Hidden Gems Across Japan
1,610 spots
Shimokita Peninsula
The Shimokita Peninsula (下北半島) is Honshu's northernmost landmass, jutting into the Tsugaru Strait toward Hokkaido. This…
Aoni Onsen
Aoni Onsen (青荷温泉) is a remote mountain hot spring inn accessible only via narrow forest road (or on foot), where electri…
Illustration — not a photographIchigoni Soup
Ichigoni (いちご煮) is Aomori's most luxurious soup, combining sea urchin (uni) and abalone in a clear dashi broth, served i…
Jogakura Bridge
Jogakura Bridge (城ヶ倉大橋) is a 360-meter-long arch bridge spanning Jogakura Gorge at a height of 122 meters, making it Jap…
Tachineputa Matsuri
Goshogawara Tachineputa Matsuri (立佞武多, held August 4-8) is Aomori's second great summer festival, featuring the world's…
Aomori Bay Bridge
The Aomori Bay Bridge (青森ベイブリッジ) is a 1.2-kilometer cable-stayed bridge spanning Aomori Harbor, completed in 1994 as par…
Seikan Tunnel Museum
The Seikan Tunnel (青函トンネル) is a 53.85-kilometer railway tunnel connecting Honshu (Aomori) to Hokkaido (Hakodate) beneath…
Furukawa Market
Furukawa Market (古川市場) in Hachinohe is a bustling covered market specializing in nokkedon (のっけ丼) — the interactive 'buil…
Mount Osore
Mount Osore (恐山, Osorezan — 'Dread Mountain') sits on Shimokita Peninsula as one of Japan's three holiest Buddhist sites…
Tsugaru Shamisen
Tsugaru Shamisen (津軽三味線) is a percussive, emotionally raw style of shamisen (three-stringed Japanese lute) music origina…
Hakkoda Mountains
The Hakkoda Mountains (八甲田山) form a volcanic range south of Aomori City, famous for extreme winter snowfall (up to 8 met…
Aomori Apples
Aomori Prefecture produces over 50% of Japan's apples, with vast orchards blanketing the countryside around Hirosaki and…
Sannai-Maruyama Site
Sannai-Maruyama (三内丸山遺跡) is Japan's largest and most significant Jomon-period archaeological site, preserving a settleme…
Shirakami-Sanchi
Shirakami-Sanchi (白神山地) is a 1,300-square-kilometer mountain range straddling Aomori and Akita prefectures, home to the…
Lake Towada (Aomori side)
Lake Towada (十和田湖) is a double-caldera lake straddling the Aomori-Akita border, formed by volcanic eruptions 200,000 yea…
Hirosaki Castle
Hirosaki Castle (弘前城) is one of only twelve original castle towers remaining in Japan, built in 1611 by the Tsugaru clan…
Oirase Gorge
Oirase Gorge (奥入瀬渓流) runs 14 kilometers from Lake Towada's outlet through old-growth forest where moss coats every bould…
Nebuta Matsuri
Aomori Nebuta Matsuri runs August 2–7 every year, parading massive paper floats through downtown streets after dark. Eac…
Anpanman Museum
Anpanman — the bread-headed superhero with a heart of gold — is one of Japan's most beloved characters, especially among…
Kashiwajima Island
Kashiwajima is a small island off the coast of Tosashimizu, surrounded by some of the clearest water in Japan. The islan…
Shimanto Sink Bridges
The Shimanto River is crossed by 47 chinkabashi — low-slung, railing-free concrete bridges designed to be submerged duri…
Monet's Garden Marmottan
Kitagawa Village sits in the mountains an hour east of Kochi, surrounded by cedar forest and terraced rice fields—not wh…
Tosa Washi Papermaking
Tosa washi is handmade paper produced in Kochi using techniques that date back over 1,000 years. The paper is made from…
Yosakoi Festival
The Yosakoi Matsuri, held every August 9–12 in Kochi City, is one of Japan's most energetic and visually spectacular fes…
Estimated from distance to the nearest airport or shinkansen station. Confirm actual journey times before you travel.