Japan

The Land of the Rising Sun: 101 Things to Do in Japan

101 Things Expert

Japan operates on frequencies that no other country transmits. It is simultaneously the most ancient and the most futuristic civilisation you will encounter: a country where a Shinkansen bullet train departs every three minutes with a punctuality measured in seconds, and where, one hour from the platform, a Buddhist monk has been raking the same gravel garden in the same pattern for four hundred years without interruption. It is a country where the cherry blossom season — two weeks of pink and white — produces a collective state of luminous attention that has no equivalent in Western culture. Where a bowl of ramen, made in the same shop by the same family for 50 years, is a serious art form. Where the toilets are more sophisticated than most hotel rooms in Europe, and where a forest on a remote island has been growing undisturbed since before recorded history.

Japan also rewards depth over breadth. The travellers who come to Japan and see only the Golden Route — Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka — see something extraordinary. The travellers who continue to Kanazawa, Tohoku, Shikoku, Kyushu, and the outer islands see Japan as it actually is: vast, layered, and endlessly surprising.

This guide covers 101 things to do across the entire archipelago — from Tokyo’s robot restaurants to the ancient cedar forests of Yakushima, from the sake cellars of Niigata to the coral reefs of Okinawa.

Tokyo: The City That Never Stops

Shrines, Temples & Heritage

  1. Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa — Tokyo’s oldest and most visited temple, established in 628 AD in the Asakusa district: the Kaminarimon Gate (the thunder gate with its enormous red lantern), the Nakamise shopping street leading to the inner temple, and the five-storey pagoda above the incense smoke and the morning prayers of the faithful. Come at 6am before the tourist infrastructure wakes, and the temple belongs to its worshippers. The surrounding Asakusa neighbourhood — with its rickshaws, craft shops, and the view of the Tokyo Skytree above the traditional rooftops — is the finest concentration of old Tokyo atmosphere available.
  2. Meiji Jingu Shrine, Harajuku — The principal Shinto shrine of Tokyo: a forested sanctuary in the heart of the city, dedicated to Emperor Meiji and his consort, Empress Shoken. The approach through the 100,000-tree forest that was planted by volunteers at the shrine’s founding in 1920 is the finest natural corridor in Tokyo. The inner garden (Iris Garden, at its peak in June) and the Hon-den (main sanctuary) are the finest expressions of Shinto sacred architecture in the capital.
  3. Nikko’s Tosho-gu Shrine (Day Trip, UNESCO) — The most elaborately decorated shrine complex in Japan, in the mountain town of Nikko two hours north of Tokyo: the Yomeimon Gate (covered in over 500 carved and painted figures of animals, flowers, and saints — called the Twilight Gate for the legend that you could stare at it from dusk to dawn without seeing everything), the mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the three sacred monkeys. A UNESCO World Heritage Site; the finest example of Gongen-zukuri shrine architecture in Japan.
  4. Kamakura’s Great Buddha & Shrines (Day Trip) — The 13-metre bronze Kotoku-in Buddha (Daibutsu) in the open air, cast in 1252 and originally housed in a temple washed away by a tidal wave in 1498, now sitting under the Kamakura sky: the finest monumental Buddhist sculpture in Japan. The surrounding shrines and temples of Kamakura — Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu, Engaku-ji, Kencho-ji — and the coastal hills with ocean views make it the finest full-day heritage excursion from Tokyo.

Neighbourhoods & Modern Tokyo

  1. Shibuya Scramble Crossing — The most famous pedestrian crossing in the world: up to 3,000 people crossing in every direction simultaneously when the lights change, surrounded by the largest concentration of advertising screens in Asia. Best experienced at street level at rush hour (6–7pm), from the Starbucks first-floor window above the crossing, or from the Mag’s Park rooftop opposite. Free; entirely overwhelming.
  2. Shinjuku: The City Within the City — Tokyo’s most extreme neighbourhood: Kabukicho (the largest entertainment district in Asia, with host clubs, nightclubs, and the Robot Restaurant), the Golden Gai (a cluster of 200 tiny six-seat bars behind Kabukicho, the finest bar crawl in Asia), Omoide Yokocho (Memory Lane — a narrow alley of yakitori stalls producing smoke and the smell of charcoal since 1945), and the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden (one of the finest parks in Tokyo, with the most celebrated cherry blossoms in the city). Shinjuku contains more of Japan’s extremes within a 1-kilometre radius than any other place.
  3. Harajuku: Takeshita Street & Omotesandō — Takeshita Street (the narrow pedestrian lane of teenage fashion culture, crepe shops, and costume stores — the most specifically Tokyo street in the city) and the adjacent Omotesandō (the tree-lined boulevard of luxury fashion boutiques, with Tadao Ando’s Omotesandō Hills as the finest piece of contemporary retail architecture in Tokyo). The contrast between the two streets — one entirely about self-invention, one entirely about established luxury — is the most concentrated expression of Tokyo’s cultural range in a single walk.
  4. Yanaka: Old Tokyo Preserved — The shitamachi (downtown) neighbourhood of Yanaka in Taito ward: one of the few Tokyo neighbourhoods that survived the 1923 earthquake and the 1945 firebombing relatively intact, with wood-framed houses, small temples, artisan workshops, family-owned shops, and the Yanaka Cemetery (a public park of considerable beauty in cherry blossom season). The neighbourhood — with its cats, its incense, and its entirely unhurried pace — is the closest available approximation of pre-war Tokyo.
  5. Akihabara: Electronic Town — The district between Ueno and Kanda: the global headquarters of anime, manga, and consumer electronics culture, with multi-storey arcades, maid cafés, retro game shops, and the full range of Japanese pop culture in the most concentrated form available outside a convention. The Don Quijote department store on Chuo-dori (open 24 hours) and the Radio Kaikan electronics building are the finest single buildings.
  6. Tokyo Sky Tree (634 Metres) — The world’s tallest broadcast tower (and the world’s tallest tower of any kind): the observation floors at 350 and 450 metres give the finest comprehensive view of the Tokyo metropolitan area — 35 million people spread across the plain to the mountains, with Mount Fuji visible on clear days to the southwest. The base complex in Asakusa has the finest souvenir and food shops of any Tokyo landmark.

Food & Markets

  1. Tsukiji Outer Market at Dawn — The old Tsukiji fish market’s outer market (the wholesale operations moved to Toyosu, but the retail and restaurant operations of the outer market remain on their original site): tamagoyaki (sweet rolled omelette), fresh tuna sashimi, uni don (sea urchin on rice), and the finest breakfast in Tokyo at 7am. The outer market’s food stalls and knife shops are the finest single food destination in the city.
  2. Ramen at a Tokyo Ramen Shop — Tokyo has more types of ramen than any other city: the shoyu (soy-based), the shio (salt-based) of the Tokyo style; the tonkotsu of the Kyushu-style shops that have opened in the capital; and the tsukemen (dipping ramen) of Taishoken (the shop that invented the style in 1961). The ramen vending machine at the entrance (order before sitting) and the counter seating are the defining format. Eating alone at a counter, concentrating entirely on the bowl, is the most meditative food experience in Tokyo.
  3. Izakaya Evening, Shinjuku or Shibuya — The Japanese pub-restaurant: a long, low-lit room of small dishes (yakitori, edamame, agedashi tofu, gyoza, karaage), cold Sapporo or Asahi draft beer, and the specific collective energy of a Japanese workplace evening out. The Yurakucho alley under the railway arches (the finest izakaya district in central Tokyo) and the Golden Gai of Shinjuku are the best settings.

Mount Fuji & the Central Highlands

  1. Mount Fuji Sunrise Climb — Japan’s highest peak (3,776 metres, Japan’s national symbol, a UNESCO World Heritage Site) is open for climbing from early July to early September, with the Yoshida Trail from the Subaru 5th Station the most accessible route: a 5–7 hour ascent arriving at the summit crater for the goraiko (sunrise). Crowded on summer weekends; transcendent on a clear weekday dawn. Proper equipment essential; altitude sickness possible above 3,000 metres.
  2. Hakone: Mount Fuji Views & Hot Springs — The resort town in the mountains two hours from Tokyo: the classic Fuji view from Lake Ashinoko (across the lake, with Fuji’s cone reflected in still morning water), the Hakone Open Air Museum (the finest sculpture park in the Kanto region, with Picasso and Henry Moore in a valley below Fuji), the Hakone Ropeway over the volcanic Owakudani (active sulphur vents), and the ryokan onsen (hot spring inn) culture.
  3. Lake Kawaguchiko & the Fuji Five Lakes — The most photogenic view of Mount Fuji: from the northern shore of Kawaguchiko, Fuji is reflected in the lake with the autumn foliage of the lakeside trees in the foreground (late October to mid-November). The Chureito Pagoda (a five-storey pagoda above the lake, with Fuji framed behind it in every Instagram post) is reached by 400 steps; the view from the pagoda at dawn is the most photographed view of Fuji.
  4. Nakasendo Trail: Magome to Tsumago — The most beautiful day hike in central Japan: an 8-kilometre walk between the Edo-period post towns of Magome and Tsumago in the Kiso Valley (Nagano Prefecture), through cedar forests and rice paddies along the ancient highway that connected Edo (Tokyo) to Kyoto. The post towns — with their preserved wooden townhouses, the watermill, and the absence of electric pylons or visible modern intrusion — are the finest surviving examples of Edo-period road-station architecture.
  5. Japanese Alps: Kamikochi — The glacial valley in the Northern Alps of Nagano, accessible only by bus (private cars prohibited), with the Azusa River, the Taisho Pond (with Mount Yake’s reflections in the turquoise water), and the hiking trails to the huts of the higher Alps. The finest mountain valley in Japan, with the quality of light in the early morning before the day-trippers arrive being one of the most purely beautiful natural experiences in the country.

Kyoto: The Ancient Capital

Temples, Shrines & Gardens

  1. Fushimi Inari Taisha — The most visited shrine in Japan: the 10,000 vermilion torii gates that wind up the 233-metre Mount Inari behind the shrine, creating tunnels of orange-red light that extend for 4 kilometres up the mountain. The first 30 minutes of the climb, before 8am, produce a quality of light and silence that no other shrine experience in Japan replicates. Continue past the first major platform (where most visitors stop) to the upper shrines and the forest beyond, and find a completely different experience.
  2. Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion) — The gilded three-storey pavilion reflected in the Kyokochi Pond: the most photographed image in Japan, with the gold leaf of the upper two floors creating a shimmer against the dark pine forest behind. Come at opening (9am) for the best light; the reflection is finest on still mornings. The building — originally a retirement villa for the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, converted to a temple after his death in 1408 — is less than five minutes’ walk from the car park, but nothing reduces the impact of first seeing it across the water.
  3. Arashiyama Bamboo Grove & Tenryu-ji Garden — The bamboo grove at the northern end of Sagano, with stalks rising 20 metres on either side of a stone path: the most photographed natural corridor in Japan. Come before 7am to have the grove largely to yourself. The Tenryu-ji garden (a UNESCO-listed Zen garden of the early 14th century, with the finest moss garden in western Kyoto) and the Okochi Sanso villa (a private garden with the finest view of the Arashiyama hills) are the finest gardens in the district.
  4. Gion District at Dawn — The ochaya (teahouse) district of Gion and Hanamikoji, with its distinctive machiya (wooden townhouses) and the possibility of encountering a maiko (apprentice geisha) in full dress on her way to or from an appointment, is most atmospheric before 8am when the street is empty and the lanterns are still lit. The Gion Matsuri Festival (July), when the yamaboko floats process through the streets, is the largest and most spectacular festival in Japan.
  5. Ryoan-ji Rock Garden — The most famous dry garden in the world: 15 rocks arranged in raked white gravel in a composition that has been studied by philosophers, mathematicians, and artists since 1499. The garden is designed so that one rock is always hidden from any single viewpoint. The experience — sitting on the veranda in silence, trying to see all 15 at once — is the most meditative 30 minutes available in Japan. Come at opening (8am) to sit in the silence before the tour groups arrive.
  6. Philosopher’s Path (Tetsugaku no Michi) — The canal-side path between Ginkaku-ji (the Silver Pavilion) and Nanzen-ji, lined with cherry trees: the finest cherry blossom walk in Kyoto (late March to mid-April), and a beautiful morning walk year-round through the canal’s neighbourhood of small temples, cafés, and the specific residential quality of the Higashiyama hills. Named for the philosopher Nishida Kitaro, who walked it daily.
  7. Kiyomizudera, Higashiyama — The “Pure Water Temple” on the hillside of the Higashiyama: the main hall’s wooden stage, cantilevered 13 metres above the hillside on a framework of 139 pillars without a single nail, and the view over the Kyoto cityscape from the platform. The surrounding Sanneizaka and Ninenzaka stone staircase streets, with their tea shops and machiya boutiques, are the finest preserved Meiji-era merchant street in Japan.
  8. Nijo Castle (UNESCO) — The Kyoto castle of the Tokugawa shoguns: the “nightingale floors” (uguisubari) of the Ninomaru Palace, designed to squeak when walked upon as a security alarm against ninja, are the most specific architectural detail in Japanese heritage tourism. The garden of the Ninomaru Palace is one of the finest early Edo-period gardens in Kyoto.
  9. Nishiki Market — Kyoto’s “kitchen”: a five-block covered market running parallel to the Shijo shopping street, with over 100 stalls selling pickled vegetables (tsukemono), fresh tofu, dashi stock, dried fish, Kyoto sweets (wagashi), and the full range of Kyoto’s exceptional food culture. The only place in Japan where you can eat your way through a complete meal while walking a single covered street.

Osaka: The Kitchen of Japan

  1. Dotonbori at Night — The canal district of Osaka’s Namba: the Glico Running Man sign, the Kani Doraku crab, the enormous Ferris wheel above the arcade, and the thousands of food stalls, okonomiyaki restaurants, and takoyaki (octopus ball) vendors that make the kilometre-long stretch the finest concentrated food entertainment district in Japan. Come hungry at 9pm and eat your way from end to end.
  2. Osaka Castle & the Castle Park — The reconstructed 16th-century castle of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, with the finest moat and stone wall ensemble of any castle in the Kansai region, surrounded by a park of 600 cherry trees (April) and the museum inside the keep tracing Hideyoshi’s unification of Japan. The view of the Osaka skyline from the tower is the finest urban panorama in the city.
  3. Kuromon Ichiba Market — Osaka’s “kitchen”: the covered market near the Namba district, with 170 stalls of fresh seafood, Wagyu beef, Matsutake mushrooms, and the finest street-food concentration in Kansai. The blowfish (fugu) shop, the crab vendors, and the fresh oyster stalls constitute the finest single food market experience in Japan outside Tsukiji.
  4. Takoyaki at Dotonbori — Osaka’s signature street food: small round balls of batter with a piece of octopus at the centre, cooked on a dimpled iron griddle, dressed with bonito flakes, aonori (green seaweed), mayonnaise, and takoyaki sauce, and served in a tray of six or eight. Eating them straight from the tray while they are still burning hot, standing in the street in Dotonbori, is the most complete Osaka food experience.
  5. Universal Studios Japan, Osaka — The most popular theme park in Japan (and one of the best attended in the world): the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (with Hogsmeade, the Hogwarts castle, and butterbeer), Super Nintendo World (a Mario Kart ride and interactive Bowser’s Castle), and the full Universal park experience. The Osaka Express Passes for queue-jumping are essential for any park with children; book well in advance.

Nara & the Ancient Capitals

  1. Nara Park & the Sacred Deer — Over 1,200 tame sika deer roam freely through the park and the approaches to Todai-ji temple: the deer, considered divine messengers of the gods, bow when offered shika senbei (deer crackers) sold by vendors throughout the park. The combination of the deer, the Great Buddha, and the ancient temples in autumn foliage (November) is the finest single-day heritage experience in the Kansai region.
  2. Todai-ji (Great Buddha Hall), Nara — The largest wooden structure in the world (although it was reduced to two-thirds of its original size after a fire), housing the Rushana Buddha (Daibutsu) — a 15-metre gilded bronze figure, the largest bronze Buddha in Japan — cast in 752 AD. The pillar with the hole (said to be the same dimensions as the Buddha’s nostril — those who can squeeze through it receive enlightenment in the next life) and the scale of the hall are equally extraordinary.

Kanazawa: Kyoto Without the Crowds

  1. Kenroku-en Garden, Kanazawa — Consistently ranked among Japan’s three finest gardens: a 25-acre Edo-period strolling garden on the hill above the city, with the Kotoji lantern (the symbol of Kanazawa), the artificial lake, the 200-year-old pine trees, and the seasonal variations — plum blossoms in February, cherry in April, iris in June, and the snow-lantern season in January, when bamboo supports (yukitsuri) are erected to protect the trees from snow in a pattern of extraordinary elegance.
  2. Higashi Chaya District, Kanazawa — The geisha district of Kanazawa: preserved Edo-period ochaya (teahouses) on a grid of cobbled lanes, with gold leaf workshops, sake tasting, and the quality of atmosphere that Kyoto’s Gion has lost to overcrowding. The finest preserved machiya (merchant townhouse) streetscape in Japan outside Kyoto.
  3. 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa — The finest contemporary art museum in Japan: a circular glass building at street level (designed by SANAA/Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, winners of the Pritzker Prize), with no main entrance, no hierarchy of direction, and permanent installations including Leandro Erlich’s Swimming Pool (the most visited contemporary artwork in Japan — visitors walk under the water while others look down through the glass above them). Free to access the public zone; ticketed for the gallery spaces.
  4. Omicho Market, Kanazawa — The finest covered fish market in the Hokuriku region: the Sea of Japan’s specialities — snow crab (November to March), yellowtail (buri), and the extraordinary seasonal seafood of Kanazawa’s cold-water coast — available at stalls that have operated since the Edo period. The finest single ingredient experience outside Osaka and Tokyo.

Hiroshima & the Seto Inland Sea

  1. Hiroshima Peace Memorial & the A-Bomb Dome (UNESCO) — The Genbaku (Atomic Bomb) Dome — the skeletal ruins of the former Industrial Promotion Hall, the only building left standing near the hypocentre, preserved exactly as the blast left it — and the Peace Memorial Park: the most important single site of 20th-century historical memory in Japan. The Peace Memorial Museum, with the photographs, the personal possessions, and the testimony of the hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors), is the most emotionally devastating single museum experience in the country.
  2. Miyajima Island & the Floating Torii — Itsukushima Shrine’s famous torii gate, standing in the tidal waters of the Seto Inland Sea: the most photographed torii in Japan, built on stilts so that at high tide it appears to float above the water. The island also has wild deer (smaller and more timid than the Nara variety), the Daisho-in temple complex, and the view of the gate at night from the ferry pier. A UNESCO World Heritage Site; one of Japan’s three officially designated scenic views (Nihon Sankei).
  3. Naoshima Art Island — The small island of Naoshima in the Seto Inland Sea, converted since the 1980s by the Benesse Corporation into the most concentrated contemporary art environment in Asia: the Chichu Art Museum (a Tadao Ando-designed underground museum housing five works by Claude Monet, Walter De Maria, and James Turrell — the finest single art museum building in Japan), the Benesse House museum-hotel, the Art House Project (site-specific works installed in the island’s traditional houses), and Yayoi Kusama’s yellow pumpkins on the pier. The most complete art island destination in the world.

Hokkaido: Japan’s Wild North

  1. Sapporo Snow Festival (February) — The world’s most spectacular snow sculpture festival: enormous ice buildings (replicas of world monuments, original sculptures, and abstract forms) constructed by the Japan Self-Defence Forces and international teams on the Odori Park, with night illuminations that transform the city for seven days. One million visitors annually; the most dramatic winter event in Japan.
  2. Hokkaido’s Flower Fields: Furano & Biei (July) — The lavender fields of Furano (in bloom from late June to mid-August) and the patchwork quilt of flower fields around Biei — the most photogenic agricultural landscape in Japan: rolling hills of lavender, sunflowers, poppies, and cosmos in bands of colour, with the Tokachidake volcano range as backdrop. The Furano lavender season is the most beautiful agricultural event in Hokkaido.
  3. Daisetsuzan National Park Hiking — The largest national park in Japan (the size of Kanagawa Prefecture), with the highest peak in Hokkaido (Asahi-dake, 2,291 metres), volcanic vents, alpine meadows of wildflowers (late July–August), and the first autumn foliage in Japan (late September). The Asahi-dake ropeway and the surrounding trails are the finest mountain hiking accessible from Asahikawa.
  4. Shiretoko Peninsula (UNESCO) — The most remote natural environment in Japan, on the northeastern tip of Hokkaido: a UNESCO World Heritage Site of old-growth Sakhalin spruce forest, brown bears at the river mouths (salmon season, September–October), Steller’s sea eagles, and sea ice (January–March) that drifts from the Sea of Okhotsk. The most biodiverse and the most genuinely wild landscape in the Japanese archipelago.
  5. Otaru Canal & the Glass Town — The most beautiful canal district in Hokkaido: the 1920s warehouse buildings of Otaru’s canal reflect in the water at night, with the gas lamps illuminating the stone facades. The glass-blowing workshops (Otaru Glass is a protected craft tradition), the music box museum, and the fresh sea-urchin sushi make Otaru the finest single half-day trip from Sapporo.

Kyushu: Hot Springs, Volcanoes & History

  1. Aso Caldera Hike, Kumamoto — Mount Aso has the world’s largest active caldera (the outer rim is 128 kilometres in circumference) and one of the most active volcanoes in Japan: the inner peak of Nakadake crater, when open (activity-dependent), allows visitors to walk to the edge and look into a turquoise sulphurous lake. The caldera’s grasslands and the crater combined produce the most dramatic volcanic landscape experience in Japan.
  2. Beppu Hot Springs (Jigoku) — The city of 2,800 hot springs in Oita Prefecture, Kyushu, with the onsen (hot spring bathing) culture at its most extreme: the Jigoku Meguri (Hell Tour) — eight hot springs of different chemical compositions, each producing different colours and effects (the Umi Jigoku is cobalt blue; the Chi-no-Ike is blood red; the Tatsumaki Jigoku is a boiling geyser) — and the finest public onsen bathing experience in Japan.
  3. Nagasaki: History & International Culture — The only city open to foreign trade during Japan’s 250-year period of sakoku (national isolation), Nagasaki has a unique cultural layering — the Dejima Dutch trading post (partially reconstructed), the Glover Garden (the Victorian mansions of the Western merchants), the Chinese temples, and the Atomic Bomb Museum. The Peace Park, the Hypocenter Park (with the stone pillar marking the exact hypocentre of the 9 August 1945 bomb), and the museum together constitute the second great atomic bomb memorial after Hiroshima.
  4. Yakushima Island (UNESCO) — The ancient cedar forest of Yakushima, a UNESCO World Heritage island south of Kyushu: the Jomon Sugi cedar (estimated to be between 2,170 and 7,200 years old — one of the oldest living things in Japan), the Shiratani Unsuikyo ravine (which inspired the forest scenes in Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke), and the moss-covered ancient forest trails. The combination of the primeval forest, the waterfalls, and the sea-turtle nesting beaches (May–July) make it the finest single natural island destination in Japan.

Tohoku: Japan’s Authentic North

  1. Aomori Nebuta Matsuri (August) — The most spectacular lantern festival in Japan: enormous illuminated floats (nebuta) depicting samurai warriors, deities, and historical figures in paper and wire, paraded through the streets of Aomori each August to the sound of drums, flutes, and the crowd’s chant of Rasserā, Rasserā. One of the three great summer festivals of Tohoku; attended by 3 million people over seven days.
  2. Matsushima Bay (Nihon Sankei) — One of Japan’s three official scenic views: 260 pine-covered islands in the bay of Matsushima, south of Sendai, best seen from a boat cruise among the islands at dusk. The Zuiganji temple and the Date clan’s ceremonial culture add historical weight to what is primarily a landscape experience of extraordinary beauty.
  3. Hirosaki Castle & Cherry Blossoms — The finest cherry blossom spectacle in northern Japan: the 2,500 trees of Hirosaki Castle Park in Aomori bloom slightly later than the rest of Japan (late April to early May), producing a display of extraordinary density and colour around the 1611 castle keep. The combination of the white castle, the moat of petals, and the apple blossom of the surrounding Tsugaru region makes it the finest cherry blossom destination outside Kyoto.
  4. Tōhoku’s Onsen Culture: Nyuto Onsen & Ginzan Onsen — The most atmospheric onsen villages in Japan: Nyuto Onsen (seven separate hot spring inns in the forests of Akita, each fed by a different spring of different chemical composition) and Ginzan Onsen (a former silver-mining town in Yamagata, with traditional wooden inns lining a snowy river gorge — the most photographed onsen village in Japan in winter, its snow-covered buildings and lantern-lit inns looking exactly like a scene from Spirited Away).
  5. Ouchi-juku Post Town, Fukushima — The most perfectly preserved post town in the Tohoku region: a single street of thatched-roof farmhouses in a mountain valley of Fukushima Prefecture, where the residents maintain the Edo-period village plan entirely intact. The Negi Soba (buckwheat noodles eaten with a whole spring onion as the chopstick) is the most eccentric regional food tradition in Japan.

Shikoku: The Pilgrimage Island

  1. Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage (Henro) — The 1,200-kilometre circuit of 88 Buddhist temples associated with the monk Kobo Daishi (Kukai), the founder of the Shingon sect, on the island of Shikoku: one of the great pilgrimage routes of Asia. Walking the full circuit takes 30–60 days; the pilgrims (henro) in white robes and sedge hats are one of the defining images of Japanese spiritual life. The temples around the western Kochi coast are the most dramatic; Ryozen-ji in Tokushima is the customary starting point.
  2. Ritsurin Garden, Takamatsu (Shikoku) — Considered by some to be the finest garden in Japan: a 16th-century daimyo garden of 23 hectares with six ponds and 13 hills, developed over three generations of the Matsudaira clan, with the Sanuki mountains as shakkei (borrowed scenery). Different from the Zen gardens of Kyoto — a strolling garden of extraordinary scale and seasonal variety.
  3. Naoshima Art Island & Teshima — Already mentioned (item 41), but Teshima — the neighbouring art island — deserves separate mention: the Teshima Art Museum (a concrete shell designed by Ryue Nishizawa with no walls, only a roof through which rain enters and rolls across the floor in patterns — the most atmospheric art building in Japan) and the Teshima 8 Million Lab (a replica of a rural Teshima farmhouse showing the traditional tanada rice terrace agriculture) are the finest art-and-nature experiences in the Seto Inland Sea.

Japanese Culture, Traditions & Experiences

  1. Tea Ceremony (Chado) — The Way of Tea: the Japanese art of preparing and serving matcha green tea in a ritual that encapsulates the aesthetic principles of wabi (simplicity), sabi (transience), and ichi-go ichi-e (one encounter, one chance). Formal tea ceremonies are available at the Ura Senke foundation in Kyoto (the main school of the tea ceremony), at the Kenroku-en garden tea room in Kanazawa, and at various machiya residences throughout the country. The 45-minute ceremony is the most concentrated expression of Japanese aesthetic philosophy available in a single experience.
  2. Attend a Sumo Tournament — The six annual sumo grand tournaments (basho): two in Tokyo (January at Ryogoku Kokugikan, May at Ryogoku Kokugikan), one each in Osaka (March), Nagoya (July), and Fukuoka (November), each running 15 days. The most important Japanese sport — with the gyoji (referee) in formal Heian court robes, the dohyo (ring) purified with salt before each bout, and the yokozuna (grand champion) stamping ceremony — is the closest encounter with ancient Japanese ceremonial culture available in a sporting context. Same-day standing tickets available from the venue morning of.
  3. Kabuki Performance — The traditional Japanese theatre form, combining music, dance, and drama in elaborate costume and makeup (the oshiroi white face paint, the kumadori patterns for specific character types): the Kabukiza Theatre in Ginza, Tokyo (rebuilt in 2013, with the original neo-Edo facade), and the Minamiza in Kyoto offer the finest kabuki programmes in Japan. Single-act tickets (hitomaku-mi) provide a 1-hour access to a specific act at a fraction of the full-programme price.
  4. Ryokan Stay with Kaiseki Dinner & Onsen — Staying in a traditional Japanese inn: tatami-mat rooms, yukata (cotton robe), the futon laid out while you are in the onsen, and the kaiseki dinner — a multi-course meal of seasonal Kyoto cuisine in lacquered boxes and ceramic dishes, served in your room. Nishimuraya Honkan in Kinosaki Onsen, the Tawaraya in Kyoto (the most celebrated ryokan in Japan), and the Benesse House on Naoshima are the finest addresses at different price points.
  5. Onsen Bathing at a Public Sento — The public bath house (sento) is the most democratic institution in Japan: neighbourhood baths, open to all, with the etiquette of silence and the physical ritual of washing before entering the common pool. The Kurama Onsen in the Kurama hills above Kyoto, the Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama (the oldest onsen in Japan, operating since 727 AD, the model for the bathhouse in Spirited Away), and the Arima Onsen in the hills above Kobe are the finest public onsen experiences.
  6. Kimono Rental, Kyoto or Kanazawa — Renting a kimono and walking the heritage streets: the experience of moving in kimono — the small steps, the specific posture, the sensation of being looked at and of looking different — changes the experience of the city. The Higashiyama district of Kyoto and the Higashi Chaya district of Kanazawa are the finest settings for the combination of kimono and heritage streetscape.
  7. Watching the Cherry Blossoms (Hanami) — The sakura season — typically late March to mid-April in central Japan — produces a collective national ritual of sitting under the cherry blossoms with picnic food and sake, known as hanami (flower viewing). The Maruyama Park in Kyoto (the single weeping cherry that is the symbol of Kyoto), the Philosopher’s Path, the Hirosaki Castle, and the Shinjuku Gyoen in Tokyo are the finest settings. The combination of the transience of the blossoms (the full bloom lasts only one week), the collective outdoor celebration, and the extraordinary light through the pink canopy is unique in the world.

Food: Japan’s Greatest Art Form

  1. Sushi at Tsukiji Outer Market or Toyosu — A breakfast or lunch of fresh nigiri sushi at the sushi counters of the Tsukiji outer market: the tuna, the sea urchin, the yellowtail, and the kohada (gizzard shad) pressed onto vinegared rice by a master who has been making the same cuts for 30 years. The quality of the fish — fresher than any sushi counter outside the market — at a fraction of the price of the city’s sushi restaurants is the finest food value in Tokyo.
  2. Kaiseki at a Kyoto Restaurant — The traditional multi-course meal of Kyoto cuisine: seasonal ingredients from the surrounding mountains and the sea, prepared with the specific restraint and craft of the kaiseki tradition (which evolved from the tea ceremony’s light meal). The combination of the lacquerware, the ceramic dishes, the seasonal flower arrangement, and the quality of the Kyoto dashi stock (made from the finest kombu and katsuobushi in the world) makes kaiseki the most complete luxury dining experience in Japan.
  3. Ramen Regional Variants — Japan has at least 30 distinct regional ramen styles: the shoyu (soy) of Tokyo, the tonkotsu (pork bone) of Fukuoka’s Hakata district (served in the yatai — outdoor stalls under the Fukuoka Bridge), the miso ramen of Sapporo, the shio (salt) of Hakodate, and the tsukemen (dipping style) of Tokyo. Eating a representative bowl in each city is a journey through the entire country’s food culture in a single ingredient.
  4. Wagyu Beef in Matsusaka, Kobe, or Omi — The three great Japanese beef traditions: Matsusaka beef (the most expensive, fed on beer and sake, with a fat marbling (shimofuri) that places it in a category beyond ordinary Wagyu), Kobe beef (the most internationally famous, from the Tajima cattle of the Hyogo Prefecture hills), and Omi beef (the oldest beef tradition in Japan, with the finest balance of fat and lean). A 100-gram serving of A5-grade Matsusaka sirloin, grilled over charcoal, is the finest single bite of meat available in Japan.
  5. Okonomiyaki in Hiroshima or Osaka — The Japanese savoury pancake (okonomiyaki, meaning “grilled as you like it”) exists in two completely different regional versions: the Osaka-style (ingredients mixed into the batter) and the Hiroshima-style (ingredients layered, with yakisoba noodles and two eggs on top). Okonomimura in Hiroshima (a building of three floors of okonomiyaki stalls, each making the dish slightly differently) is the finest single food building in Japan outside Tsukiji.
  6. Sake Tasting in the Nada District, Kobe, or Niigata — Japan’s finest sake-producing regions: Nada in Kobe (the largest sake-producing district in Japan, with the Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum and 15 working breweries), Fushimi in Kyoto (the second largest, using the exceptionally soft water of the Fushimi springs), and the Niigata prefecture (the finest dry, clean sake in Japan, from the Hokusetsu and Kubota producers). A sake tasting in the brewery district, with the fresh-pressed namazake straight from the tank, is the most specific food experience in each region.

Adventure & the Outdoors

  1. Snow Monkey Park (Jigokudani), Nagano — The Japanese macaque (snow monkey) hot spring baths: wild monkeys bathing in the onsen in the Yokoyu River valley above Nagano, surrounded by snow in winter — the most photographed wildlife image in Japan. The 2-kilometre forest walk from the car park, in January and February, with the steam rising from the pool and the monkeys grooming each other in the water, is the finest wildlife encounter in mainland Japan.
  2. Sea Kayaking, Kerama Islands, Okinawa — The Kerama Islands (a national park 40 kilometres west of Naha, Okinawa) have the clearest water in Japan (Kerama Blue — a specific shade of turquoise recognised as a distinct natural phenomenon) and the finest coral reefs in the country. Sea kayaking between the uninhabited islands, with humpback whales audible underwater between December and April, is the finest marine adventure in Japan.
  3. Cycling the Shimanami Kaidō — The 70-kilometre cycling route across six islands in the Seto Inland Sea between Onomichi (Hiroshima Prefecture) and Imabari (Shikoku), on a dedicated cycling path over the series of bridges that connect the islands: the finest cycling route in Japan, combining the Seto Inland Sea islands, the suspension bridges, and the views of the citrus orchards and fishing villages below. Bicycle hire available at both ends; ferry connections if needed.
  4. Hiking the Kumano Kodo (UNESCO) — The ancient pilgrimage routes of the Kii Peninsula, connecting three grand shrines (Kumano Sanzan) through the forests of Wakayama: a UNESCO World Heritage sacred route, the only pilgrimage trail in the world on the UNESCO list alongside the Camino de Santiago. The Nakahechi route (65 kilometres, 3–5 days) is the finest; the combination of the cedar forest trail, the mountain passes, and the ancient shrines constitute the most spiritually charged hiking experience in Japan.

Okinawa: Japan’s Tropical Islands

  1. Churaumi Aquarium, Okinawa — The second-largest aquarium tank in the world (7,500 cubic metres), with whale sharks, manta rays, and the full ecology of the Okinawan coral reef. The Kuroshio Tank’s acrylic panel (the largest in the world at the time of its construction) allows visitors to stand with their face against the glass while whale sharks pass within metres.
  2. Kerama Islands Coral Reefs — Already mentioned for kayaking (item 73), but the coral diving and snorkelling of the Kerama Islands deserves separate emphasis: the Shiraho Reef (the largest blue coral reef in the Northern Hemisphere), the sea turtle nesting beaches, and the whale shark encounters make the Kerama the finest diving destination in Japan.
  3. Shuri Castle, Naha (UNESCO) — The rebuilt royal palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom, destroyed in the Second World War and rebuilt in 1992: the distinctive Ryukyuan architectural style (combining Chinese, Japanese, and Southeast Asian elements), the Seiden (main hall) in crimson lacquer, and the history of an independent kingdom that served as a trading hub between China and Japan for 400 years. Damaged by fire in 2019 and currently under restoration; the main gate and surrounding structures remain accessible.
  4. Okinawa Blue Cave Snorkelling, Cape Maeda — The Blue Cave (Ao no Dokutsu) off Cape Maeda in Okinawa Island: an underwater cave of extraordinary blue luminescence, produced by the refraction of sunlight through the cave mouth, with tropical fish in the surrounding water. The most popular snorkelling experience in Okinawa, accessible from the cape steps without a boat.

Festivals & Events

  1. Kyoto Gion Matsuri (July) — The most celebrated festival in Japan: the entire month of July in Kyoto, with the Yamaboko Junko procession on the 17th and 24th as the centrepiece — 33 ornate floats paraded through the streets, some of which have been maintained continuously since the 9th century. The Yoiyama (eve of the procession), when the floats are displayed in the streets and the old-style chigiri dango sweets are sold by street vendors, is the most atmospheric festival evening in Japan.
  2. Awa Odori, Tokushima (August) — The most energetic dance festival in Japan: 100,000 dancers in two-toed tabi socks, cotton yukata, and bamboo sedge hats performing the Awa Odori dance through the streets of Tokushima over four days in mid-August, to the music of shamisen, taiko, and flute. The saying goes: “The fool dances, the fool who watches is also a fool — if both are fools, you might as well dance.” Attend and dance.
  3. Sapporo Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival, February) — Already listed (item 42), but worth emphasising as an event: the Odori Park site (12 large snow sculptures, illuminated nightly) combined with the Susukino site (ice sculptures) and the Tsu Dome community site (snow slides and family events) together make the Sapporo Snow Festival the most ambitious winter event in Japan.
  4. New Year (Hatsumode) at a Major Shrine or Temple — The Japanese New Year (January 1–3) centres on the first shrine or temple visit (hatsumode): the crowds at Meiji Jingu in Tokyo (3 million visitors over three days — the highest attendance of any hatsumode in Japan), Naritasan Shinshoji in Narita, and Sumiyoshi Taisha in Osaka produce a collective experience of national spiritual renewal with no equivalent in the West. Attending a midnight hatsumode on New Year’s Eve is the most specifically Japanese cultural event available to a visitor.

Hidden Japan & Unexpected Discoveries

  1. Shirakawa-go & Gokayama (UNESCO) — The mountain villages of the Shogawa valley in the Gifu–Toyama border region: the gassho-zukuri farmhouses (A-frame structures with thatched roofs designed to shed snow, the upper floors used for silkworm cultivation), UNESCO-listed and best seen in winter under deep snow. The village of Ogimachi, with its 59 surviving farmhouses, is the finest preserved traditional village in Japan.
  2. Matsumoto Castle — Black Crow — The finest original castle in Japan: the six-storey Matsumoto Castle, built in 1593–1594 in the Nagano basin, with its black lacquered exterior (giving it the nickname “Black Crow Castle”), the original wooden floors and siege provisions still inside, and the reflection in the surrounding moat at dawn. One of Japan’s four National Treasure castles; considerably less visited than Himeji.
  3. Himeji Castle (UNESCO) — The finest castle in Japan: the “White Heron Castle” of white plaster walls and layered rooflines, completed in its present form in 1618, never destroyed or burned (the only major Japanese castle to survive both the Meiji Restoration and the Second World War intact). The interior — six floors of original wooden structure, defensive arrow ports and gun emplacements, and the view from the upper tower — is the finest castle experience in Japan.
  4. The Ancient Forests of Yakushima — Already mentioned (item 50), but the Jomon Sugi trail deserves separate emphasis: the 22-kilometre round trip from Arakawa to the ancient cedar begins with 8 kilometres of walking along a disused railway track (used for forest management), passes through the Ogawa and Wilson stumps (a cedar stump of 13.8-metre diameter, hollowed by fire, with a perfect heart-shaped sky visible from inside), and arrives at the ancient tree in a forest of total primeval silence. The most moving natural encounter in Japan.
  5. Tottori Sand Dunes — The largest sand dunes in Japan: the Tottori Sakyu, 16 kilometres of coastal dunes on the Sea of Japan coast, reaching 50 metres in height and 2 kilometres in width. The most surprising landscape in Japan — an actual sand desert in a country almost entirely covered in forest. The camel rides are an optional absurdity; the dune walk and the wave ripple patterns in the early morning light are genuinely extraordinary.
  6. Matsuyama & the Dogo Onsen — The city of Matsuyama in Shikoku, with the finest Japanese castle keep accessible by cable car (Matsuyama Castle, 1627, with the finest view of the Seto Inland Sea from any castle in Japan) and the Dogo Onsen Honkan — the oldest onsen building in Japan (operating since 727 AD in its current wooden structure since 1894), the model for the bathhouse in Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, and the finest public hot spring bathing experience in Japan.
  7. Kyoto in Late November: Koyo (Autumn Leaves) — The second great seasonal spectacle of Japanese culture: the koyo — the turning of the maple and ginkgo leaves in November — produces a different quality of light and colour from the cherry blossoms, and arguably a more complex palette. The Eikan-do temple in the Nanzen-ji complex, the Tofuku-ji garden (with its maple grove visible from the Tsutenkyo Bridge), and the Arashiyama hillside in late November are the finest koyo destinations in Kyoto.
  8. Izumo Taisha Shrine, Shimane — The most ancient and the most important Shinto shrine after Ise Jingu: the Grand Shrine of Izumo, dedicated to Okuninushi-no-Mikoto (the god of relationships and marriage), where all the gods of Japan are said to gather for the 10th month of the lunar calendar (October by the solar calendar — the one month when all other Japanese shrines are empty of their gods). The shimenawa (sacred rope) above the Kaguraden (dance hall) — 13 metres long, 8 metres in circumference, weighing 5.2 tonnes — is the largest in Japan. Free; deeply sacred.
  9. Ine Fishing Village, Kyoto Prefecture — A small fishing village on the coast of the Tango Peninsula, two hours from Kyoto: the funaya (boat houses) — 230 buildings whose ground floors open directly into the sea for boat storage, with the residential floors above — constitute the finest and most unusual traditional coastal settlement in Japan. The village is accessible by bus or ferry from Kyoto; entirely overlooked by foreign visitors.
  10. Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, Toyama — The 90-kilometre high-altitude crossing of the Northern Japan Alps from Toyama on the Sea of Japan coast to Omachi in Nagano: a combination of bus, ropeway, trolleybus, and cable car through the alpine scenery of the Tateyama massif, with the Snow Wall (Yuki no Otani) — the corridor cut through 15–17 metres of snow in April and May — as the most spectacular seasonal phenomenon in Japan.
  11. Kanazawa’s Nishide Tsukiji (Morning Fish Market) — The finest morning market in the Hokuriku region: the professional fish market of Kanazawa, operating in the fish warehouse district of the city before dawn, with the freshest Sea of Japan catch from the overnight boats. Less dramatic than Tsukiji but genuinely professional and genuinely local — the finest morning experience in Kanazawa.
  12. Gujo Hachiman, Gifu Prefecture — The “Kyoto without the crowds” of the Japanese midwest: a castle town of extraordinary beauty on the confluence of two rivers in the Ōdori mountains, where the water is so clean that residents wash vegetables in the streams running through the streets. The Gujo Odori dance festival (33 nights from mid-July to early September) includes four all-night sessions; the dancing that begins at midnight continues until dawn.
  13. Nikko in Autumn — Already mentioned (item 3), but the autumn version of Nikko deserves separate mention: the cryptomeria cedars and maples of the Okunikko highland lake district (Chuzenji-ko, Yudanaka, and the Kegon Waterfall) turn colour in October in the finest upland autumn landscape in the Kanto region. The Kegon Waterfall — 97 metres — falling into the autumn forest is the finest single autumn image in the mountains above Tokyo.
  14. Nishiki Market by Night, Kyoto — The covered market of Kyoto, already mentioned (item 27), is entirely different after 6pm: the pickle shops have given way to the izakaya, the tofu stalls to the sake bars, and the narrow street fills with Kyoto residents on their way home from work. The after-hours Nishiki, with its combination of working-class Kyoto food culture and the sound of the kitchen above the market lane, is the finest evening food walk in the city.
  15. Amami Oshima Island — The subtropical island midway between Kyushu and Okinawa: a UNESCO-listed natural environment of mangrove forest, coral reef, and the habitat of the Amami rabbit (one of the rarest mammals on earth), combined with the finest pongee silk weaving tradition in Japan (Oshima Tsumugi) and a food culture that combines Japanese, Okinawan, and Ryukyuan elements. The least-visited UNESCO natural heritage site in Japan and the most beautiful.
  16. Kyoto by Bicycle: Kinkaku-ji to Fushimi Inari — Cycling Kyoto is the finest way to understand the city’s scale and the proximity of its heritage sites: the flat bicycle path from the Kinkaku-ji north through the Nishiki market, the geisha district of Pontocho, the Heian Jingu shrine, and south to the Fushimi Inari shrine base is a 15-kilometre loop of essentially continuous heritage — accessible, affordable, and entirely free of the tour group infrastructure.
  17. A Shinkansen Journey: Tokyo to Kyoto at 300 km/h — The Nozomi bullet train from Tokyo Station to Kyoto: a 2-hour 15-minute journey at 300 km/h through the Japanese countryside, with Mount Fuji visible for approximately 8 minutes from the right-hand side (seats D and E) approximately 40 minutes after departure from Tokyo. The most civilised high-speed train in the world: on-time to the second, entirely silent at speed, with obento (train bento box) meals available from the vendor trolley. The experience of modern Japan in motion.
  18. Watch the Dawn at Fushimi Inari — On your last morning in Japan, set your alarm for 4:30am, take a taxi to the base of Fushimi Inari, and walk alone through the first torii gate as the light begins in the east. The orange-red gates narrow the sky to a corridor of colour. Your footsteps on the stone path are the only sound. The incense from last night’s prayers still hangs in the cold air. Higher up, where the path thins and the secondary shrines come and go in the forest, a fox figurine looks at you from beneath a moss-covered stone. Japan — ancient, layered, meticulous, bewildering, kind, and entirely itself — offers itself to you in the dark before the city wakes. This is what you came for. This is what you will carry home. This is the country that has been here since before anyone was counting, still raking the gravel, still hanging the lantern, still walking up the mountain to greet the morning. Ichi-go ichi-e. One encounter, one chance. You are here. Now.

Quick Facts for Visitors

Best time to visitMarch–May (cherry blossoms, mild) · October–November (autumn leaves, cool)
Cherry blossomsLate March to mid-April (Tokyo) · One week later in Kyoto · Even later in Hokkaido
SummerJune–August — hot and humid; monsoon in June-July; festivals
WinterDecember–February — cold in Honshu; Hokkaido for snow; Okinawa is mild
CurrencyJapanese Yen (¥) — Japan remains predominantly cash-based; carry yen
LanguageJapanese; English signage in cities and major tourist areas
Getting aroundJR Pass (excellent value for multi-city travel) · Shinkansen (bullet train) · IC cards (Suica/Pasmo) for local trains and convenience stores
EtiquetteRemove shoes entering homes and most traditional restaurants · No tipping · Quiet on public transport
Ideal trip length2 weeks for the Golden Route and one region · 3–4 weeks for the full country
Pre-bookingMt Fuji climbing tickets required; Ghibli Museum and many popular restaurants must be booked months in advance

Japan does not reveal itself to the visitor in a hurry. It reveals itself slowly, in the accumulated weight of small perfections: the way the ramen arrives, the way the train doors open exactly where you are standing, the way the garden is raked differently each morning, the way the cherry petals fall. Give it time. Come back. Japan will still be here, still raking, still rising.

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