Shrines, museums, parks, and the spots in between, with the access details worked out.
Kumano Hongu Taisha, heart of the Kumano Sanzan, traces its origins to before Emperor Jinmu – where legend says three moons descended to found the shrine.
Tanabe · WakayamaIn Shingu, Wakayama, Kumano Hayatama Taisha stands as one of the three grand Kumano shrines – a "land of rebirth" where pilgrims have sought renewal for centuries.
Shingu · WakayamaA temple at the eastern edge of Kanto, founded around an image of Kannon that fishermen are said to have drawn from the sea one glowing night in 728.
Choshi · ChibaA hillside park in Chiba – despite the name, neither in Tokyo nor especially German – where flower fields, small rides and pick-your-own crops fill the slopes.
Sodegaura · ChibaYamagata's main administrative center offering public services, local event information, and a gallery featuring works by regional artists and photographers.
YamagataHirosaki Municipal Tourist Center offers information on local attractions and events in a traditional Japanese building with a garden, providing maps, bookings, and free Wi-Fi.
Hirosaki · AomoriOpened in 1983 as the first Disney park built outside the United States, Tokyo Disneyland spreads across seven themed lands on the bay east of Tokyo.
Urayasu · ChibaBehind Narita's great temple lies a hillside garden with ponds, waterfalls and poem-carved stones, free to walk and far quieter than the temple itself.
Narita · ChibaOn a quiet hillside in rural Chiba, around thirty retired railway carriages have been preserved, including several that survive nowhere else in Japan.
Isumi · ChibaAmusement park featuring Jewellumination, the Kanto's grandest nighttime spectacle, with the Starlight Bandit roller coaster and panoramic Ferris wheel.
Inagi · TokyoThe first permanent outdoor Pokémon facility features over 600 Pokémon across two zones: a forest trail and a town setting where visitors can discover creatures in their habitats.
TokyoA Tendai temple in the Kawasaki hills, known as the "azalea temple" for the 2,000 shrubs that colour its slopes each spring, and for its healing prayers.
Kawasaki · KanagawaA wooded park in Kimitsu, where light entering an old river tunnel meets its reflection to form a heart on the water, best seen at dawn near the equinox.
Kimitsu · ChibaA shrine in Ichihara with an unusual tradition: expectant mothers borrow a small purse left unstitched at the base, for an easy birth.
Ichihara · ChibaA dark stand of old evergreens at the top of a steep stone stairway in Sosa, where one great tree spreads roots like boards across the forest floor.
Sosa · ChibaA small, charming Inari shrine in Kawasaki, guarded by 108 stone foxes and ringed with Fuji lava – a postwar branch of Kyoto's Fushimi Inari.
Kawasaki · KanagawaFounded in 1590 in Kawagoe, Kumano Shrine honours the Kumano deities and the yatagarasu crow, drawing visitors seeking fortune, love, and protection.
Kawagoe · SaitamaKumano Taisha, Izumo's "birthplace of fire", holds sacred hikiriusu and hikirigine fire-drills, a startling rice-cake ritual, and Susanoo's comb festival for Princess Inada.
Matsue · Shimane
