Japan Travel Guides

Tokyo

Tokyo is a megalopolis of dizzying contradictions; a high-octane adrenaline rush into a neon-bright future. It has statement skyscrapers, packed trains, futuristic architecture and cutting-edge technology. But it also has ancient shrines, plant-covered...

Kyoto

Kyoto and Tokyo make an anagram of each other, but that’s pretty much all they have in common. Whilst Tokyo, on the surface at least, is all high-speed trains, flashes of neon and skyscrapers. Kyoto, by contrast, is old Japan writ large, its spiritual...

Miyajima Island

Miyajima is an exquisite island in the Seto Inland Sea. Its proximity to Hiroshima makes it a popular antidote for visitors anguished by their exposure to the grim story of the atomic bomb. With its status as one of the three most scenic spots in Japan...

Mount Fuji

Probably the most iconic image of Japan. Mount Fuji’s snow-capped symmetry, rising to a perfect pinnacle at 12,388 ft is a magnet for climbers, tourists and artists. When you first lay eyes on its conical beauty, whether from Tokyo or from a cable cart...

Hiroshima

For most of us, the word 'Hiroshima' doesn't really mean a place. It is a word for an event, a catastrophic landmark in human history. It conjures black & white images of a desolate, flattened wasteland pockmarked by a few charred skeletons of buildings...

Matsumoto Castle

Set against a dramatic backdrop of the Japanese Alps rising in the distance, Matsumoto is Japan’s oldest castle, originally built in 1504 when Japan was embroiled in bloody civil wars, then rebuilt in 1593 in the form as you see it today.

Nara Park

The Park surrounding the temple is an attraction in itself. With its ponds, grassy lawns, trees and shrines, Nara Park covers around 1,300 acres and is home to over a thousand deer. The animals are considered to be divine messengers, so they’re allowed...