Tokyo: Prince Charles and his wife Camilla arrived here today on a visit to Japan, the first in nearly two decades by the heir to the British throne.
During the five-day visit, the prince and duchess are scheduled to travel around the country, meeting Prime Minister Taro Aso and having dinner with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko.
Charles and Camilla will also travel to Nara, an ancient city in the west of the country with some of Japan's most famous Buddhist temples, as well as to the central mountain town of Nagano, according to the Japanese foreign ministry.
The visit was timed to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce, the ministry said.
Charles has not visited Japan since 1990,when he came for Akihito's enthronement. Charles' mother Queen Elizabeth last came to Japan in 1972, a ministry official said.
Members of Japan's imperial household have frequently gone to Britain. Akihito, then crown prince, represented Japan at Elizabeth's coronation in 1953.
In 1998, the imperial couple were jeered by World War II veterans as they rode through London in a ceremonial carriage, upsetting many in Japan.
