discover

JAPAN

CHRIS ROWTHORN ANDREW BENDER, MATTHEW D FIRESTONE, TIMOTHY N HORNYAK, BENEDICT WALKER,

PAUL WARHAM, WENDY YANAGIHARA

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p205HOKKAID±HONSH§ &NORTHERN

KY§SH§ p245SHIKOKU &

WESTERN HONSH§,

& KANSAIKYOTO

p163HONSH§

p97

p51AREA

TOKYO

CENTRAL

ISLANDS p285SOUTHWEST

OKINAWA & THE

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DISCOVER JAPAN

Tokyo Area (p51) Japan’s frenetic capital is surrounded by attractions including Mt Fuji, Nikkō, Kamakura and the Ogasawara-shotō island group.

Kyoto & Kansai (p97) Japan’s cultural capital, Kyoto, is a must-see attraction; the Kansai region contains many first-rate sights such as Nara and Kōya-san.

Central Honshū (p163) Central Honshū is home to the Japan Alps and several his-toric cities including Kanazawa, Takayama and Matsumoto.

Northern Honshū & Hokkaidō (p205) Honshū’s seldom-visited north offers good hiking and historic towns; Hokkaidō features incredible skiing, driving and out-door adventures.

Western Honshū, Shikoku & Kyūshū (p245) Western Honshū and the adjoining islands of Shikoku and Kyūshū boast history, coastal scenery and outdoor attractions.

Okinawa & the Southwest Islands (p285) Japan’s Southwest Islands offer excellent beaches, hiking, snorkelling, diving and a unique culture that’s not quite Japanese.

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CONTENTS

THIS IS JAPAN 10

JAPAN’S TOP 25 EXPERIENCES 13

JAPAN’S TOP ITINERARIES 31

PLANNING YOUR TRIP 39

TOKYO AREA 51HIGHLIGHTS 54THE BEST… 60THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 61DISCOVER THE TOKYO AREA 62TOKYO 62Orientation 62Information 62Sights 63Kagurazaka Walking Tour 73Sleeping 74Eating 76

Drinking 79Entertainment 80Shopping 80Getting There & Away 80Getting Around 80NORTH OF TOKYO 82Nikkō 82Minakami & Takaragawa Onsen 87WEST OF TOKYO 88Mt Fuji Area 88SOUTH OF TOKYO 92Kamakura 92OGASAWARA-SHOTŌ 95Chichi-jima 95Haha-jima 96

KYOTO & KANSAI 97HIGHLIGHTS 100THE BEST… 108THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 109

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DISCOVER KYOTO & KANSAI 110KYOTO 110History 110Orientation 111Information 114Sights & Activities 114Southern Higashiyama Walking Tour 130Festivals & Events 131Sleeping 132Eating 136Entertainment 140Shopping 141Getting There & Away 142Getting Around 143NORTHERN KANSAI 145Kinosaki 145OSAKA 146Information 146Sights & Activities 146Festivals & Events 148Sleeping 148Getting There & Away 149HIMEJI 149Orientation & Information 149Sights 149Eating 150Getting There & Away 151NARA 151History 151Orientation 153Information 153Sights 153Sleeping 155Eating 156Getting There & Away 156KII-HANTŌ 157Kōya-san 157ISE-SHIMA 160Ise 160

CENTRAL HONSHŪ 163HIGHLIGHTS 166THE BEST… 172THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 173CENTRAL HONSHŪ ITINERARIES 174DISCOVER CENTRAL HONSHŪ 176HIDA DISTRICT 176Takayama 176Shirakawa-gō & Gokayama 180JAPAN ALPS NATIONAL PARK 183Kamikōchi 183Shin-Hotaka Onsen 185NAGANO-KEN 186Nagano 186Shiga Kōgen 188Nozawa Onsen 188Hakuba 189Matsumoto 190Kiso Valley Region 191TOYAMA-KEN 193Tateyama–Kurobe Alpen Route 193ISHIKAWA-KEN 194Kanazawa 194Noto-hantō 200FUKUI-KEN 204Eihei-ji 204

NORTHERN HONSHŪ & HOKKAIDŌ 205HIGHLIGHTS 208THE BEST… 212THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 213NORTHERN HONSHŪ & HOKKAIDŌ ITINERARIES 214DISCOVER NORTHERN HONSHŪ & HOKKAIDŌ 216NORTHERN HONSHŪ 216Matsushima & Oku-Matsushima 216Hiraizumi 218Hakkōda-san 219Tazawa-ko 220

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Kakunodate 222Dewa Sanzan 222Sado-ga-shima 225HOKKAIDŌ 227Sapporo 227Niseko 236Daisetsuzan National Park 239

WESTERN HONSHŪ, SHIKOKU & KYŪSHŪ 245HIGHLIGHTS 248THE BEST… 252THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 253WESTERN HONSHŪ, SHIKOKU & KYŪSHŪ ITINERARIES 254DISCOVER WESTERN HONSHŪ, SHIKOKU & KYŪSHŪ 256WESTERN HONSHŪ 256Hiroshima 256Miyajima 262Naoshima 264Izumo 266

SHIKOKU 267Kōchi 267Matsuyama 269KYŪSHŪ 273Nagasaki 273Aso-san Area 279Kurokawa Onsen 282Kirishima-Yaku National Park 283

OKINAWA & THE SOUTHWEST ISLANDS 285HIGHLIGHTS 288THE BEST… 292THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 293OKINAWA & THE SOUTHWEST ISLANDS ITINERARIES 294DISCOVER OKINAWA & THE SOUTHWEST ISLANDS 296KAGOSHIMA-KEN 297Yakushima 297OKINAWA-KEN 303Okinawa-hontō 303

Japanese bonsaiRICHARD CUMMINS

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Islands Near Okinawa-hontō 310Yaeyama-shotō 311

JAPAN IN FOCUS 323FAMILY TRAVEL 324FOOD 326HISTORY 335KYOTO’S GEISHA 346ONSEN 348RYOKAN 350SAKE 352SKIING & SNOWBOARDING 354

DIRECTORY & TRANSPORT 357DIRECTORY 358Accommodation 358Activities 359Climate 360Customs 361Dangers & Annoyances 361Embassies & Consulates 362Festivals & Events 363Gay & Lesbian Travellers 363Health 363Holidays 365Insurance 365Internet Access 366Left Luggage 366Legal Matters 366Maps 367Money 367Telephone 369Time 370Toilets 370Tourist Information 371Travellers with Disabilities 371Visas 372Women Travellers 372TRANSPORT 373GETTING THERE & AWAY 373GETTING AROUND 374

GLOSSARY 381

BEHIND THE SCENES 383

INDEX 390

MAP LEGEND 400

& KY§SH§SHIKOKU

p245 AREATOKYO

HONSH§,WESTERN

p205HOKKAID±HONSH§ &NORTHERN

& KANSAIKYOTO

p163HONSH§

p97

p51

CENTRAL

ISLANDS p285SOUTHWEST

OKINAWA & THE

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Learn the tragic history of this city and marvel

at its recovery

HIROSHIMA p256

Find the Japan of your imagination in the nation’s

culture capital

KYOTO p110

This town is both a gatewayto the Japan Alps and a

fascinating historical destination

TAKAYAMA p176

Check out Japan’s first permanent capital which boasts

eight World Heritage sites

NARA p151

ShinkansenSan-yŸ

Kagoshima Shinkansen

S E A O F J A P A N

P A C I F I C O C E A N

GIFU

Takayama

TSUNAGOYA

FUKUI

KYOTO

K±BE OSAKA

Himeji

Izumo MATSUE

TAKAMATSU

TOTTORI

OKAYAMA

TOKUSHIMA

KANAZAWA

TOYAMA

WAKAYAMA

Nara

Usuki K±CHI

Shing¥

Pyongyang

Hagi

Shimonoseki

SEOUL

Beppu

Yatsushiro

Nagasaki

KAGOSHIMA

KUMAMOTO

(HAKATA) FUKUOKA

HIROSHIMA

Kitaky¥sh¥

MIYAZAKI

Oita

Hamada

MATSUYAMA

Aso-san

135ºE 129ºE 132ºE

Biwa-ko

Oki-

HONSH§

shotŸ

Noto-hantŸ

KANSAI

SHIKOKU

Tsu-shima

KY§SH§

GotŸ-rettŸ

Amakusa- shotŸ

R U S S I A

C H I N A

N O R T H

S O U T H K O R E A

K O R E A

Kansai International

Airport

See Inset

E A S T C H I N A S E A

KAGOSHIMA

Naze

NAHA Okinawa City

Nago

Ishigaki Hirara

26ºN

129ºE

123ºE

30ºN Yakushima

Tanegashima

KY§SH§

Tokara- shotŸ

shotŸ Nansei-

Amami-shotŸ

Okinawa-hontŸ

Miyako-shotŸ

Yaeyama-shotŸIriomote-

jima

Inset

See Main Map

Head into moss-covered forests to find the 3000-year-old

tree, JŸmon-sugi

YAKUSHIMA p297

Dive with mantas, snorkel on pristine reefs and kayak

up jungle rivers

IRIOMOTE-JIMA p316

200 km 120 miles 0

0

S

S

S

Jnr

htroN

e

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A

Hike across the roof ofHokkaidŸ in one of Japan’s

most stunning national parks

DAISETSUZANNATIONAL PARK p239

Ski or snowboard some ofthe world’s most reliable

lift-served powder

NISEKO p236

Take the 25-hour ferry toJapan’s dolphin- and

whale-watching mecca

CHICHI-JIMA p95

Climb the perfect cone of Fuji and watch a new day

dawn over Japan

MT FUJI p88

Visit Japan’s thriving cosmopolitan capital –

it’s Asia’s city of the future

TOKYO p62

Hike from hut to hut amid towering mountain peaks

JAPAN ALPS p183

TŸhoku Shinkansen

Shinkansen Akita

Shinkansen Yamagata

Shinkansen JŸetsu

Shinkansen Hokuriku

Shinkansen TŸkaidŸ

(500km) To Ogasawara-shotŸ

O C E A N P A C I F I C

O K H O T S K S E A O F

Abashiri Biei

Otaru Takikawa

Wakkanai

Kushiro Niseko

SAPPORO

Hakodate

AOMORI

Obihiro

Hachinohe

MORIOKA Kakunodate

Mizusawa Hiraizumi

Sakata

Tsuruoka

MatsumotoNikkŸ

AKITA

ShinjŸ

SENDAI

FUKUSHIMA

MITO

NIIGATA YAMAGATA

NAGANO

MAEBASHI URAWA

K±FU

SHIZUOKA YOKOHAMA

CHIBA

UTSUNOMIYA

TOKYO

National Akan

National Park Shiretoko

National Park Daisetsuzan

Park

Osore-zan

s p l a p a J

n r n

(3776m) Mt Fuji

h t r o N

Ja

pan

Alp

s

Sout

hern

A

e

44ºN

42ºN

40ºN

36ºN

34ºN

147ºE

38ºN

144ºE 141ºE 138ºE

32ºN

Tazawa-ko

Urup-tŸ

Iturup (Etorofu)-tŸ

Habomaisho

Kunashiri-tŸ

Shikotan-tŸ

Sakhalin-tŸ

Shiretoko-hantŸ

HOKKAID±

Rishiri-tŸ

Rebun-tŸ

Okushiri-tŸ

Shakotan-hantŸ

Kinkasan

HONSH§

shima

±-shima hantŸ Izu-

Shikine-jima

Miyake-jima

Izu-shotŸ

HachijŸ-jima

Sado-ga-

Nemuro-hantŸ

R U S S I A

International Airport Tokyo Narita

HoppŸryŸdo (Kuril Islands)

ELEVATION

200m

1000m

2000m

3000m

0

Hahajima

Chichi-jima

Ogasawara-shotŸ Inset

Not to scale

LEGEND

Railway Secondary Road Primary Road Freeway

200 km 120 miles

0 0

Tunnel Seikan

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Japan is a world apart – a wonderful little planet floating off the coast of China. It is a kind of cultural Galapagos, a place where a unique civilisation was allowed to grow and unfold on its own, unmolested by invading powers.

Even today, the world struggles to categorise Japan: is it the world’s most advanced technological civilisation, or a bastion of traditional Asian culture? Has the country become just another outpost of the West, or is there something decidedly Eastern lurking under the veneer of its familiar modernity? There are no easy answers, but there is plenty of pleasure to be had in looking for them.

First and foremost, Japan is a place of delicious contrasts: ancient temples and fu-turistic cities; mist-shrouded hills and lightning-fast bullet trains; kimono-clad geisha and suit-clad businesspeople; quaint thatch-roofed villages and pulsating neon urban

THIS IS JAPAN

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jungles. This peculiar synthesis of the modern and the traditional is one of the things that makes travel in Japan such a fascinating experience.

Japan is arguably the easiest country in Asia in which to travel; while English may not be as widely spoken as in places such as Singapore, the country’s brilliant infrastructure, first-class public transport system and friendly people make travelling here a breeze. Despite having all the devel-oped-world conveniences (and then some), Japan offers regular doses of exoticism and wonder. Best of all, Japan is one of the cheapest countries in the developed world and no country on earth offers as much bang for the buck. All told, Japan is an eminently rewarding travel destination.

‘ancient temples and futuristic cities; mist-shrouded hills and lightning-fast bullet trains’

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