastern Culture Center
Visit to observe archaeological monuments
September 30 - October 10 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi Nicaragua,
El Salvador
Visits to foster friendly relations to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations at the invitation of Nicaragua and El Salvador (Visit to the United States)
November 3 - November 8 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado United Kingdom Visit to attend events related to the Global Council Meeting of BirdLife International and to observe the state of overseas nations
December 23, 2005 - January 4, 2006 Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko United Kingdom Visit (While in her second year at the Gakushuin Girls' Senior High School)

2006

Date Name Country Comments
January 22 - January 28 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Canada Visit to attend the opening ceremony of the Prince Takamado Gallery of Japan and to observe the state of overseas nations
March 15 - March 21 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Mexico Visit to attend the 4th World Water Forum at the invitation of Mexico (Visit to Canada)
June 8 - June 15 Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress Singapore,
Thailand
Visits to foster friendly relations to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations at the invitation of Singapore and to attend celebrations for the 60th Anniversary of the Accession to the Throne of His Majesty the King of Thailand (Visit to Malaysia)
June 17 - June 25 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Germany Visit to observe the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany and to observe the state of overseas nations
August 3 - August 16 Her Imperial Highness Princess Mako Austria Visit (While in her third year at the Gakushuin Girls' Junior High School)
August 17 - August 31 Their Imperial Highnesses the Crown Prince and Crown Princess,
Her Imperial Highness Princess Aiko
The Netherlands Visit and stay for recuperation at the invitation of the Her Majesty Queen of the Netherlands
September 18 - September 20 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Tonga Visit to attend the funeral of His Majesty Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, King of Tonga (Visit to New Zealand)
October 30 - November 7 His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino Paraguay Visit to foster friendly relations to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Japanese emigration to Paraguay at the invitation of Paraguay (Visit to France, Chile and New Zealand)

2007

Date Name Country Comments
March 14 - March 23 His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino Thailand Visit to attend the conference on joint Japanese-Thai research on domesticated fowls and to conduct field studies, and for conferment ceremony of an honorary doctorate from King Mongkut's University of Technology
May 21 - May 30 Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress Sweden,
Estonia,Latvia,
Lithuania,
United Kingdom
Visits following request for the presence of His Majesty, as a honorary member of the Linnean Society, and Her Majesty at the invitation of Sweden and the United Kingdom to mark the 300th anniversary of the birth of Carl von Linne and visits to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
July 10 - July 17 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Mongolia Visit to foster friendly relations at the invitation of Mongolia
August 8 - August 22 Her Imperial Highness Princess Ayako New Zealand Visit (While in her second year at the Gakushuin Girls' Senior High School)
August 13 - August 25 His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino,
Her Imperial Highness Princess Mako
Madagascar Visit to observe the diversity of living creatures and forest reconstruction in Madagascar and to conduct research on farm animals, domesticated fowls and extinct birds
August 18 - August 25 Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko Korea Visit (While in her first year in the Faculty of Letters, Gakushuin University)
September 12 - September 23 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Hitachi France Visit to attend events related to the Praemium Imperiale in France and to observe the state of overseas nations

2008

Date Name Country Comments
January 18 - January 25 Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino Indonesia Visit to attend the opening ceremony of the Indonesia-Japan Golden Year of Friendship 2008 marking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations at the invitation of Indonesia
June 16 - June 27 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Brazil Visit to foster friendly relations on the occasion of the centennial anniversary of Japanese emigration to Brazil at the invitation of Brazil (Visit to the United States)
July 16 - July 23 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Spain Visit to foster friendly relations on the occasion of the International Exposition of Zaragoza, Spain 2008 at the invitation of Spain
July 30 - August 3 His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince Tonga Visit to attend the Coronation of His Majesty the King of Tonga at the invitation of Tonga (Visit to Australia)
September 16 - October 3 Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado Uruguay,
Brazil,
Argentina,
Paraguay
Visits to attend the Birdlife International World Conference in Argentina and to observe the state of overseas nations