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Day Trip out of Tokyo Tokyo
44 Reviews ....Every year in late April/Early May, the 1300-year-old Shiofune Kannon Temple's grounds come afire with brilliant azaleas blooming on a stadium-like landscape that is focused on a huge standing...
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Ohara Area Kyoto
6 Reviews Ohara is a major stomping ground for Japanese 'aki-front' followers; when the nation gets bored of pining for cherry blossoms and instead glues its eyes to NHK for the first news reports of Kyoto's...
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temples & shrines Osaka
16 Reviews We came accidentally to this small garden with a shrine and a cemetery inside and had a look around: Shinko-in Temple A ceremony had started shortly after we came and we were invited to participate....
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Shrines and Temples Tokyo
23 Reviews Gotokuji temple, a Soto-sect zen temple in Setagaya-ku, is best known by the legend of Manekineko better known as "lucky cats" or "beckoning cats". It was originally built in 1480 in a part of...
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Otagi Nenbutsuji Temple Kyoto
2 Reviews Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, beautiful buddhist stone sculptures. In Arashiyama, go to Adashino Nenbutsu-ji, where one can walk the bamboo grove. pass this temple, follow the walking path north,till one reaches...
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Sightseeing outside Osaka Osaka
8 Reviews Just three hours from Osaka by Shinkansen, Imabari is a beautiful city on the coast of the Seto Inland Sea. It is the home to beautiful Imabari Castle, one of the most outstanding examples of medieval...
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Experience Tokyo
17 Reviews It is common to see the beautiful Mt Fuji from the window of the Bullet train (direction: Kyoto, Osaka). It is particularly a superb experience to see the snow-covered Mt. Fuji in early Spring...
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Otsu City Kyoto
4 Reviews Lake Biwa is the largest lake in Japan and among the top largest lakes in the world. It is actually surrounded by a few prefectures, one of which is Shiga. All the usual lake activities can be found...
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shopping Osaka
7 Reviews This almost went in as a "warning" tip, but I think seeing things like this are essential if you want to get a good sense of a foreign country. On Sundays there is a flea market west of the pedestrian...
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Local People and Lives Tokyo
16 Reviews Don't speak much or any Japanese and looking to meet some friendly Japanese people who do? Com Inn is a cozy, little English conversation cafe in Ebisu, near the Doutor building. Most of the time it...
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Fushimi Inari Shrine Kyoto
5 Reviews Two train stops south out of Kyoto, a brilliant walk right from Fushimi station takes you to the temple of Fushimi-Inari, and continuing up the hill through 10,000 red torii dedicated by companies to...
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Kansai international airport Osaka
1 Review Kansai Airport has an observation hall tour you can take thats intresting. Bus ride for the Observation Hall departs every 10-15 minutes from the AEROPLAZA, located in front of Kansai Airport. Bus...
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Shinjuku Tokyo
10 Reviews Shinjuku Nichome (literally Shinjuku 2nd District) is a name known to most straight Japanese but visited by very few- it is the "notorious" epicentre of gay life in Japan. In a four block radius,this...
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Arashiyama Kyoto
2 Reviews If you fancy something different to do in Kyoto or simply suffering from temple fatigue and like animals, how about a trip to the Monkey Park at Arashiyama. You enter the park strolling up a steep...
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culture & history Osaka
3 Reviews This little gem hides in a sub-urban area of Osaka. Located in the heart of Hattori-Ryoukuchi Park. It contains a collection of 11 old Japanese Farmhouses from all over Japan. Most of them are...
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Tsukiji Market Tokyo
7 Reviews Though not a fishing trip in the usual sense of the word, you will see more fish here than you ever have before. I struggled to find a way to describe it. I have come across the following passage...
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Hozu River Kyoto
3 Reviews Old Cliffie is a bit too old for white-knuckle pastimes such as bungee jumping or whitewater rafting. But he did enjoy the 'Hozugawa Kudari' - trip down the river Hozu - near Kyoto. Take the train (20...
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Ikebukuro Tokyo
6 Reviews The world's biggest car showroom is just under the railway bridge in front of sunshine city. On five floors you can see all Toyotas cars, including some that only seem to be made for the Japanese...
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Nanzenji Temple Kyoto
4 Reviews This is a huge temple complex situated in the eastern part of Kyoto at the foot of the hills, and can be considered off the beaten track as it doesn't seem to get as much visitors as the other more...
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Theatres and Museums Tokyo
8 Reviews The Yebisu Beer Museum is one of those places you can only find in Tokyo. The admission is free, although the beer isn't. It is in the Yebisu Garden Palace, and is a place that commemorates the...
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General Kyoto
6 Reviews Kyoto is not really a very large city, although there are many places to visit! The bus, train, and subway system really makes most of the city very easy to access. What many people consider to be...
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Parks, Yards, Gardens and Squares Tokyo
14 Reviews The Ueno Zoo is just like most every other metropolitan zoo. The calling card for this one though is its Panda Bears. The panda's are pretty cool to look at, and there are a few other animals which I...
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Hyogo Prefecture Kyoto
3 Reviews Many say that one will not need to visit any other castle after seeing the most beautiful castle of Japan, the Himeji Castle. Although a bit far from Kyoto than other nearby places, this castle is...
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Odaiba & Ariake Tokyo
4 Reviews What greeted me next was quite a surprise (even for a liberal thinker such as myself!) & even though I had mentally prepared for it. A sea of women of all ages and a few girls, were changing out of...
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Yoshino City Kyoto
3 Reviews Yoshino is south of Kyoto, located in Nara-ken. It's a famous place of watching cherry blossoms and red leaves. About 2 hours of trains from Kyoto, with a change of train at Kashihara-jingu-mae,...
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Sakura is the Japanese word for cherry trees and their blossoms. Cherry trees are planted in Japan for their beauty. Many schools and public buildings have cherry trees planted at their premises. The most popular variety of cherry blossom in Japan is Somei Yoshino. The photos on the right were taken at Tokaiji traditional garden at Daibutsu-den in Nara. Don't miss the cherry blossom when you are in Japan especially in spring!
This was neat to see also. This is again something you will have to ask locals how to get too. It is sort of on the same path to the Kumano Shrine. It has Ojizo statues & carvings of the Neo Protectors. These are very old and are starting to weather. People come here to offer gifts to the Ojizo Statues which are said to bring good fortune to those who are not selfish and are even know to punish the greedy. People put hats on the stautues to keep them warm. It is also said that the Ojizo protect the unborn from being punished when they die in the mothers womb, and people who are in need. It's the folklore of Japan. You can see the Ojizo all over Japan and is some places there will be many of them covered in bibs and little caps. The Neo protectors that are carved into the wall you will also see at Todaji Temple when you walk threw the gates. Again if you find yourself in the small town of...
This is a really old shrine and since Ouchi is a rather small area of Karatsu City many foreigners do not come here. I discovered it because this is where my husband grew up and his family celebrated diffrent events. Its really neat to see this old structure. Even though it was one of the smaller shrines some how I like this the best and thought it looked the oldest being made out of wood, and the builiding being weathered along with all the statues that were placed around it. There is more then 3000 Kumano shrines in Japan and each has its own god that is passed from the previous one. To get her you will have to go to Ouchi in the Sage Prefecture and ask locals where it is located at. I know it is right next to their middle school so it should easier since their is no highschool in Ouchi. This is a very small town so you got to take a certain amount of turns. We rode a bike there and my...
When you are in Tokyo Disneyland. Check out the timing for all the activities and for the parades, as if you miss it, you may have hard time finding a good spot to view it. Bring along a mat is gonna be very useful. Although both our age is early 30s , we still get very excited for the parade :P Do stay till the night for the Disney Lights parade too, it is too beautiful to describe, not forgetting the fireworks!
Manga cafes (manga kissa) got their start in Nagoya back in 1979 as a style of coffee shop offering a large collection of manga comics available for customers to read on the premises. The manga cafes today are comfortable, even for young woman entering aloneReading manga is not the only pastime offered by manga cafes today. You can now access the Internet, view DVDs, play video games, or relax in a massage chair. Television is of course available, and you are free to watch any of 70 DVD titles and listen to any of the 200 music CDs available in the cafe. There are also about 300 video game titles to choose from for use with the PS2 and X-Box consoles.Many of the people are in their late teens and early twenties who frequent this . During the day, men and women often take a break from their work to stop by, and in the evening and nighttime the cafe is a popular stop-off for students and...
Not one of the famous Japanese Ski resorts, like Nagano or Niseko. But, I need a fast easy place to get to for a few days of skiing from the Kobe area. Suprisingly, I found the snow quality (and quantity) here to be excellent. (It pretty much snowed the whole time we were up there) This place makes a nice easy side trip from the Kansai area if you want to make a quick ski trip without the cost and travel time of getting to its more famous cousins. To get here, its about a 2 hour train ride from Kobe to Youka. (the line through Himeji towards Tottori) The about an hour ride on a local bus up towards Hachibuse Mountain.
I was surprised that a few of the people back in Tokyo hadn't visited here when they seen my pictures. There is a gorgeous little garden at the Komyozenji temple, one other guy was there the whole time and I think it is the most relaxed I've ever felt. Take your shoes off at the entrance, plop yerself down on the tatami and stare out at the wonder!That was probably the longest I'd spent at any temple, shrine or garden my whole trip!The temple is just to the right (up the hill a bit) of the "Dazaifu Tenmangu"
After visiting Itukushima and the O-torii gate, one should take in the Daishô-in temple, which is located just a short walk to the south. This is a very pleasant temple complex that impressed a jaded, temple overdose traveler like me. The temple has some superbly carved wooden pavilions, bridges, ponds and stone lanterns. Highlights include the marvellous gate, complete with temple guardians and a cave filled with small Buddhas and hanging candle-lit lanterns. The setting of the temple along a hillside, is stunning.Daishô-in was founded in the 9th century but I would have to imagine that has since been rebuilt over the centuries. Shortly after my visit, Daishô-in was severely damaged by a typhoon but I understand that it has been restored.I have posted a website below but it is in Japanese only.
It's known, but because you have to be there VERY early in the morning ( 4- 6am ) to get the full experience not many tourists really go there.Tsukiji Market is best combined with a sushi breakfast at one of the several restaurants which are located in the market. Most of them open around five in the morning and close around noon.Tsukijishijo Station - Subway Oedo Line or Tsukiji Station- Subway Hibiya Line.
The longest bench in the world is made by wood with a 461 meter long that 1,350 people can be sit on it.The bench has been registered into Guinness Book of Records.You can sit on the bench when you will visit the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa-ken.
Park Hyatt Tokyo Tokyo
7 Reviews and 523 Opinions Most memorable
Hotel Granvia Kyoto Kyoto
6 Reviews and 734 Opinions We stayed 3 nights at Kyoto Granvia Hotel from Feb. 27 to Mar 1, 2008. We paid Yen 17,600 per night,...
The Ritz-Carlton Osaka Osaka
1 Review and 346 Opinions
Reviews and photos of Japan attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Japan sightseeing.
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Q: My partner and I have booked to go to Japan mid June and we now have the task of sorting out where to go. I currently have 2...
A: I would strongly suggest you add Kyoto to your list. It was the Imperial capital of Japan until the late 1800s when the capital was move to Edo (Tokyo). It's full of...
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