Saitama Hidden Gems
La « Petite Edo » de Kawagoe, à un pas de Tokyo, conserve l'atmosphère des marchands de l'époque Edo avec sa rue d'entrepôts kurazukuri et la tour de l'horloge Toki no Kane. Au printemps, 400 000 plants de shibazakura couvrent de rose le parc Hitsujiyama à Chichibu.
20 spots
Le voisin nord de Tokyo, où une cité marchande de l'époque Edo, des vallées fluviales et des traditions artisanales séculaires se trouvent à une demi-heure d'Ikebukuro.
Climat et meilleure saison
Étés chauds et humides (Kumagaya figure régulièrement parmi les records de chaleur du Japon) et hivers secs et ensoleillés. Le printemps et l'automne sont les plus agréables.
Spécialités culinaires
- Soba
- Unagi
- Thé de Sayama
- Kusadango
Lieux emblématiques
- Kawagoe, la « petite Edo »
- Vallée de Chichibu et sanctuaire de Mitsumine
- Promenade en barque à Nagatoro
- Shibazakura du parc Hitsujiyama
Chichibu Night Festival
The Chichibu Yomatsuri (秩父夜祭, Night Festival, December 2–3) is one of Japan's three greatest hikiyama festivals — six ma…
Railway Museum
The Railway Museum (鉄道博物館, Tetsudo Hakubutsukan) is one of the world's finest train museums — 28,000 square meters housi…
Moomin Valley Park
Moomin Valley Park (ムーミンバレーパーク) is Japan's only theme park dedicated to Tove Jansson's beloved Moomin characters — a 40-…
Chichibu 34 Kannon Pilgrimage
The Chichibu 34 Kannon Pilgrimage (秩父三十四箇所観音霊場) is one of Japan's three major Kannon temple pilgrimages — a circuit of 3…
Kawagoe Unagi
Kawagoe's proximity to the Arakawa and Iruma rivers made it a historical center for freshwater eel fishing, and the city…
Nagatoro Autumn Foliage
Nagatoro's limestone gorge transforms each November into one of Kanto's premier autumn foliage destinations — the layere…
Mitsumine Shrine
Mitsumine Shrine (三峯神社) sits at 1,100 meters on a remote mountain peak in the Chichibu range, enshrining wolf deities (o…
Kawagoe Kurazukuri Street
Kawagoe's Kurazukuri Street (蔵造りの町並み) preserves one of Japan's most complete Edo-period merchant districts — over 30 cla…
Omiya Bonsai Village
Omiya Bonsai Village (大宮盆栽村) is a unique neighborhood dedicated entirely to bonsai cultivation — six historic nurseries…
Hitsujiyama Park Shibazakura
Each spring, Hitsujiyama Park's hillside explodes into 400,000 pink, white, and purple shibazakura (芝桜, moss phlox) flow…
Hodosan Shrine & Ropeway
Mt. Hodo (宝登山, 497m) rises steeply above Nagatoro town, its summit accessible by a 5-minute ropeway ride that climbs 320…
Tenranzan Hiking
Mt. Tenranzan (天覧山, 197m) is Hanno's introductory hiking mountain — a gentle 40-minute ascent through cedar and deciduou…
Urawa Unagi
Urawa (now part of Saitama City) has served as a freshwater eel capital since the Edo period when the Shiba River and su…
Toki no Kane
The Toki no Kane (時の鐘, 'Bell of Time') is Kawagoe's symbol — a wooden bell tower rising 16 meters above the merchant dis…
Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine
Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine (川越氷川神社) is one of Japan's premier 'enmusubi' (縁結び, matchmaking) shrines, believed to grant blessi…
Kashiya Yokocho
Kashiya Yokocho (菓子屋横丁, 'Candy Alley') is a narrow 80-meter lane lined with traditional sweet shops selling dagashi (駄菓子…
Musashi Ichinomiya Hikawa Shrine
Musashi Ichinomiya Hikawa Shrine (武蔵一宮氷川神社) is the grand headquarters of over 280 Hikawa shrines scattered across the Ka…
Chichibu Shrine
Chichibu Shrine (秩父神社) claims a founding date of 2,100 years ago, though the current structures date to the 1592 reconst…
Nagatoro Iwadatami Rock Shelf
The Nagatoro Iwadatami (長瀞岩畳, 'rock tatami mat') is a 500-meter exposed limestone shelf along the Arakawa River where ti…
Nagatoro River Rafting
Nagatoro (長瀞) sits where the Arakawa River cuts through a crystalline limestone gorge, creating Class II–III rapids over…