Japan Regions and Attractions

Tokyo (Capital - Tokyo Prefecture)

Roppongi Hills
Roppongi Hills is one of Japan's largest integrated property developments, located in the Roppongi district of Tokyo. Constructed by building tycoon Minoru Mori, the mega-complex incorporates office space, apartments, shops, restaurants, cafés, movie theaters, a museum, a hotel, a major TV studio, an outdoor amphitheater, and a few parks. The centerpiece is the 54-story eponymous Mori Tower. The first six levels of Mori Tower contain retail stores and restaurants. The top six floors house the Mori Art Museum and the Tokyo City View with panoramic views of the city. Seventeen years in the making, the complex opened to the public on April 23, 2003.

Senso-ji Temple
Senso-ji (Sensoji) is an ancient Buddhist temple located in Asakusa, Taito, Tokyo. It is Tokyo's oldest temple, and one of its most significant. Formerly associated with the Tendai sect, it became independent after World War II. Adjacent to the temple is a Shinto shrine, the Asakusa Jinja.

Tsukiji fish market
The Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market, commonly known as Tsukiji fish market is the biggest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world and also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind. The market is located in Tsukiji in central Tokyo, and is a major attraction for foreign visitors. Tsukiji handles over 2000 metric tons of seafood per day!

Yasukuni Shrine
Yasukuni Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Tokyo, Japan, dedicated to the spirits of soldiers and others who died fighting on behalf of the Emperor of Japan. In October 2004, its Book of Souls listed the names of 2,466,532 men and women, including 27,863 Taiwanese and 21,181 Koreans, whose lives were dedicated to the service of Imperial Japan, particularly to those killed in wartime.

Yokohama (Kanagawa Prefecture)

Sankeien Gardens
It features ponds, streams, undulating paths and many historic buildings such as the three-story pagoda of the former Tomyoji Temple, which was originally constructed in Kyoto in 1457 but relocated to the garden in 1914. The Japanese government has designated ten structures in Sankeien as Important Cultural Properties. The garden is popular for its cherry blossoms, ume blossoms, and the changing leaves in autumn.

Yokohama Landmark Tower
The Yokohama Landmark Tower is the tallest habitable building in Japan. (The Tokyo Tower is taller, but does not count as a building in the strict sense as it is a radio tower). It is located in the Minato Mirai 21 district of Yokohama city. The building contains a hotel which occupies floors 49-70. The lower 48 floors are used as offices and retail. Work on the building was finished in 1993. The tower also contains the world's second fastest elevator, which travels at 1 floor per second, reaching the 60th floor in around 1 minute.

Yokohama Bay Bridge
The Yokohama Bay Bridge is a cable stayed bridge in Yokohama, Japan. Opened September 27, 1989, it crosses Tokyo Bay with a span of 460 meters (1,510 feet).

Osaka (Osaka Prefecture)

Osaka Aquarium
Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan is one of the largest aquariums in the world. It is located in the ward of Minato in Osaka, Japan, near Osaka Bay. The walk-through aquarium displays several habitats in 14 tanks, along with the marine life inside them. The habitats are from the Ring of Fire and the Ring of Life areas of the Pacific Ocean. The largest tank holds 5,400 cubic metres of water and houses 3 whale sharks.

Osaka Castle
Osaka Castle is one of Japan's most famous castles, and played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century. The castle is situated on a plot of land roughly one kilometer square. It is built on two raised platforms of landfill supported by sheer walls of cut rock, each overlooking a moat. The central castle building is five stories on the outside and eight stories on the inside, and built atop a tall stone foundation to protect its occupants from sword-bearing attackers. It is a popular spot during festival seasons, and especially during the cherry blossom bloom, when the sprawling castle grounds are covered with food vendors and taiko drummers.

Umeda Sky Building
The Umeda Sky Building is the seventh-tallest building in Osaka City, Japan, and one of the city's most recognizable landmarks. It consists of two 40-story towers that connect at their two uppermost stories, with bridges and an escalator crossing the wide atrium-like space in the center that offers a spectacular view of the city.

Kyoto (Kyoto Prefecture)

Kiyomizu Temple
Kiyomizu-dera (or Kiyomizudera) refers to several Buddhist temples but most commonly to Otowa-san Kiyomizu-dera in Eastern Kyoto, and one of the best known sights of the city. The temple dates back to 798, but the present buildings were constructed in 1633. The temple takes its name from the waterfall within the complex, which runs off the nearby hills. Kiyoi mizu literally means pure water. The main hall of Kiyomizu-dera is notable for its vast veranda, supported by hundreds of pillars, that juts out over the hillside and offers impressive views of the city.

Kinkaku-ji
Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion Temple) is the informal name of Rokuon-ji (Deer Garden Temple) in Kyoto, Japan, the Pavilion being the main attraction of the temple grounds. The Golden Pavilion (formally called 'Shariden') was originally built in 1397 to serve as a retirement villa for Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, as part of his area estate then known as Kitayama. It was his son who converted the building into a Zen temple of the Rinzai school. The land where the Golden Pavilion sits was used in the 1220s as a villa for Kintsune Saionji. The pond near the Golden Pavilion is called Kyōko-chi (Mirror Pond).

Gion
The most famous neighborhood in Kyoto is also known as the Geisha district. It is here, among the teahouses and private clubs that you can catch a glimpse of a geisha in full dress including white makeup. Geisha in the Gion district do not refer to themselves as geisha; instead, Gion geisha use the local term "geiko." While the term geisha means "artist," the more direct term geiko means specifically "a woman of art."

Other Popular Cities

• Fukuoka
• Himeji
• Hiroshima
• Kamakura
• Kanazawa
• Kitakyushu
• Kobe
• Kurashiki
• Nagano
• Nagasaki
• Nagoya
• Nara
• Nikko
• Niigata
• Sapporo
• Takayama