Only 30 minutes by train from either Nagano City or the popular snow monkeys of Yamanouchi is the the quiet town of Obuse. Relatively unknown and unexplored by foreign tourists compared to its more famous neighbors,...

Art, heritage and culture on Nakanoshima

Tochigi Prefecture has a number of high profile attractions, the most popular one being Nikko’s Toshogu Shrine, followed by eating gyoza in the prefectural capital of Utsunomiya. Ceramics is also one of the highlights...

When visiting a different country, some travelers want to experience what is like to live like a local, even for a day, in addition to taking in all the sightseeing spots. In this edition of Chotto Zeitaku, I visited...

Okinawa Prefecture is Japan’s southernmost prefecture and made up of many islands. Its subtropical climate - summer temperatures ranging between 25 to 33 degrees Celsius and winter daytime temperatures ranging from 15...

Summer is never complete without a trip to the beach, and this summer, I went to the Kujukurihama Coast on the eastern side of the Boso Peninsula. Specifically, I visited Ichinomiya Beach and Tsurigasaki Beach where...

Karuizawa in Nagano Prefecture is a popular resort area, a place where locals from the surrounding prefectures like Tokyo and Saitama go for a short break to enjoy highlands, shopping and dining. Karuizawa is also...

Kiyosumi Shirakawa is a district east of Tokyo Station across the Sumida River and bound by water on the other sides. The area retains a lot of its shitamachi, old town charm, and these days has also gained the...

Hiroo is a quiet and upscale neighbourhood nestled among the other glitzy and well known neighbourhoods of Roppongi, Shibuya, Ebisu and Shinagawa. The district is known for having a high concentration of embassies and...

Onomichi, for me, is like the essence of a love sonnet. A place that evokes good vibes, where good memories are made and where you can relax and take time to be in the present. But this is me romanticising about one...

Nakameguro is a neighbourhood in Tokyo that is home to lots of hip and unique boutiques. It’s one of the places where creative minds go to play, a district with an artsy and edgy streak while retaining some of the...

Nagano Prefecture is one of the few inland prefectures in Japan whose borders do not touch neither sea nor ocean. The lack of large bodies of water is made up for by plenty of mountains that provide a playground among...

Kiryu is a small town outside of the tourist radar about two hours north of Tokyo. The small city sees few tourists, but it nonetheless used to be part of an important old trade route in Japan: the silk road. The...

Taking a small deviation off the regular Chotto Zeitaku series, this edition is about shinrinyoku, or forest bathing, an indulgence of nature. The idea is to surrounded by nature, soak in the negative ions and leave...

Just minutes away from one of the busiest and most well visited tourist destinations, Shibuya, are the neighbourhoods of Tomigaya and Kamiyamacho. An oasis of peace from the busy scramble...

Summer in Japan brings to mind beaches and barbecues, ice cold drinks, and festivals and fireworks. If you are in Japan over the hottest months of the year, consider visiting a nearby beach to experience how the...

Wanting for a change of pace and to get out of the city, I headed to the cities of Tsubame and Sanjo in Niigata Prefecture. Often collectively referred to as Tsubame-Sanjo, the cities are not as well-known compared to...

Deciding that I needed a little escapade before the rush of the cherry blossom season, I headed to an area in western Tokyo known as Tamagawa. The area is not a major tourist area unlike some of the more popular...

Mid-winter is the time when most people tend to stay indoors and out of the cold. It is no different here, but when the sky is blue and the sun is out it makes me want to get out and do things. I took advantage of the...

Mashiko is a town in Tochigi Prefecture that is famous for its ceramics, Mashiko-yaki. Being a pottery craftsman town, there is a lot of emphasis on hands-on creation and local wares. The city is about 2 hours north...

With fall fast on the heels of summer, the temperatures are starting to cool down and the country gearing up for the autumn color season. Having at least another month before the colors make their way down towards the...

In the summer edition of Chotto Zeitaku Japan, I headed to Itoshima, a small city about a 40-minute drive from either Fukuoka in the east or Karatsu in the west. The area draws parallels to the Shonan Coast near Tokyo...

Yanesen, which is made up of the three neighbourhoods of Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi, is one of Tokyo’s most well known shitamachi areas. A literal translation of the term

In the June installation of Chotto Zeitaku Japan, we head over to the middle of Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido. Located in the middle of Hokkaido, the towns of Biei and Furano are twice as large as the 23 wards...

When you’re filled with a craving for travel and are a little restless, there’s no better way to soothe that urge than to go out exploring. In an attempt to curb the wanderlust, I spent a cheeky weekday in Kagurazaka...