Top Day Trips in Japan

Nara (Mochi-Pounding) ★ 4.8 · Kyoto

An hour from Kyoto on the JR Nara Line. Watch Nakatanidou's high-speed mochi pounding outside Kintetsu Nara, eat the kusa-mochi straight from the mallet.

Kobe Beef in Kobe ★ 4.8 · Osaka

Kobe is 30 minutes from Osaka by JR Special Rapid. The Kobe beef designation is specific to Tajima-strain wagyu raised in Hyogo and sold in Kobe.

Hakone (ryokan kaiseki and onsen) ★ 4.8 · Tokyo

Hakone in Kanagawa is the onsen ryokan town under Mount Fuji where the kaiseki dinner is the main event. Eat the multi-course meal in yukata before the bath.

Tip: Book a ryokan with two meals included; the kaiseki is the trip. Day-trip via Romance Car if overnight is too much.

Mount Fuji and Lake Kawaguchiko hoto ★ 4.7 · Tokyo

Lake Kawaguchiko at the foot of Mount Fuji is the day-trip for Yamanashi houtou stew. Flat udon-style noodles in pumpkin-miso broth at Houtou Fudo.

Tip: Houtou Fudo's main shop is steps from Kawaguchiko Station. Pair with a Fuji ascending or descending view.

Dazaifu (Umegae Mochi) ★ 4.6 · Fukuoka

Dazaifu is the Tenmangu shrine pilgrimage town, thirty minutes south of Tenjin. Kasanoya's umegae mochi has been the souvenir on the road since 1922.

Tip: Nishitetsu from Tenjin. Walk Saifu-dori from the station; Kasanoya is five minutes from the gate.

Osaka (Kuidaore Day) ★ 4.6 · Kyoto

30 minutes from Kyoto on the JR Kyoto Line, Osaka's kuidaore eating-day. Walk Kuromon Market at lunch, Dotonbori for takoyaki and okonomiyaki at sunset.

Kyoto Kaiseki and Nishiki Market ★ 4.6 · Osaka

Kyoto is 15 minutes from Shin-Osaka by Shinkansen; Nishiki Market's 580 metres of tofu stalls and sake vendors leads to Gion for kaiseki lunch booking.

Yokohama Chinatown (Chukagai) ★ 4.6 · Tokyo

Yokohama Chinatown near Tokyo is Japan's largest Chinatown, with 600 shops and restaurants over a 500-metre district. Cantonese, Sichuan, Taiwanese kitchens.

Tip: Direct from Shibuya on the Toyoko Line. Try yaki shoronpo at the Daihanten counter and Peking duck wraps at the corner stalls.

Itoshima (Oysters and beachside cafes) ★ 4.5 · Fukuoka

Itoshima sits west of Fukuoka with a coastline of oyster huts in winter and beachside cafes through the summer. Winter oysters from October to March.

Tip: Drive or rent a car for the oyster-hut belt. Train to Chikuzen-Maebaru, then taxi.

Yanagawa (Eel and canal boats) ★ 4.5 · Fukuoka

Yanagawa is the canal-boat town an hour south of Fukuoka by Nishitetsu line. Wakamatsuya has served unagi no seiromushi steamed eel rice since the 1860s.

Tip: Combine river boat plus Wakamatsuya lunch. Reserve via Tabelog before midday on weekends.

Karatsu and Yobuko (Squid ikizukuri) ★ 4.5 · Fukuoka

Yobuko in Saga prefecture is the canonical Genkai squid town, 75 minutes from Hakata. Live-tank ikizukuri at Kawataro and the Manbo underwater restaurant.

Tip: Drive from Fukuoka for flexibility; bus from Karatsu Station to Yobuko takes thirty minutes.

Fushimi (Sake District) ★ 4.5 · Kyoto

Kyoto's sake brewing district, 20 minutes south by Keihan. 30 working sake breweries; tasting bars at Gekkeikan and Kizakura, Fushimi-Inari at the north end.

Otaru (Sushi and LeTAO) ★ 4.5 · Sapporo

Hokkaido's port-town day trip 30 minutes from Sapporo. Sankaku Market sushi, LeTAO cheesecake honten and the Otaru Beer brewery all in walking distance.

Tip: Sankaku Market opens 06:00; lunch by 12:00 is busy. JR Hakodate Line, 30-minute ride.

Yoichi (Nikka Whisky Distillery) ★ 4.5 · Sapporo

Nikka Whisky's Hokkaido distillery sits in Yoichi an hour west of Sapporo. Free tour, paid tasting and a small museum on Nikka's founder Masataka Taketsuru.

Tip: Tours run hourly; book online to skip the queue. Closed Mondays.

Kamakura (shojin lunch and Daibutsu) ★ 4.5 · Tokyo

Kamakura is the medieval temple town one hour south of Tokyo, with shojin Buddhist vegetarian lunches at Kencho-ji and the Komachi-dori snack street.

Tip: Reserve shojin lunch at Hachi-no-ki two weeks ahead; otherwise the Komachi-dori shirasu rice bowls and dango stalls are the easier crawl.

Kashii Mentaiko Trail ★ 4.4 · Fukuoka

Higashi-ku east of Hakata holds the two mentaiko factory floors: Fukuya's renovated Aji no Mentaiko Factory and Yamaya's Factory Terrace, both with buffets.

Tip: Combine both factories in a half-day. Take the JR Kagoshima Honsen east from Hakata.

Nada Sake Breweries ★ 4.4 · Osaka

Nada in Kobe holds the highest concentration of sake breweries in Japan, producing over 30 percent of the country's nihonshu. Tours are free.

Hakodate (Morning Market and Squid) ★ 4.4 · Sapporo

Hakodate's Asaichi morning market is the southern Hokkaido counterpart to Nijo. Live squid (ikodon), uni and salmon roe over rice; a long day-trip option.

Tip: Asaichi opens 05:00; the live-squid don is the morning's icon.

Kibune (River Stream Dining) ★ 4.3 · Kyoto

Kibune is the river-stream dining village an hour north of Kyoto. May to September, restaurants build tatami platforms over the cold mountain stream.

Niseko (Resort Dining and Winter Eating) ★ 4.3 · Sapporo

Niseko's resort village runs Sapporo's strongest winter dining outside the city. Sushi Shin by Miyakawa, the Niseko sister of the three-star Sapporo room.

Tip: Three-hour direct bus from Sapporo Station; resort December through April.

Furano (Lavender and Cheese) ★ 4.3 · Sapporo

Furano's lavender-and-cheese country sits two hours east of Sapporo by train. Furano Cheese Factory runs cheese-making demos and a lavender ice cream stand.

Tip: Lavender peaks late June to mid-July; the cheese factory is year-round.

Nikko yuba and shojin lunch ★ 4.3 · Tokyo

Nikko in Tochigi is the world-heritage temple town two hours north of Tokyo. Nikko yuba tofu skin is the lunch order; shojin lunches near the Rinno-ji.

Tip: Yuba kaiseki at Hippari Dako or shojin lunch at one of the Rinno-ji temple restaurants; book ahead in peak season.

Munakata (Mihara coast and seafood) ★ 4.2 · Fukuoka

Munakata sits on the Genkai coast east of Fukuoka. Mihara fishing port runs morning auctions and a row of seafood restaurants that serve the day's catch.

Tip: Combine with Munakata Taisha shrine. Train to Akama, then bus to the port.

Nokonoshima Island (Beachside cafes) ★ 4.2 · Fukuoka

Nokonoshima is the close-by island ferry trip from Fukuoka Meinohama Pier. A small cluster of beachside cafes, summer barbecue spots and a flower park.

Tip: Bring change for the ferry. Cafes cluster at the south end of the island.

Kobe (Wagyu Day) ★ 4.2 · Kyoto

Kobe is 60 minutes south on the shinkansen from Kyoto. Lunch at a Sannomiya teppanyaki counter for A5 Kobe beef; pair with a Nada-area sake brewery tasting.

Nara Kakinoha-Zushi ★ 4.2 · Osaka

Nara is 45 minutes from Osaka Namba by Kintetsu limited express. Kakinoha-zushi, salt-cured fish wrapped in persimmon leaf, is the city's signature food.

Asahikawa (Asahikawa Ramen) ★ 4.2 · Sapporo

Hokkaido's number-two food city, 90 minutes from Sapporo. Asahikawa's distinctive shoyu ramen and a small ramen-village; alternative to Sapporo miso.

Tip: Ramen Village is a 15-minute drive from JR Asahikawa Station; bus from the platform.

Kawagoe (Little Edo) ★ 4.2 · Tokyo

Kawagoe in Saitama is the Edo-period 'Little Edo' town with 30 preserved warehouses, the Kashiya Yokocho candy alley, and sweet-potato ice cream and dango.

Tip: Walk Kurazukuri Street first, then Kashiya Yokocho. Sweet-potato ice cream and the Toki no Kane bell tower are the photo stops.

Toya (Lake Resort and Tokachi Wagyu) ★ 4.1 · Sapporo

Lake Toya is the southern Hokkaido caldera-lake resort, the 2008 G8 host. Windsor Hotel's lake-view dining and Tokachi wagyu anchor the day-trip food.

Tip: Best in summer through autumn; combine with a Showa-Shinzan onsen stop.

Chichibu sake breweries and soba ★ 4.1 · Tokyo

Chichibu in Saitama is the mountain town with the cult Chichibu Distillery, hand-cut Saitama soba and the Yakushido sake brewery. The single malt sells out.

Tip: Chichibu Distillery tours need three-month-ahead booking. Walk the Banba-machi soba street and the Buko sake brewery.