Search Results for: kyushu

If you’re planning a trip to Japan, 2024 is your year—it’s the first year since 2019 without any covid-related restrictions. Putting it together requires equal parts information and inspiration, which is the approach I’ve taken with the Japan trip ideas I’m about to share with you. Whether you have a specific amount of time you […]

The main impediment people have to understanding the regions of Japan is the ambiguous nature of the word “region.” Many conflate a Japanese region with a state (or, in Japan’s case, prefecture), or even with Japan’s four main islands. For the purposes of this article, I will focus on Japan’s main regions, well-known example of […]

It’s taken me longer than I wanted to create a Kumamoto travel guide, and I apologize for that. I’ve got good reasons for this, however. Most importantly, it took me a long time to get out of Kumamoto city. With gardens, Kumamon and of course, Kumamoto Castle itself, Kumamoto-shi is a place that charms and […]

I’ll admit: A Kagoshima travel guide isn’t something you see every day. It took me over half a decade traveling in Japan to truly explore the city, the southernmost and westernmost on Japan’s four main islands. (The flip-side of this is that if you’ve got Kagoshima in your sights, you’re evidently a pretty experienced Japan […]

Many travelers assume there’s no reason to take Japan domestic flights—and a certain number of them are right. Japan’s bullet train network, after all, is extensive and convenient (and affordable, assuming you have a Japan Rail Pass). On the other hand, there’s definitely a purpose for air travel in many Japan itineraries, depending on the […]

Japanese business culture can be confounding, even if business travel to Japan isn’t a new thing for you. From overarching concepts like being on time every time (literally every time), to seemingly small details like the way you hand a business card to someone, doing business in Japan can be stressful before you even enter […]

I won’t mince words: 2 months in Japan is a long trip. This is true whether you’re exploring the country on a tourist visa, or are in Japan for the purpose of study or work. Indeed, staying in Japan for a couple of months gives you options. Presuming you remain within the legal limits of […]

It dawned on me not long ago that I hadn’t yet created a post about the best way to spend 10 days in Japan. And it perplexed me: This is perhaps the best short trip you can take to Japan—I planned dozens of 10-day trips to Japan in 2019 alone! Assuming you can quickly your […]

I used to think that one week in Japan would be a futile endeavor, at least if it was one’s first trip. While it’s true that some of my trips to individual regions of Japan (like Tohoku and the island of Shikoku) have lasted seven days or less, it wasn’t until recently that I conceded […]

As you search through travel guides for Japan, you find a lot of information about destinations and experiences, but probably not a concrete idea of where to go, for how long and in what order. Most every traveler who spends 2 weeks in Japan starts in Tokyo, and goes to Kyoto from there, but then […]

Unsurprisingly, many of the things to do in Okinawa center around the water, whether you’re swimming where it meets the islands’ sugary shores, or scuba diving under it. However, there’s plenty to enjoy in Okinawa that has nothing to do with the beach, or even the outdoors. Trust me—I know. My first trip to Okinawa […]