Travel Destinations in Iwate

Hiraizumi

UNESCO World Heritage Pure Land Buddhist Architecture with the Golden Hall

In the 12th century Hiraizumi was the political and cultural centre of northern Japan, and two of...

Tsunami Memorial Museum and Michi-no-Eki Takata Matsubara

Free tsunami-memorial museum and roadside station in Rikuzentakata

A combined roadside station and free memorial museum in the Takata Matsubara Tsunami Reconstructi...

Taro Kanko Hotel Tsunami Ruins

A tsunami-ruined hotel preserved as disaster heritage in Taro, Miyako

A six-story hotel on the Taro coast of Miyako, gutted to the fourth floor by the 2011 tsunami and...

Miracle Lone Pine

The lone pine that survived the 2011 tsunami, kept as a monument

The single pine that survived the 2011 tsunami among Takata Matsubara's roughly 70,000 trees, pre...

Tono

A rural town in the mountains of Iwate known as the birthplace of Japanese folklore studies, wher...

Chusonji Temple

Golden Hall of the Northern Fujiwara

A UNESCO World Heritage temple complex featuring the stunning Konjikido, a hall covered entirely ...

Jodogahama Beach

A Heavenly White Beach on the Sanriku Coast

Named for its resemblance to a Buddhist paradise, Jodogahama is a white pebble beach backed by sh...

Geibikei Gorge

A River Gorge Adventure by Traditional Boat

Geibikei is a spectacular river gorge where visitors glide through two kilometers of towering cli...

Motsuji Temple

Motsuji Temple - UNESCO Pure Land Garden in Hiraizumi

A UNESCO World Heritage temple in Hiraizumi featuring one of Japan's finest Pure Land gardens fro...

Goshono Site

A Jomon Village With Earth-Roofed Pit Houses, Across a Covered Wooden Bridge in Ichinohe

The site of a Jomon village on a plateau above the Mabechi River in Ichinohe, northern Iwate, liv...

Michi-no-Eki Hiraizumi

An early breakfast before the temples of Hiraizumi

A roadside station on Route 4 in Hiraizumi, open every day. Its restaurant starts serving breakfa...

Michi-no-Eki Shizukuishi Anekko

A hot spring stop on the Route 46 drive to Akita

The last big stop on Route 46 before the mountains to Akita. It has a day-use hot spring with an ...

Michi-no-Eki Tono Kaze-no-Oka

Wind turbines, a valley view and the gateway to Tono

A hilltop station on Route 283 just off the Tono exit of the Kamaishi Expressway, marked by wind ...

Mount Iwate

Nanbu Fuji: A Long Day on an Active Volcano Above Morioka

Iwate's highest mountain at 2,038 meters, called Nanbu Fuji for the cone it shows Morioka. The ma...

Ryusendo Cave

Clear Blue Underground Lakes in a Limestone Cave Deep in the Iwate Hills

A limestone cave in Iwaizumi with about 700 meters open to visitors and three lit underground lak...