Language · 11 published
Country guide
Around three quarters of Japan is mountain and forest, which pushes almost everyone onto the eastern coastal plains and makes the country far narrower in practice than 377,975 km2 suggests. Forty-seven prefectures, eight traditional regions and more than 14,000 smaller islands, and yet a first visit usually runs along a single rail corridor with Tokyo at one end and Kyoto and Osaka at the other. Tokyo is the capital and largest city of a country of almost 123 million people. Hokkaido in the north and Okinawa in the south are different climates rather than day trips, and both need their own week.
Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor
Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.
Photograph · Morio · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photograph · Martin Falbisoner · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photograph · Martin Falbisoner · CC BY-SA 4.0
Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.
8 places match
Category
Typical visit duration
Interests
海遊館
Kaiyukan stands on the Tempozan waterfront in Minato-ku, on the north shore of Osaka Bay, and it is built around one idea rather than a collection of tanks.
恩賜上野動物園
Ueno Zoological Gardens, known locally as 恩賜上野動物園, is a zoological garden in Tokyo. It occupies a position within Ueno Park, a major cultural and recreational district in the city.
葛西臨海水族園
Tokyo Sea Life Park, known locally as Kasai Rinkai Suizokuen, is a public aquarium located in the Kasai Rinkai Park area of Edogawa Ward. The facility focuses on aquatic environments from around the globe, with particular attention to marine ecosystems.
京都水族館
Kyoto Aquarium is a public aquarium in Kyoto, offering a modern marine-life experience alongside the city’s temples, shrines, gardens, and historic neighborhoods.
天王寺動物園
Tennoji Zoo is a zoological garden located in Osaka, Japan. Established in 1915, it is one of the oldest zoos in the country. The zoo occupies a position within Tennoji Park in the southern part of Osaka city.
すみだ水族館
Sumida Aquarium is a contemporary urban aquarium inside Tokyo Skytree Town in Sumida Ward. It forms part of the Oshiage destination alongside Tokyo Skytree and the Solamachi shopping complex.
サンシャイン国際水族館
Sunshine Aquarium is an urban aquarium located within the Sunshine City complex in the Ikebukuro district of Tokyo. The facility is operated as a commercial attraction within a major shopping and entertainment destination.
マクセル アクアパーク品川
Maxell Aqua Park Shinagawa is an aquarium located in the Shinagawa district of Tokyo, Japan. The facility is known for its combination of marine exhibits with lighting and sound technology, creating immersive displays.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·
Ten to fourteen days supports four or five days in Tokyo, three or four in Kyoto, and two or three in Osaka. Add Nara or Himeji only after those bases have enough time, and avoid turning every rail stop into a hotel change.
Japan's visa exemption or visa requirement depends on passport and travel purpose. Confirm the current rule through Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the embassy responsible for the traveller's residence.
The Tokaido Shinkansen links Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, while local rail and buses cover city travel. An IC card simplifies many local journeys but does not replace every reserved long-distance ticket, and luggage forwarding can reduce friction between bases.
March to May and October to November are broad options for the main-island route, with blossom and autumn periods creating concentrated demand. Confirm regional weather and reservations for the exact cities rather than assuming one national season behaves uniformly.
Japan uses the yen (JPY). Electronic payment is common but not universal, so carry some yen for smaller businesses, ticket machines, or rural transport without assuming that one stored-value card works for every purchase.
Japan's emergency numbers are 110 for police and 119 for fire or ambulance. Type A sockets operate at 100 V, which is lower than in the other wave-A countries, and mains tap water is recorded as safe.
.jpg){kind=link}
