Jon's Guide for Going to Japan - Part 5: Outside Tokyo

If you decide to spend part of your trip outside Tokyo, this post is for you. Here I'll go over a bunch of spots outside of Tokyo that I would personally recommend.

Of course, I can only write about places I've been to. There are still lots of places I want to visit in Japan - Fukuoka, Okinawa, Hokkaido, and northern Honshu, just to name a few. Whenever I get around to visiting those, I'll be sure to update this post.

This is Part 5 of a multi-part series about traveling to Japan. Here are the other parts:

• Part 1: Planning Your Trip
• Part 2: Your Flight
• Part 3: Getting Around Japan
• Part 4: Tokyo Tourism
• Part 6: About Eventing, and Your Trip Back Home

Numazu & Uchiura

If you're a fan of Love Live! Sunshine!!, this is where most of the anime takes place. Everywhere you look, places are decked out in Aqours decorations, and this is naturally a great place to go on an anime pilgrimage.

Numazu is the main city. To get there, take the Shinkansen to Mishima Station and then get on a regular train to Numazu Station. Numazu City has a Gamers Store, a nakamise (shopping street), and you can go on a hunt for all the Aqours manhole covers.

Once you're done in Numazu City, take a bus down to Uchiura where you'll find a museum/shop dedicated to Love Live! Sunshine!!, the school used as a model for Uranohoshi (it's closed and off limits, but you can look from the outside), the homes used as models for Chika's, Riko's, and Ruby & Dia's homes (Chika's home is an actual ryokan inn you can stay at), and the beach where they decided on their group name.

From Uchiura, you can take a ferry to Awashima Island, where you can visit the hotel Mari's family runs and the shop Kanan works at (actually a frog museum).

For a much more comprehensive guide on Numazu, check out LuciaHunter's Pilgrimage Guide and this map of locations from the anime.

Hakone

If you're looking to escape from the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, Hakone is a great place to relax and unwind. It's a rural area not too far from Tokyo (about 2 hours on the Shinkansen) with lots of beautiful nature sights and traditional shops & restaurants to spend some money at.

If you're feeling lucky, try to get into the eel restaurant (they were all out of eel when I tried) or the steakhouse (they were fully booked when I tried - but some friends who got in said it was life-changing).

When I went to Hakone, I stayed at Hakone Yumoto Onsen Tsuki no Yado Sara for one night. They have a rooftop garden, public and private baths, baths on the room balconies, a gift shop, and your stay there includes dinner and breakfast.

Kyoto

The former capital of Japan. Kyoto is not as busy or urbanized as Tokyo, but is much more rich in traditional Japanese culture and landmarks. There are several shrines, castles, and more places to easily spend some time at. Put on your walking shoes, you're going to need them.

Kyoto does have its own rail system, but you'll soon discover it's not as efficient as Tokyo's. Trains don't come by nearly as often, and stations are further apart. Fortunately, taxi cabs are much cheaper there, and are a perfectly valid option for getting around.

Here's a few spots in Kyoto I enjoyed:

• Fushimi Inari - Feel like climbing a mountain? Visit Fushimi Inari, where you'll pass through 10,000 torii gates and climb 12,000 steps to get to the top. This trek is not for the faint of heart. I only made it halfway, but my more in-shape friends made it to the finish.
• Rail Museum - See and learn all about trains both new and old. Check out the model train exhibit and get a group photo with your friends.
• Kyoto Aquarium - Another aquarium, and perhaps the largest of the three I've discussed in this series.
• Nijou Castle - A castle built way back in 1603 and visited by many tourists today. You'll get to go inside the castle, learn about how it was used, and visit the surrounding towers and gardens.
• Kyoto Tower - Not as high as the Tokyo Skytee or Tokyo Tower, but still grants you an excellent view of the city.

Nara

While staying in Kyoto, consider taking a train down to Nara. Lots of deer roam this area, but they're friendly. There are stands that sell shika senbei (deer crackers) with which you can feed the deer. Watch your pockets, especially if you're carrying any food - they will snatch it right from you!

Next, take a walk over to Todai-ji, a huge Buddhist temple with giant statues.

If you like Indian food, grab dinner at Manna Food on your way back to the train station for some amazing South Asian flavors.

Hiroshima & Miyajima

It's going to be tough to discuss this part without getting too emotional, but I'll do my best to hold back. If you're from the United States I personally feel it's your duty to visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum to learn in detail about the devastating events of August 6, 1945 and the aftermath that followed.

After visiting the museum, walk over to the nearby A-Bomb Dome, which is one of the few structures that remained standing after the blast. The bomb hypocenter is also nearby and marked on a stone slab.

Once you've paid your respects and gathered your thoughts, consider walking over to Hazeya for some amazing okonomiyaki.

Next, take a cab or train over to the Miyajima ferry. If you have a JR Pass, the ferry is included at no additional cost. The ferry will take you to an island with a beautiful shrine, and lots of great spots for food, photos, and shopping. This is a great place to spend the rest of your day.

Other Famous Places in Japan

As said before, there are many places in Japan I still haven't been to. These are all places I'd like to visit in subsequent trips.

• Osaka - A city very close to Kyoto that I sadly missed out on last trip. This is where Universal Studios Japan is located.
• Fukuoka - Southern Japan, on the island of Kyushu. I hear they have amazing food.
• Okinawa - An island far south of the mainland. You'll need to fly here. This is where most of The aquatope on white sand takes place and is naturally home to several aquariums.
• Chiba - A peninsula east of Tokyo where Tokyo Disneyland is located.
• Hokkaido - The northern island of Japan. Visit some Saint Snow-related locations in Hakodate, or if it's winter, check out the ice village.
• Kanazawa - Mountain area of Japan where the Link! Like! Love Live! (Hasunosora) story takes place. Not to be confused with Kanagawa.

That's about all I have to say here! Head on over to the final part of this series, where I'll go over a few things about eventing and your trip back home.