Places to visit – Ready for Wander

Japan Nara Park FreeNature

Nara Park · Nara

Open green space with deer walking around everywhere.

Japan Tokyo Temple EveningFree

Senso-ji in the evening · Asakusa

Packed in the day. We went in the evening and it was calm and peaceful.

Japan Kanazawa Garden Nature

Kenroku-en Garden · City centre

Dense, huge and perfectly kept. Look for the supports holding up the old pine branches.

Japan Osaka Food street EveningFree

Dotonbori · Namba

Neon, the canal and big crowds. Go in the evening.

Japan Shirakawa-go Village FreeNature

Gassho-zukuri village · Ogimachi

Steep thatched roofs built for heavy snow, mountains all around. Very peaceful.

Japan Kamakura & Enoshima Temple Temples & shrines

Great Buddha of Kamakura · Kotoku-in

It sits in the open now, and it is hollow. You can go inside.

Japan Kyoto Bamboo grove FreeNature

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest · Arashiyama

Our first stop in Kyoto, straight after the bus from Kanazawa.

Japan Amanohashidate & Ine Viewpoint NatureViewpoints

Amanohashidate viewpoint · Miyazu

Ride up to the viewpoint and look at the pine-covered sandbar across the bay.

Japan Hakone Ropeway NatureViewpoints

Hakone Ropeway & Owakudani · Sounzan → Togendai

You pass right over an active volcanic valley with steam rising from the ground.

Japan Hakone Cruise Nature

Lake Ashi pirate cruise · Togendai

A slow boat across the lake after the ropeway. Calm, with mountains all around.

Japan Nara Temple Temples & shrines

Todai-ji · Nara Park

A huge wooden hall with a giant bronze Buddha inside.

Japan Tokyo Riverside walk EveningFree

Sumida River walk · Asakusa

A slow walk right after Senso-ji. Tokyo without the intensity.

Japan Kanazawa Old geisha district FreeStreet & shopping

Higashi Chaya District · Higashiyama

Wooden teahouses from the Edo period, now cafes and shops. Set up in 1820.

Japan Shirakawa-go House museum

Nagase House · Ogimachi

A family house turned museum. Shows how people actually lived here.

Japan Kamakura & Enoshima Viewpoint Anime spotsFree

Kamakura-Kokomae crossing · Enoden line

Train, sea and road in one frame. Felt straight out of an anime.

Japan Kyoto Shrine FreeTemples & shrines

Fushimi Inari Taisha · Fushimi

We went at night first, then came back in the morning. Go in daylight.

Japan Amanohashidate & Ine Fishing village FreeNature

Ine fishing village · Ine Bay

Boathouses built right on the water. Quiet and completely different from the cities.

Japan Hakone Cable car Nature

Gora & the Sounzan cable car · Gora

The steep little cable car that takes you up to the ropeway.

Japan Tokyo Iconic sight FreeStreet & shopping

Shibuya Scramble Crossing · Shibuya

Everyone crosses from every side at once. Best seen from above.

Japan Kamakura & Enoshima Beach FreeNature

Shichirigahama Beach · Near Kokomae

A surf beach with dark sand, not a swimming beach like we imagine in India.

Japan Kyoto Old district EveningFree

Gion · Higashiyama

We walked it in the evening after the Amanohashidate day.

Japan Tokyo Neighbourhood FreeStreet & shopping

Harajuku, Takeshita Street & Cat Street · Harajuku

Loud Takeshita Street, then calmer Cat Street and Tokyu Plaza next door.

Japan Kamakura & Enoshima Island NatureViewpoints

Enoshima · Fujisawa

A small island just off the coast. On a clear day you can see Mt Fuji from here.

Japan Tokyo Viewpoint EveningFree

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building · Shinjuku

Free deck on the 45th floor, about 202 m up. Free projection show on the building at night.

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Places to visit, worth it vs overrated