Kanagawa

Home to some of the most iconic views in Japan, Kanagawa is not to be missed. Whether you gaze at Mount Fuji from Lake Ashinoko or walk along the beach from Enoshima to Kamakura at sundown. A trip to Kanagawa will keep you coming back for more. If you’re looking for a good balance of nature and a slower, city life then Kanagawa is a great day trip option.

Just a few hours from Tokyo depending on where you’re coming from, it’s one of the most accessible destinations leaving much for you to explore at your own pace.

Yokohama

Yokohama is a city of diverse districts. The futuristic seafront of Minatomirai is full of international shops and restaurants while further along at Motomachi-Chukagai is Japan’s largest Chinatown.

You’ll need to don your stretchy pants for a visit to the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum, a food theme park of nine restaurants selling ramen from different regions of Japan.

If you’ve not had your fill of noodles yet then there’s also the Yokohama Cup Noodles Museum. The experience of walking around the city is so much more relaxed than neighboring Tokyo. You can easily spend a day or so just going at your own pace and eating your way through the city with most options within walking distance.

Hakone

If you head west, stopping by Odawara to see the famous castle, you’ll enter the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park and arrive at Hakone, one of Kanto’s most popular hot spring resort towns. Gorgeous views of Mount Fuji are hard to miss, but you might be fighting for a photo opportunity among the crowds of weekend-trippers from Tokyo.

Board the ropeway to Owakudani Valley and try out the famous black eggs that are said to lengthen your life by seven years. It’s best to stay during the week when you’ll have the postcard-perfect scenery all to yourself.

Kamakura

Often referred to as the “Kyoto of East Japan,” Kamakura is a treasure trove of shrines and temples. For standouts, Kotokuin temple is known for its enormous bronze statue of Buddha sitting serenely in the open air. Access the biggest temples via Hase station and stroll around the streets lined with traditional shops selling hato-sabure, a special dove-shaped biscuit unique to the Kamakura region.

Hop on the historic Enoden train to Enoshima Island for beaches, surfing and local shirasudon, tiny white fish harvested along the coastline served with just about anything (including ice cream).

Start your own adventure with the destinations listed below!