Category
Travel
ActivitiesTravel
Not every trip to Japan is built around a single activity, and this section covers the rest: cultural travel, eco-tourism, adventure travel, onsen and hot spring culture, and the practical planning that ties a trip together. Start with our Best Time to Visit Japan guide if you’re still deciding when to go, or our guide to Takaragawa Onsen in Gunma if a great hot spring is part of the plan. This is also the broadest section on the site, so use the subcategories below to narrow in on a specific region, culture, or travel style.
People
Life is a Journey
About six years ago, I decided to steer my life in a new direction. I charted a path around the world, connecting bucket list adventures and destinations through 100 countries for a journey that would take me from my expatriate home in China to the U.S.
Travel
My Tohoku Journey
My journey was not an easy one. Temperatures were unusually high (exceeding 36°C at times), I was constantly on the lookout for bears and was delayed by severe weather.
Hiking
Hiking Hearth to Hearth
An afternoon storm sends us scuttling under the eaves of a sari shop and clears the road in Besi Sahar. Only a few buses trundle over the uneven stone surface of the road in this mountain town, the starting point for many of Nepal’s most popular treks.
Activism
ZAN: Japan’s Last Dugongs
The elusive Okinawa dugong was once a symbol of the ocean. But after years of hunting, pollution and land expansion, the species have gone into hiding. Today a dangerously low number remains in the area.
People
Faces in the Crowd: Hiroka Yoshikawa
In a world of evolving sport styles, it’s refreshing to see surfers like Hiroka Yoshikawa embracing the classics.
Eco Tourism
Following Fuji
Mt. Fuji is silhouetted against a post-typhoon sunset, overlooking Yuno Village’s golden rice fields nearly ready for harvest. While Japan’s iconic volcano may seem cliché to some, for Masanori Shintani it is the source of inspiration for his lifework.
Features
Spotlight: Kamikochi
There’s arguably nowhere more breathtaking than Kamikochi in Japan’s Northern Alps.
Shizuoka
Kakegawa – More than Just a Rugby Town
Ecopa Stadium in Kakegawa is one of the venues for the Rugby World Cup 2019. Instead of ditching right after the game, explore Kakegawa City and a side of Shizuoka you've never seen before.