Mitarai Valley
River Gorge with Waterfalls and Emerald Pools
A gorge in Tenkawa village with waterfalls, clear green pools and giant boulders, followed by a r...
Heijo Palace Site
UNESCO Imperial Palace Ruins with Reconstructed Gate and Hall
The ruins of the imperial palace of the Nara-period capital, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with a ...
Mount Wakakusa
Grassy Hill Above Nara Park with City Views
A 342-metre grass-covered hill at the eastern edge of Nara Park, known for its wide views over th...
Tsubosakadera
Temple of Large Stone Buddhas Linked to Eye Ailments
A Shingon temple in Takatori, the sixth stop of the Saigoku Kannon pilgrimage, known for a Kannon...
Yoshiki-en
Japanese Garden Next to Isuien near Nara Park
A quiet Japanese garden beside the Isuien garden near Nara Park, made up of a pond garden, a moss...
Soni Kogen
Highland Plateau of Silver Pampas Grass
A grassland plateau of about 38 hectares at the foot of Mount Kururuso, covered in pampas grass t...
Muroji
Women's Koya and Japan's Smallest Outdoor Pagoda
Known as Women's Koya for welcoming female worshippers when Mount Koya banned them, this mountain...
Omiwa Shrine
Ancient Shrine that Worships Mount Miwa Itself
One of Japan's oldest shrines, which has no main sanctuary because Mount Miwa behind it is worshi...
Hasedera
Mountain Temple Famous for Peonies
The head temple of the Shingon Buzan school, set on a hillside in Sakurai and known for its cover...
Michi-no-Eki Yoshinoji Oyodo i-Center
Roadside gateway to Yoshino with a local tea soft serve
A roadside station on Route 169 in Oyodo, a gateway to the Yoshino mountains and their cherry blo...
Nara National Museum
Buddhist Art in Nara Park, and the Two Autumn Weeks of the Shosoin Exhibition
Japan's second-oldest national museum, on the edge of Nara Park between Kofuku-ji and Todai-ji. I...
Fujiwara Palace Site
The Field Where Nara Says Japan's First Grid-Planned Capital Stood, Now Planted with Rapeseed, Lotus and Cosmos
The site of the palace at the centre of Fujiwara-kyo, Japan's capital from 694 to 710, which Nara...
Hokki-ji
Japan's Oldest Three-Storey Pagoda, Out in the Fields North-East of Horyu-ji
A small temple among fields on the north-east edge of Ikaruga. Its three-storey pagoda, finished ...
Tachibana-dera
The Temple That Marks the Traditional Birthplace of Prince Shotoku, with a Two-Faced Stone and an Old Pagoda Base
A Tendai temple on the spot where, by tradition, Prince Shotoku was born. The Asuka-period temple...
Kimpusen-ji
Yoshino's Zao-do Hall and the Blue Zao Gongen, Shown Only in Spring and Autumn
The head temple of Kimpusen Shugen Honshu, a Shugendo school, halfway up Mount Yoshino. Its main ...