Shrines, museums, parks, and the spots in between, with the access details worked out.
A vibrant Osaka entertainment district known for neon-lit streets, iconic landmarks like the Glico Man billboard and giant crab sign, canal tours, and street food.
OsakaThis Edo-era castle overlooked the Yoshino River with a central keep atop a 60-meter hill before Meiji-period demolition; the grounds reopened as a park in 1905.
TokushimaTokyo-area mountain with eight hiking trails and funicular access, drawing 2.5 million annual visitors for autumn foliage and cherry blossoms.
Hachioji · TokyoMuseum honoring the poet Nakahara Chuya with permanent and rotating exhibitions exploring different aspects of his literary legacy.
YamaguchiA historical castle in Uwajima city with an innovative pentagonal moat system, damaged by earthquakes during its centuries of use and occupation by the Date clan.
Uwajima · EhimeA medieval fortress in Matsuyama designated a Top 100 Castle, preserving rare early Japanese castle architecture that influenced later fortifications throughout the country.
Matsuyama · EhimeA Pure Land Buddhist temple founded in 1475 by Matsudaira Chikayoshi, built to honor fallen war dead and serving as the ancestral temple of the Tokugawa shoguns.
Okazaki · AichiA shrine devoted to the protection of sailors and sea transport, requiring a climb of 785 steps to the main shrine on Mount Zozu.
Kotohira · KagawaA 250-meter shopping street leading to Senso-ji temple with 89 shops, rebuilt multiple times after 1885 closure, 1923 earthquake, and bombing.
TokyoA Shinto shrine in Matsuyama with roots in a visit by Emperor Chuai and Empress Jingu to Dogo Onsen, enshrining multiple emperors as cultural treasures.
Matsuyama · EhimeOne of Japan's three most famous Inari shrines, dedicated to the god of agriculture and prosperity, known for vermilion torii gates and statues.
Kashima · SagaRinnoji is a Tendai Buddhist temple in Nikko and part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, known for its Sanbutsudo hall and the National Treasure Taiyuin mausoleum.
Nikko · TochigiTokyo's largest and most-visited city park, built on former temple grounds and featuring museums and spring cherry blossom viewing.
TokyoFortress without a traditional keep, reflecting Tokugawa political order and built as a luxurious residential palace to demonstrate authority and wealth.
Sendai · MiyagiFuture Train on Kyoto's Umekoji viaduct is Japan's first restaurant on a disused railway, featuring a repurposed Limited Express Thunderbird train car.
KyotoYamaguchi shrine dedicated to Mori Motonari, the Sengoku-period warlord who unified the Chugoku region and established the powerful Mori clan.
YamaguchiLate fifteenth-century stronghold that served as the seat of the Hojo clan, rebuilt in the 1960s as a museum and observation point.
Odawara · KanagawaA prominent Shingon Buddhist temple renowned for its spiritual power to dispel misfortune and grant various blessings to visitors.
Kawasaki · Kanagawa
