Country · 35 destinations

Japan

Japan costs more than Turkey but less than most people expect: the yen is weak, a bowl of ramen is CHF 6, a business hotel room CHF 50. What adds up are the flight and the Shinkansen. Here are 35 destinations from Hokkaido to Okinawa, with costs, verified hotels and what to eat where.

Getting there: Flights from Zurich approx. EUR 963 to 1284, 12 to 14 hours, usually with one stop
Money: You pay in yen (JPY). 1,000 yen is roughly CHF 6 or EUR 6.50. Cards work in cities and hotels; small restaurants, temples and rural stations often want cash. An IC card (Suica or ICOCA) on your phone pays for trains, buses and convenience stores.

Destinations in Japan, region by region

Temples, the Shinkansen, onsen and the best food on earth

Kanto

Tokyo, Kamakura, Nikko, Hakone and Mount Fuji on the horizon

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kanto

Tokyo

What a week in the biggest city in the world really costs, which neighbourhood you should stay in and how to get around with Suica, metro and konbini like someone who lives here.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kanto

Kamakura

What a day or a night in the old shogun capital by the sea really costs, how to see the Great Buddha before the coaches arrive and why the Enoden railway is the real experience.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kanto

Nikko

What one or two days in the forest of the shoguns really cost, how to see Toshogu before the coach groups and why the mountains behind the shrine are the better Nikko.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kanto

Hakone

What a ryokan night with onsen and kaiseki really costs, how the Hakone Free Pass works and on which days you will actually see Fuji above Lake Ashi.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kanto

Yokohama

What Japan's second-largest city really costs, why it is a cheaper base than Tokyo and where to eat well in Chinatown and by the harbour without standing in the tourist queue.

Kansai

Kyoto, Osaka, Nara: temples, street food and old Japan

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kansai

Kyoto

What a week in the old imperial city really costs, when you need to be at which temple to actually see it, and why a bike beats the bus here.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kansai

Osaka

What a few days in Japan's kitchen really cost, why Osaka is a better base for Kansai than Kyoto, and how to eat takoyaki, kushikatsu and okonomiyaki in the right order.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kansai

Nara

What Japan's first capital really costs, why you should stay longer than the four hours the tour groups give it, and how to feed the deer without getting bitten.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kansai

Kobe

What the port city between mountains and sea really costs, how to eat Kobe beef without paying CHF 200, and why Arima Onsen is the best bathing day in all of Kansai.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Kansai

Himeji

What Japan's most beautiful castle really costs, why you should be at the gate at 9 am, and how to turn the day trip into a day that is more than just a castle.

Chubu

The Japanese Alps, Kanazawa, Takayama and the Fuji lakes

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Chubu

Nagoya

What a few days in Japan's industrial capital really cost, why the food here is more idiosyncratic than in Tokyo, and how to use Nagoya as a base for Takayama and Ise.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Chubu

Kanazawa

What a few days in the samurai and gold leaf city on the Sea of Japan really cost, where to eat the best fish in the country and how to see Kenroku-en without the coach groups.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Chubu

Takayama

What a few days in the timber town of the Japanese Alps really cost, when the old town is empty, where Hida beef stays affordable and how to continue from here to Shirakawa-go.

Flights approx. 1070 EUR

Chubu

Shirakawa-go

What the village of steep thatched roofs really costs, why a night in a gassho house makes all the difference, how to book the buses from Takayama and Kanazawa properly and when the winter illumination takes place.

Flights approx. 1049 EUR

Chubu

Matsumoto

What a few days in the city with the black castle really cost, how to manage Kamikochi as a day trip, where the soba is best and whether the Alpine Route is worth it.

Flights approx. 1049 EUR

Chubu

Fuji Five Lakes

What two days at the foot of Mount Fuji really cost, why you need to stay a night to see the mountain, how the highway bus from Shinjuku works and what a summer climb involves.

Hokkaido

Powder snow, lavender fields and the best seafood

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Hokkaido

Sapporo

What a few days in Hokkaido's capital really cost, where to eat the best miso ramen and how to use Sapporo as a base for the whole island.

Flights approx. 1231 EUR

Hokkaido

Hakodate

What two days in the port city at the southern tip of Hokkaido cost, why you need the morning market at seven and how to get there by Shinkansen from Tokyo.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Hokkaido

Niseko

What a ski week in the world's most famous powder snow really costs, why the hotels are pricier than in Zermatt and where you can still sleep cheaply.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Hokkaido

Furano & Biei

What the lavender fields in July and the hills of Biei really cost, why you miss half of it without a rental car and how Furano becomes a quiet ski resort in winter.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Hokkaido

Otaru

What a day or a night in the old port city costs, where to eat the best sushi on Hokkaido and why you should stay past 5 pm, when the coaches have gone.

Tohoku

The quiet north: onsen villages, Nebuta and samurai towns

Flights approx. 1124 EUR

Tohoku

Sendai & Matsushima

What a few days in the big city of the north really cost, why you eat beef tongue here and how to see the 260 islands of Matsushima without a tour group.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Tohoku

Aomori

What the northernmost city on Honshu really costs, why the Nebuta festival in early August is worth the trip and how to combine Hirosaki, Oirase and Lake Towada in four days.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Tohoku

Ginzan Onsen & Yamagata

What a night in a wooden riverside ryokan really costs, why you have to book months ahead and how to combine Zao, Yamadera and cherries in June into one trip.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Tohoku

Nyuto Onsen & Kakunodate

What a night in Akita's milky-white forest baths really costs, how to get there on the Akita Shinkansen and why Kakunodate in late April is the better cherry blossom.

Chugoku & Shikoku

Hiroshima, Miyajima, art islands and the Seto Inland Sea

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Chugoku & Shikoku

Hiroshima

What two to three days in Hiroshima really cost, why the Peace Memorial Museum needs half a day rather than an hour, and where the city comes alive in the evening.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Chugoku & Shikoku

Miyajima

What a night on the shrine island really costs, when the torii stands in the water and when you can walk out to it, and why the island is a different place after 5 pm.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Chugoku & Shikoku

Kurashiki & Okayama

What two to three days among canal houses, jeans workshops and one of Japan's three finest gardens cost, and why Okayama is the best hub for the Inland Sea.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Chugoku & Shikoku

Matsuyama & Dogo Onsen

What three days in Shikoku's largest city really cost, how to bathe at Dogo Onsen Honkan without queuing, and why Matsuyama is the best way into Shikoku.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Chugoku & Shikoku

Naoshima

What two days on the art island really cost, why you book Chichu weeks ahead, where to sleep when Benesse House is full, and which neighbouring island is worth it.

Kyushu & Okinawa

Volcanoes, ramen, Nagasaki and coral islands in the south

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Kyushu & Okinawa

Fukuoka

What a few days in the city of street kitchens really cost, where the ramen you know from Ichiran comes from, and why Fukuoka is the best way into Japan if you fly via Seoul.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Kyushu & Okinawa

Nagasaki

What two days in Japan's gateway to the world really cost, how to visit the Peace Park with the calm it deserves, and why the night view from Mount Inasa is worth more than any boat trip.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Kyushu & Okinawa

Kumamoto & Aso

What a castle town and the world's largest inhabited caldera really cost, when you are allowed up to the crater, and why a night in Kurokawa Onsen is worth the money.

Flights approx. 1177 EUR

Kyushu & Okinawa

Kagoshima & Yakushima

What the volcano city in the south and the rain island with its thousand-year-old cedars really cost, how to get through the ten hours to Jomon Sugi, and why the sand bath in Ibusuki is no tourist gimmick.

Flights approx. 1231 EUR

Kyushu & Okinawa

Okinawa & Naha

What a week on Japan's southern islands really costs, why without a rental car you only see half the island, and how to fit the Kerama Islands and the war history into one trip.

All destinations →

Itineraries through Japan

Ready-made combinations for one to three weeks: road trips, rail tours, van trips and city trios, with driving times, costs and the destinations from this site.

All itineraries →

Rail trip · 12 days

Japan · 5 stops

Golden Route

Tokyo · Hakone · Kyoto · Nara · Osaka

Big city, first ryokan night, temples, deer and street food in twelve days: the route for a first visit to Japan, entirely by train and with no backtracking.

Rail trip · 12 days

Japan · 6 stops

Japanese Alps

Tokyo · Matsumoto · Takayama · Shirakawa-go · Kanazawa · Kyoto

Black castle, wooden town, thatched roofs and the samurai city by the sea: the round trip for anyone who wants to see Japan between the big cities, with no hire car at all.

Onsen · 9 days

Japan · 4 stops

Tohoku Onsen Tour

Sendai · Ginzan Onsen · Nyuto Onsen · Aomori

Wooden ryokan with gas lamps, milky forest baths in the snow and beef tongue in Sendai: the route for anyone who wants to experience Japan in a yukata, without a tour group.

Road trip · 10 days

Japan · 4 stops

Hokkaido Road Trip

Sapporo · Otaru · Furano and Biei · Hakodate

Empty roads, lavender to the horizon, fish market at seven in the morning: Hokkaido is the one part of Japan where a hire car is the better choice.

Cities & culture · 10 days

Japan · 5 stops

Setouchi & Shikoku

Hiroshima · Miyajima · Kurashiki and Okayama · Naoshima · Matsuyama

Ferries between hundreds of islands, art in concrete bunkers, a 19th century bathhouse and a cycle bridge across the sea: western Japan without the Shinkansen rush.

Van trip · 12 days

Japan · 4 stops

Kyushu by Van

Fukuoka · Nagasaki · Aso · Yakushima

Street stalls, a caldera of pastures and volcanoes, onsen in every village and at the end the rain island with its thousand year old cedars: Kyushu is Japan's van island.

What to eat where

Six dishes worth a detour, each with the place or market to find them.

TakoyakiOsaka · Dotonbori (Kukuru, Wanaka) or any stall in TenmaBatter balls with a piece of octopus inside, crispy outside and almost runny inside, topped with sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes. 8 pieces CHF 4 to 6.Sushi at the Tsukiji outer marketTokyo · Tsukiji outer market, ChuoNigiri with tuna, sea urchin and prawns, right next to the traders who bought the fish that morning. A set of ten pieces costs CHF 20 to 35 (about EUR 21 to 37), single pieces at the stalls CHF 2 to 5.Tonkotsu ramenFukuoka · Hakata Issou near Hakata station, Shin Shin in Tenjin or the Ichiran flagship in NakasuThin, firm noodles in a milky white pork bone broth simmered for twelve hours, topped with chashu, pickled ginger and sesame. The original of the ramen you know from Ichiran and Ippudo. CHF 5 to 7 (about EUR 5.35 to 7.50) a bowl.Hiroshima-style okonomiyakiHiroshima · Okonomimura, ShintenchiA layered pancake with cabbage, pork belly, yakisoba noodles, a fried egg and sweet Otafuku sauce. Big, hot, cheap: CHF 6 to 9 (about EUR 6 to 10).Miso ramenSapporo · Ramen Yokocho in Susukino, an alley with 17 tiny ramen shopsSapporo's invention (1955, at the restaurant Aji no Sanpei): a rich miso broth, curly yellow noodles, corn, bean sprouts and often a knob of butter on top. Warms you right through at minus ten degrees. CHF 6 to 9 (about EUR 6 to 10) per bowl.KaisekiKyoto · Kikunoi Roan in Gion, or any ryokan with its own kitchenA menu of eight to twelve seasonal courses where presentation matters as much as taste. Lunch from CHF 40, dinner CHF 90 to 180, three-star houses from CHF 250.

Activities in Japan

All activities →

Trekking and Hiking Cycling and Bike Tours Diving and Snorkelling Skiing and Winter Sports Onsen and Ryokan Train Travel and JR Pass Temples, Shrines and Pilgrim Trails City Breaks

What is on when in Japan

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Nov 8

Sumo Tournaments Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka

Sport · Japan

8 November 2026 15 days each from the second Sunday: Osaka in March, Nagoya in July, Fukuoka in November; 2027: from 14 March, 11 July and 14 November Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka

Outside Tokyo the sumo circus visits three times a year: in March at the Edion Arena Osaka, in July at the new IG Arena in Nagoya and in November at the Fukuoka Kokusai Center. The format and prices match the Tokyo tournaments, but the halls are smaller and the atmosphere more local, especially loud in Osaka. Tickets start at around 3,500 yen (CHF 20, about EUR 21) for the upper tier, box seats CHF 60 to 90 (about EUR 64 to 96) per person, advance sales about a month ahead on the official site. During tournament weeks you will see the wrestlers in yukata on the streets around the halls and on the subway.

For travellers: Osaka in March pairs well with the start of the cherry blossom, Fukuoka in November with the autumn colours in Kyushu; hotel prices rise only slightly in tournament weeks.

Official site ↗

Nov 15

Autumn Leaves (Momiji) in Kyoto and Nikko

Culture · Japan

15 November 2026 Nikko late October to mid-November, Kyoto mid-November to early December; shifts by a few days each year Kyoto, Nikko

Japan's second great season, quieter than the cherry blossom but just as crowded in Kyoto: maples and ginkgos turn from north to south, in Nikko first at altitude around Lake Chuzenji (early October), then around the Toshogu Shrine from late October to mid-November. Kyoto usually peaks around 20 to 30 November: Tofuku-ji with the Tsutenkyo bridge, Eikando and Kiyomizu-dera with evening illuminations, Arashiyama with the Sagano scenic railway. Tokyo's gardens such as Rikugien follow until early December. Forecasts appear from September, and the colours last around two weeks, much longer than the cherry blossom.

For travellers: Kyoto hotels in late November cost as much as in cherry blossom season, so book early or sleep in Osaka; visit Tofuku-ji and Arashiyama before nine on weekends, and expect the Irohazaka hairpins in Nikko to be jammed for hours on autumn weekends.

Activities →

Jan 1

New Year (Shogatsu)

Public holiday · Japan

1 January 2027 1 January public holiday, most businesses closed from 29 December to 3 January Nationwide

Shogatsu is the most important family holiday in Japan and the opposite of a New Year's Eve party: at midnight on 31 December the temples strike their bells 108 times, and then millions set off for the first shrine visit of the year (hatsumode); Meiji Shrine in Tokyo alone counts around three million visitors in three days. Government offices, banks and most museums close from 29 December to 3 January, as do many small restaurants. Department stores reopen on 2 January with lucky bags (fukubukuro), convenience stores and trains keep running, and in Tokyo the trains run all night on New Year's Eve.

For travellers: Shinkansen and domestic flights are sold out around 29 December and 3 January, and museums and many sights are closed; temples and shrines, on the other hand, are livelier than at any other time.

Jan 10

Sumo Tournaments Tokyo (Hatsu, Natsu and Aki Basho)

Sport · Japan

10 January 2027 15 days each from the second Sunday in January, May and September; 2027: 10 to 24 January, 9 to 23 May, 12 to 26 September Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo

Three of the six grand sumo tournaments (honbasho) take place at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, each lasting 15 days. The bouts start in the morning with the lower divisions, the hall fills up from 2 pm, and the top bouts of the makuuchi division run from about 4 to 6 pm with the ring-entering ceremony and the yokozuna ritual. Upper-tier seats cost from around 4,000 yen (CHF 25, about EUR 27), Japanese box seats (masu-seki) on the floor CHF 60 to 90 (about EUR 64 to 96) per person. Advance sales start around a month before the tournament on the official ticket site; weekends and the final days are gone within hours.

For travellers: Weekdays in the first week are the easiest to get; if you miss out, you can watch a morning practice (asageiko) at a sumo stable in Ryogoku, usually through a tour operator.

Official site ↗

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