Matsusaka detour: history, hikes and to-die-for beef
6 min read • May 26, 2016
With so much keeping travellers occupied in nearby Kyoto and Osaka, it’s not surprising Matsusaka is often overlooked. But while Japan’s star cities may…
Travel Stories
Japan
- Exploring Ise-Shima: getting off the beaten track in Kansai
6 min read • May 26, 2016
Ise-Shima is famous as the home of Ise-jingū, one of Japan's most revered Shintō shrines, and for many travellers the shrine might be all they see of the…
- Hokkaidō road trip: exploring Japan's wild north
7 min read • Jan 5, 2016
With its wide-open spaces, national parks, active volcanoes, forests of silvery beech, forlorn coastlines and remote fishing towns, Hokkaidō is ideal for…
- Japan dos and don'ts: etiquette tips for first-time travellers
5 min read • Oct 2, 2015
Japan is warm and welcoming to travellers, but its unique culture can be as inscrutable as it is intriguing for the first-time visitor. To help create a…
- Eating out in Japanese: a guide to Japan's restaurants
6 min read • Sep 29, 2015
The Japanese love to eat out, and the profusion of culinary options, even in the smallest towns, can be overwhelming. There’s something for every taste…
- Visiting Japan's ghost island of Hashima
3 min read • Aug 12, 2015
The small island of Hashima was once bustling with a community of 5000 people, who lived alongside the mines they worked. Abandoned in the 1970s, the…
- The other Japan: secret beaches of Okinawa and the Southwest Islands
5 min read • Aug 10, 2015
Okinawa and the Southwest Islands comprise one of Japan's pretty little secrets – a side of Japan that differs from the mainland in culture and pace. They…
- In the shadow of Mt Fuji: great trips from Tokyo
5 min read • Jun 8, 2015
Mt Fuji may dominate the horizon southwest of Tokyo, but it is just one of many reasons to stray out of Japan’s exciting capital. The prefectures of…
- Japan's freshest food (and where to find it)
4 min read • Feb 6, 2015
Shrinking the distance from food source to plate is a trend that is catching on globally. Japan is obsessed with eating – its famous national cuisine …
- Tokyo: A city of contrasting beauty
4 min read • Jan 19, 2015
Tokyo is the consummate modern metropolis, a land of staggering skyscrapers, dizzying neon signage, and the world’s busiest transport hubs. In many ways…
- Sumo wrestling for beginners
4 min read • Jan 16, 2015
Sumo wrestling is the quintessential ‘only in Japan’ experience. Equal parts brutal chaos and carefully controlled ritual, sumo is quite unlike any…
- An introduction to Kyoto’s Buddhist temples
4 min read • Nov 10, 2014
Each of Kyoto’s Buddhist temples is a world of its own. Some are bustling places, thronged with pilgrims from all over the world. Others are lonely and…
- East Asia's craft beer revolution: the ultimate guide to Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and China
6 min read • Sep 3, 2014
There’s something brewing in the Orient, something that will make beer drinkers positively hoppy with glee. It’s a craft beer revolution, and one long…
- The tastes of Okinawa: food and drink in Japan's Southwest Islands
5 min read • Aug 5, 2014
Already know your sushi from your sashimi and can slurp ramen like a local? Why not jump off the Japanese mainland and head southwest to discover the…
- How to travel Japan in a wheelchair
7 min read • May 27, 2014
I'd been in Japan for only three days when my friend and tour guide (who is fluent in Japanese) delivered the bad news. 'I need to return to the US…
- Celebrating 50 years of Japan's Shinkansen 'bullet train'
5 min read • Jan 16, 2014
It wasn’t the world’s first high-speed train, but when the Shinkansen debuted in 1964, its sleek, futuristic design and to-the-second punctuality resulted…
- A broke-ass guide to drinking in Tokyo
5 min read • Jan 6, 2014
The nighttime lights in Tokyo are overwhelming. Billions of bright bulbs and bulletins begging for your attention, yearning for your yen. You think: ‘With…
- Japan's top 10 culinary locations
5 min read • Dec 10, 2013
Unesco recently added Japanese cuisine – known in Japan as washoku – to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list. This puts it equal to French cuisine, the…
- Exploring Japan’s subtropical Ogasawara Islands
4 min read • Nov 26, 2013
Pristine beaches, star-studded night skies, searing sunsets and whales splashing in tropical waters are not the usual things to expect on a trip to Japan…
- Escape to Japan's Oki Islands
5 min read • Oct 31, 2013
Japan seduces and dazzles travellers with its buzzed-up, sprawling, ultra-convenient big cities. But if you’re weary of crowds and vending-machine-packed…
- 48 hours in Hiroshima
6 min read • May 31, 2013
Friendly, picturesque and a paradise for foodies. This description might not spring to mind when you hear the word 'Hiroshima', but word is starting to…
- Eight ways to explore Edo-era Tokyo
5 min read • May 28, 2013
Tokyo is synonymous with sci-fi cityscapes and pop culture. But this hyper-modern image only reflects one of the city's many layers. To truly understand…