Language · 11 published
Country guide
Around three quarters of Japan is mountain and forest, which pushes almost everyone onto the eastern coastal plains and makes the country far narrower in practice than 377,975 km2 suggests. Forty-seven prefectures, eight traditional regions and more than 14,000 smaller islands, and yet a first visit usually runs along a single rail corridor with Tokyo at one end and Kyoto and Osaka at the other. Tokyo is the capital and largest city of a country of almost 123 million people. Hokkaido in the north and Okinawa in the south are different climates rather than day trips, and both need their own week.
Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.
Photograph · Morio · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photograph · Martin Falbisoner · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photograph · Martin Falbisoner · CC BY-SA 4.0
Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.
100 places match
Category
Typical visit duration
琵琶湖
Lake Biwa is the largest freshwater lake in Japan, located in Shiga Prefecture northeast of Kyoto. The lake occupies a central position in the region's geography and has historically served as a vital water resource and transportation route.
上野公園
Ueno Park, known locally as Ueno Onshi Koen, is a major public park in Tokyo. It occupies a significant area in the Taito ward and serves as one of the city's most prominent green spaces.
小石川植物園
Koishikawa Botanical Garden is a botanical garden and arboretum located in the Koishikawa area of Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo. Established in 1684 by the Tokugawa shogunate as a medicinal herb garden, it is one of Japan's oldest botanical gardens.
椿山荘庭園
Chinzan-sō Garden is a Japanese garden located in Tokyo. The site is historically associated with the former estate of Prince Aritomo Yamagata, a prominent Meiji-era statesman.
大阪城公園
井の頭恩賜公園
Inokashira Park is a public park in Tokyo, formally known as 井の頭恩賜公園. The site was bestowed upon Tokyo by the Emperor and remains a significant green space within the metropolis.
円山公園
Maruyama Park is a public park located in the Higashiyama district of Kyoto, Japan. It sits at the base of the Eastern Mountains and serves as one of the city's most popular cherry blossom viewing locations.
渉成園
Shosei-en Garden is a traditional Japanese garden located in Kyoto. It serves as the detached garden of Higashi Hongan-ji, one of the largest Buddhist sect headquarters in the city.
旧岩崎邸庭園
Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Garden is a historic garden and former estate in Tokyo, Japan. The property preserves the residence and grounds of the Iwasaki family, founders of the Mitsubishi conglomerate.
唐橋西寺公園
Sai-ji, known locally as Karahashi Sai-ji Park, was a major Buddhist temple in historical Kyoto. The original Sai-ji was established in the eighth century and paired with To-ji as the two guardian temples of the capital.
京都府立植物園
Kyoto Botanical Gardens is a major botanical garden located in Kyoto, Japan. It is operated by the city of Kyoto and serves as a significant center for plant conservation, research, and public education.
都立夢の島公園
Yumenoshima Park is a metropolitan park located in Koto Ward, Tokyo, Japan. The local name is 都立夢の島公園, indicating it is a Tokyo Metropolitan Government facility.
無鄰菴
Murin-an is a Japanese garden and villa located in Kyoto, Japan. The local name is 無鄰菴. It is listed on Wikidata as Q3328153 and mapped on OpenStreetMap as way/300891384.
大河内山荘
Ōkōchi Sansō is a villa and garden complex in Kyoto, Japan, associated with the film actor Denjirō Ōkōchi. The property sits on the slopes of Mount Ogura in the Arashiyama district.
哲学堂公園
京都御苑
Kyoto Gyoen National Garden is the broad public landscape surrounding Kyoto Imperial Palace in central Kyoto. The Ministry of the Environment describes a rectangle about 1.3 kilometres north to south and 0.7 kilometres east to west.
馬事公苑
北の丸公園
潮風公園
肥後細川庭園
有明テニスの森公園
東京都夢の島熱帯植物館
駒沢オリンピック公園総合運動場
石神井公園
荻外荘公園
甘泉園公園
砧公園
お台場海浜公園
新宿中央公園
有栖川宮記念公園
皇居外苑
水元公園
大隈庭園
梅小路公園
Umekoji Park is a public park in Kyoto, Japan. The park occupies a significant riverside plot near the confluence of the Kamo and Katsura rivers in the western part of the city.
亀塚公園
木場公園
大井ふ頭中央海浜公園なぎさの森
葛西海浜公園
平安神宮神苑
赤塚植物園
台場公園
服部緑地 都市緑化植物園
生田緑地
熱帯環境植物館
城北中央公園
慶沢園
駒場公園
大阪市立長居植物園
長居公園
住吉公園
等々力緑地
都立横網町公園
目黒天空庭園
南天満公園
宮下公園
しながわ区民公園
赤塚公園
江古田の森公園
平和の森公園
光が丘公園
池袋西口公園
大島小松川公園
Ojima Komatsugawa Park is a public park in Tokyo's Koto Ward, known locally as 大島小松川公園. The park occupies land along the Kyu-Yodo River water system in eastern Tokyo.
岡崎公園
大津湖岸なぎさ公園
林試の森公園
猿江恩賜公園
シンボルプロムナード公園
東京港野鳥公園
海の森公園
靱公園
八幡屋公園
山科植物資料館
善福寺公園
国会前庭
羽根木公園
一の橋公園
柏の宮公園
大阪南港野鳥園
おとめ山公園
音無親水公園
桜之宮公園
菅刈公園
東京臨海広域防災公園
赤羽自然観察公園
秋の陽公園
都立青山公園 北地区
荒川自然公園
千鳥ヶ淵公園
千早フラワー公園
平和島公園
中野区立 平和の森公園
東高根森林公園
碑文谷公園
本所松坂町公園
池田山公園
板橋交通公園
港区立イタリア公園
城南島海浜公園
亀戸中央公園
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·
Ten to fourteen days supports four or five days in Tokyo, three or four in Kyoto, and two or three in Osaka. Add Nara or Himeji only after those bases have enough time, and avoid turning every rail stop into a hotel change.
Japan's visa exemption or visa requirement depends on passport and travel purpose. Confirm the current rule through Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the embassy responsible for the traveller's residence.
The Tokaido Shinkansen links Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, while local rail and buses cover city travel. An IC card simplifies many local journeys but does not replace every reserved long-distance ticket, and luggage forwarding can reduce friction between bases.
March to May and October to November are broad options for the main-island route, with blossom and autumn periods creating concentrated demand. Confirm regional weather and reservations for the exact cities rather than assuming one national season behaves uniformly.
Japan uses the yen (JPY). Electronic payment is common but not universal, so carry some yen for smaller businesses, ticket machines, or rural transport without assuming that one stored-value card works for every purchase.
Japan's emergency numbers are 110 for police and 119 for fire or ambulance. Type A sockets operate at 100 V, which is lower than in the other wave-A countries, and mains tap water is recorded as safe.
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