Discover Japan's Hidden Gems

Explore temples, shrines, castles, parks, and more

City
Aomori

Aomori

Aomori - City of the Blazing Nebuta Festival

Northern Honshu city famous for the spectacular Nebuta Festival, one of Japan's most dramatic sum...

Aomori, Japan
Castle
Ishikawa

Kanazawa Castle

Maeda Clan Castle with White Lead Roof Tiles

The castle of the wealthy Maeda clan, featuring beautifully reconstructed gates and turrets with ...

Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
Attraction
Shiga

Lake Biwa

Lake Biwa is Japan's largest and oldest freshwater lake, offering water sports, scenic cycling ro...

Shiga, Japan
Attraction
Fukushima

Lake Inawashiro

Mirror of Heaven

Japan's fourth-largest lake, nicknamed the Mirror of Heaven for its crystal-clear waters reflecti...

Inawashiro, Fukushima, Japan
City
Miyazaki

Miyazaki City

Sunshine City of Myth and Nature

Subtropical prefectural capital known for year-round sunshine, mythological sites, mango, and cha...

Miyazaki, Japan
Park
Saitama

Musashi Kyuryo National Government Park

Musashi Kyuryo National Government Park sprawls across the hills of Saitama, famous for its displ...

Saitama, Japan
Attraction
Kagawa

Naoshima

Contemporary Art Island in the Seto Inland Sea

An island transformed into a world-renowned contemporary art destination, home to museums and out...

Naoshima, Kagawa, Japan
Attraction
Mie

Okage Yokocho

A charming recreated Edo-to-Meiji period street adjacent to Ise Grand Shrine, packed with traditi...

Ise, Mie, Japan
Historic Site
Shizuoka

Shimoda

Shimoda - Where Japan Opened to the World

The historic port where Commodore Perry's Black Ships arrived in 1854, opening Japan to internati...

Shizuoka, Japan
Beach
Wakayama

Shirahama Beach

White Sand Beach in Wakayama

One of Japan's most famous beaches, known for its pristine white sand and crystal clear waters on...

Shirahama, Wakayama, Japan
Historic Site
Gifu

Shirakawa-go

UNESCO Thatched-Roof Village

UNESCO World Heritage village with traditional gassho-zukuri thatched-roof farmhouses in a remote...

Shirakawa, Gifu, Japan
Historic Site
Hiroshima

Tomonoura

Tomonoura - The Port Town That Inspired Ponyo

A historic port town that inspired the Studio Ghibli film 'Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea,' with t...

Hiroshima, Japan
Onsen
Gifu

Gero Onsen

Gero Onsen - One of Japan's Three Great Hot Spring Towns

One of Japan's three great onsen towns alongside Kusatsu and Arima, celebrated for its silky alka...

Gifu, Japan
Theme Park
Nagasaki

Huis Ten Bosch

Huis Ten Bosch - Japan's Dutch Kingdom Theme Park

Japan's largest theme park recreating a Dutch town with canals, windmills, flower gardens, and se...

Sasebo, Nagasaki, Japan
Castle
Ehime

Imabari Castle

Japan's Finest Sea Castle with Seawater Moat

One of Japan's finest sea castles, built by master architect Todo Takatora in 1602, with a moat f...

Imabari, Ehime, Japan