Shrines, museums, parks, and the spots in between, with the access details worked out.
A museum in Yamanashi on painter Hirayama Ikuo's journeys along the Silk Road, made to trace the origins of Japanese culture and the transmission of Buddhism.
Hokuto · YamanashiTemple in Kaga traditionally attributed to Myokaku Shonin, credited with developing the Japanese syllabary, who is believed to be buried here.
Kaga · IshikawaThis shrine dedicated to fertility and agricultural prosperity enshrines deities rooted in Japan's ancient traditions of harvest blessing and family well-being.
Komaki · AichiSoto Zen temple founded in 1441, known for its guardian deity Inari, who blends Buddhist and Shinto traditions and is linked to fertility and trade.
Toyokawa · AichiThis Nagano museum is dedicated to Katsushika Hokusai's late works created during his final years in Obuse, when he produced his most ambitious pieces.
Obuse · NaganoThe Aikawa Gold and Silver Mine on Sado Island operated for nearly four centuries as a key pillar of the Tokugawa shogunate's finances.
Sado · NiigataCastle constructed in 1612 as the center of a major Edo-era post station, destroyed in World War II bombing but reconstructed since 1957.
Nagoya · AichiA Gifu museum in memory of Eizo and Toichi Kato, with about 5,000 restored drawings and 150 paintings, plus exhibitions of local artists in two galleries.
GifuOpened in 1935, the museum holds over 10,000 works of the Owari Tokugawa family, including nine National Treasures and the Tale of Genji Illustrated Scrolls.
Nagoya · AichiLinked to Oda Nobunaga's rise, the castle was built 1394-1427 to guard the Ise Kaido and Nakasendo crossroads and was partly rebuilt in 1989 for a centennial.
Kiyosu · AichiA village in the UNESCO-listed Gokayama region with 20 traditional gassho-style houses, some over 400 years old, with steep thatched roofs built to shed snow.
Nanto · ToyamaZoo featuring drive-through routes, guided tours and walking trails for viewing bears, lions, tigers, herbivores and friendly animal zones.
Susono · ShizuokaA Shingon temple in central Nagoya, moved here by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1612, whose Osu Bunko library holds a National Treasure manuscript of the Kojiki.
Nagoya · AichiHistoric Buddhist temple over 1,400 years old welcoming all faiths, with an underground passage and a revered statue displayed every six years.
NaganoPark in Komatsu on the former third bailey of Komatsu Castle, with stone monuments, statues of the lord Maeda Toshitsune, ponds, gardens and museums.
Komatsu · IshikawaShrine honoring over 25,000 military spirits from conflicts spanning the First Sino-Japanese War through the Pacific War, set among 300 cherry trees.
Kofu · YamanashiA shrine at the foot of Mount Fuji that worships the mountain itself, and the head of more than 1,300 Sengen shrines across Japan.
Fujinomiya · ShizuokaA gorge on the Tomoe River at Asuke in Aichi, planted with momiji maples in the 17th century and now one of the best known places in Japan for autumn colour.
Toyota · Aichi
