Kyūshū
This museum is housed in the stunning residence of the Matsuura clan, who ruled the island from the 11th to the 19th centuries. You'll find armour that…
Must-see attractions in Japan
Hokkaidō
Here is a rare chance to bear witness to modern mountain-making: Shōwa Shin-zan (昭和新山; 398m) – whose name means 'the new mountain of the Shōwa period' –…
Kii Peninsula
In the town believed to be the first place in Japan to produce soy sauce (shōyu in Japanese) – some 750 years ago – this factory lets visitors in on both…
Roppongi, Akasaka & Around
Bring photo ID, sign in and take the escalator up to the entrance of the Canadian embassy, which is fronted by this stark and brilliant stone sculpture…
Kōbe
You'd never guess that such a beautiful natural sanctuary could sit so close to the city. This revered waterfall in four sections (the longest is 43m tall…
Hokkaidō
This 15-hectare forested enclosure in northern Tokachi is home to 12 male higuma (who range in size from 300kg to 400kg!). The clever viewing facilities…
Western Honshū
Within this park, there's not much of the old Hagi-jō to see, apart from the castle's typically imposing outer walls and the surrounding carp-filled moat…
Kōbe
Hakutsuru is a major sake brewer in Kōbe's Nada-gogō district, a major sake-brewing centre. The self-guided tour through the old wooden brewery (the…
Kansai
Considered the first Buddhist temple in Japan (founded 596), Asuka-dera houses Japan's oldest existing Buddhist statue, the Asuka Daibutsu (Great Buddha),…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
The mingei (folk crafts) movement was launched in the early 20th century to promote the works of artisans over cheaper, mass-produced goods. Central to…
Roppongi, Akasaka & Around
This shrine honours General Nogi Maresuke, a famed commander in the Russo-Japanese War. Hours after Emperor Meiji's funerary procession in 1912, Nogi and…
Northern Honshū (Tōhoku)
Jagged, green-fringed cliffs plunge into the deep-blue Pacific Ocean along this 8km stretch of coastline known as the Kitayamazaki coast. Stunning in…
Nikkō
Just to the left of the entrance to Futarasan-jinja is a 1km wooded path leading to Takinō-jinja, part of the greater shrine precinct. Just in front is…
Kansai
This kofun was discovered by accident in the 1960s, painstakingly excavated in the 1970s and then sealed for preservation. What you'll see is a grassy…
Kansai
This Shingon-sect temple, founded in the 8th century, has a lot going for it, including Japan's oldest pagoda (the Tahōtō, built in 1194) and an…
Northern Honshū (Tōhoku)
Postcard-perfect Jodogahama ('pure land beach') sits on a sheltered inlet surrounded by jagged white-stone outcrops backed by deep-green pines. Walking…
Nagasaki
This small but quietly moving museum celebrates the courage and faith of one man in the face of overwhelming adversity. Already suffering from leukaemia,…
Kansai
It may not look like much, but this shrine, founded roughly 1300 years ago, has a serious historic pedigree: it has harboured general Minamoto Yoshitsune …
Shinjuku & Northwest Tokyo
Lucky are the girls who attended the Frank Lloyd Wright–designed 'School of the Free Spirit' (Jiyū Gakuen; 自由学園). Built in 1921, Myōnichikan functioned as…
Western Honshū
What remains of the old samurai quarter in Iwakuni now forms pleasant Kikkō-kōen, accessed via Kintai-kyō bridge. Within the park are old residences, a…
Ueno & Yanesen
This grand residence offers a Western-style mansion designed by Josiah Conder in 1896, connected to a Japanese house built by Ōkawa Kijuro at the same…
Sapporo
This expansive collection of historical buildings (and some recreations), in Nopporo Shinrin-kōen east of central Sapporo, shows the diversity of…
Hiroshima
Also known as Carp Castle (鯉城; Rijō), Hiroshima-jō was originally constructed in 1589, but much of it was dismantled following the Meiji Restoration. What…
Kii Peninsula
This wooden temple, absent of colour and next to the Shintō shrine Kumano Nachi Taisha, was last rebuilt in 1590, making it the oldest building in Kii …
Osaka
Hiding in plain sight amid the skyscrapers of Umeda, this 1300-year-old shrine owes its fame to one of Japan's best-known tragic plays (based on true…
Fukuoka
Set within the expansive grounds of Ōhori-kōen, adjacent to the remains of Fukuoka's once-grand castle, this traditional (though constructed in 1984) 12…
Kyūshū
The park's centrepiece is the 37m-high Peace Tower monument constructed in 1940, a time when peace in Japan was about to disappear. Its timeless design…
Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims
Hiroshima
A softly lit internal walkway leads down into this cool, contemplative space, where the walls show a circular panorama of Hiroshima and the names of its…
Harajuku & Aoyama
This boulevard inside Jingū-gaien (the public outer gardens of Meiji-jingū) is lined with gingko trees. For a couple of weeks around late November and…
Northern Honshū (Tōhoku)
This 6km scenic stretch of rocky coastline and picturesque beaches around Ōfunato is home to a number of geological attractions, including Ranboya Gorge,…
Tokyo
This section of the moat surrounding the Imperial Palace is one of the city's most popular hanami (cherry blossom viewing) spots. There's a 700m-long…
St Francis Xavier Memorial Church
Western Honshū
Built in 1952 in honour of St Francis Xavier, this church burned down in 1991 and was rebuilt in 1998 with a clinically modern interior and geometric…
Kanazawa & the Hokuriku Coast
You're likely to be a little astounded by this collection of more than 500 pristine Japanese (and foreign) vehicles housed over three floors, in a massive…
Fuji Five Lakes
Despite being known as the Bat Cave, this 350m-long complex has neither bats nor caped crusaders. Nevertheless, it's still fun to scramble over the…
Kawamura Kaneto Ainu Memorial Hall
Hokkaidō
Built in 1916 and thus just a few years past its 100th anniversary, this museum is less a collection of artefacts (though it has those too) and more the…
Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa
The narrow streets of ‘Shimokita’, barely passable by cars, create a streetscape like a dollhouse version of Tokyo. It’s been a favourite haunt of…
Hokkaidō
Japan's first Western-style fort was built in 1864 in the shape of a five-pointed star (goryō-kaku means 'five-sided fort') designed to trap attackers in…
Kyūshū
Near the former Tachiarai airfield, one of the most important airfields of Japan's Imperial Army, this museum shows the rigorous training Japanese fighter…
Kōrakuen & Akihabara
This exhibition centre and workshop is dedicated to the quintessential Japanese art of origami, which you can learn to do yourself in classes here. There…
Around Tokyo
This fascinating museum in Omiya, 25km north of central Tokyo, charts the evolution from steam to modern-day technology of Japan's railways. It's packed…
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