Destinations in Japan

Regions in Japan

Japan is conventionally divided into nine regions, listed here from north to south:

• Hokkaido(Central Circuit, Eastern Circuit, Northern Circuit, Southern Circuit).
  Northernmost island and snowy borderland. Famous for its vast landscapes and cold winters.
• Tohoku(Aomori, Iwate, Akita, Miyagi, Yamagata, Fukushima)
  The largely rural northeastern part of the main island of Honshu, best known for seafood, skiing, and hot springs.
• Kanto (Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa).
  The coastal plain of Honshu includes the cities of Tokyo and Yokohama.
• Chubu (Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Yamanashi, Nagano, Shizuoka, Aichi, Gifu)
  The mountainous central region of Honshu, dominated by the Japanese Alps and Japan’s fourth-largest city Nagoya.
• Kansai (Shiga, Mie, Kyoto, Osaka, Nara, Wakayama, Hyogo).
  The western region of Honshu, the ancient capital of culture and trade, including the cities of Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, and Kobe.
• Chugoku (Tottori, Shimane, Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi)
  Southwesternmost Honshu, a rural region best known for the cities of Hiroshima and Okayama.
• Shikoku (Kagawa, Ehime, Tokushima, Kochi)
  Smallest of the four main islands, a destination for Buddhist pilgrims, and Japan’s best white-water rafting.
• Okinawa
  Semi-tropical island chain in the south extending to Taiwan; formerly independent Ryukyu Kingdom until annexed by Japan in 1879. Traditional customs and architecture are very different from the rest of Japan.
• Kyushu (Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki, Kagoshima).
  Southernmost of the four main islands, the birthplace of Japanese civilization; largest cities Fukuoka and Kitakyushu

Cities in Japan

Japan has thousands of cities; these are nine of the most important for the traveler.

• Tokyo – the capital and main financial center, modern and densely populated.
• Hiroshima – large port city, the first city destroyed by an atomic bomb
• Kanazawa – historic city on the west coast
• Kyoto – the ancient capital of Japan, considered the cultural heart of the country, with many ancient Buddhist temples and gardens.
• Nagasaki – an old port city in Kyushu, the second city destroyed by an atomic bomb
• Nara – the first capital of unified Japan, with many Buddhist shrines and historic buildings.
• Osaka – large and dynamic city in the Kansai region
• Sapporo – the largest city in Hokkaido, famous for its snow festival
• Sendai – the largest city in the Tohoku region, known as the City of Forests for its tree-lined avenues and forested hills

Other destinations in Japan

• Japanese Alps – a range of high snow-capped mountains in the centre of Honshu
• Miyajima – just outside Hiroshima, site of the iconic floating torii
• Mount Fuji – iconic snow-capped volcano and highest peak in Japan (3776m)
• Mount Koya – headquarters of the Buddhist Shingon sect
• Sado Island – island off Niigata, once home to exiles and prisoners, today a brilliant summer holiday
• Shiretoko National Park – untouched wilderness at Hokkaido’s north-easternmost tip
• Yaeyama Islands – the most remote part of Okinawa, with spectacular diving, beaches and jungle cruises
• Yakushima – UNESCO World Heritage Site with giant cedars and misty primeval forests