Far From the Maddening Crowds: 3 Hidden Gem Attractions to See Before You Leave Japan
Or at least put them on the list for your next visit
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In this month’s edition:
Crème de la crème, but not in the city?
A helping hand when planning your adventures
What’s new in Japan this month?
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3 of my favourite top shelf top spots
Meiji Mura
Nagoya is just over 30 minutes away from the World Heritage Chocolate Box of Kyoto.
Which is why most travellers skip it completely.
But if you think just slightly outside that chocolate box, you’ll find yourself at possibly the best open air museum in all Japan.
Just north of Nagoya, next to Inuyama, you’ll find Meiji Mura (which basically means Meiji Village).
Meiji isn’t just a brand of chocolate here, it also refers to the period 1868 - 1912. This is when Japan finally got around to modernising (although yes, some places still use fax machines in 2024, so go figure).
At Meiji Mura they’ve put together a collection of seriously important and representative historical buildings, to properly recreate the Meiji period.
The showstopper is the front of the old Tokyo Imperial Hotel, designed by legendary architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. The lobby is fully furnished just how it would have been back in the early 1900s, and you can even take tea in the cafe there.
Other superstars of the collection are the old St. Francis Xavier's Cathedral from Kyoto, as well as Lafcadio Hearn’s summer house from Shizuoka.
(Note: Hearn was a Western writer, translator, and teacher extraordinaire. He became a Japanese citizen, and is a big cheese, culturally.)
And these are but a few of the amazing relocated buildings.
Meiji Mura is expansive, and fully-stocked with cafes and eateries - which is good because you ideally need a full day here.
You don’t need to walk everywhere though, thanks to the period public transport on offer here.
There are steam locomotives (originally from the UK and US) running along short sections of track, as well as trams that used to shuttle along the streets of Kyoto.
And on selected days, you can complete your time travel experience by dressing up in period costume too!
Essential info
Meiji Mura is an easy day trip from Nagoya.
Meiji Mura Tickets (Klook)
Adachi Museum of Art
Nobody visits this museum for the art. At least nobody I’ve met.
Everybody you meet here is coming to gawp (and yes, you will too) at the exquisite garden.
Now of course there are lots of gardens in Japan, so why would you bother to visit this one?
The small matter of it being voted the best garden in Japan every year since 2003.
That’s right: the people at the Journal of Japanese Gardening (who organise the award) haven’t changed their minds in over 20 years.
That’s why, despite it being located up in rural Shimane, I’ve visited at least 3 times (that I can remember).
As the brainchild of local businessman, Adachi Zenko, this attraction blends his two passions, gardening, and art.
He thought that Japanese gardens should be viewed as if they were living paintings.
So it’s no surprise that you can do just that at the Adachi.
When you look at the garden through one of the trick photo frames, you might catch yourself thinking that it’s actually a painting - until of course the breeze moves the leaves.
The garden is kept in immaculate condition thanks to one astonishing habit followed by all the staff who work at the museum.
Every morning, every worker tidies up the garden for one hour.
That is the price of perfection.
Essential info
The Adachi Museum of Art is best visited as part of a trip to Matsue or Yonago, although it is possible as a day trip from Okayama.
It’s open 365 days of the year.
Yamadera
In Kyoto, you’ve got the much-loved view from the temple on the side of a hill, at Kiyomizu Temple.
If you’ve seen my itinerary video for Kansai and beyond, you’ll know that Hasedera is on the side of a mountain, with great views of the valley below.
But if you head up to rural Yamagata Prefecture (locate Sendai and turn left), you’ll find a temple right near the top of a mountain, complete with jaw-dropping views of the surrounding peaks and valley below.
I’ve been here in the heights of summer and depths of winter.
But it never fails to impress.
Godaido Hall is the part of the temple that functions as a viewing platform.
It offers up just the most breathtaking panorama of soaring mountains, with endless green rolling down to the patchwork of scattered residences and fields in the valley.
If you visit in winter, steel yourself for the 1000+ stairs along the path up.
The reward of an epic sight of snow blanketing the landscape all around is yours for the taking.
However, Yamadera is amazing whatever the season.
And now, you have all the reasons you need to pay a visit.
Essential info
Yamadera is easily accessed by JR trains from Sendai or Yamagata.
You can visit 365 days of the year, like with most temples.
Need some help planning your trip?
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Quick Updates
Buying train tickets on Klook just got better!
Now, you can reserve the seats you want - especially useful if you want to make sure of seeing Mount Fuji between Tokyo and Osaka/Kyoto. You also get access to the oversized baggage seats. AND! Now you can go through the boarding gates with just a QR code, without a physical ticket.
Remember, there’s still a booking fee, but it might be worth using Klook to save yourself some hassle and possible credit card difficulties. Use my code JPUNRVLDKLOOK to save up to 8%!
Illuminated Kyoto
We’re getting into the season for Fall colours, so listen up if you’re planning to be in Kyoto this month. Several temples will be illuminated and open in the evenings for viewing of these masterpieces alongside nature’s riot of colour to close the year.
Kiyomizu Temple is lit up from November 18th to 30th, 6:00pm - 9:30pm
Toji Temple’s event runs longer, all the way from October 26th to December 8th, 6:00pm - 9:30pm
Ninnaji Temple is only lighting up on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and national holidays, between October 25th and December 8, 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Nintendo Museum Opens
Also in Kyoto, the long-awaited Nintendo Museum opened recently. Tickets are sold via a lottery, which you need to enter up to 3 months in advance. If you want to visit in 2025, you’d better get cracking.
Trip Essentials
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Youtube: Get ready for Japan playlist
Transport: JR Pass / Regional Passes / Shinkansen Tickets / Car rental
That’s all for this month! See ya!
Andrew
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