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The original was posted on /r/japantravel by /u/Ahrigato500 on 2025-05-10 22:41:23+00:00.
Hello guys. I just returned from a wonderful 3 week trip to Japan and I want to tell a bit about my experience. I took this route: Nagoya -> Himeji -> Matsue -> Okayama - > Takamatsu -> Matsuyama -> Shin-Yamaguchi -> Kitakyushu -> Fukuoka -> Nagasaki -> Naha (Okinawa). I had a JR pass and have been mostly using JR trains, but also some local trains/busses to get around. And I must say it has been a blast traveling around in Japan, everything is just so accessible and on time.
Nagoya:
In Nagoya I went to see the castle, both the Toyota Museums and the Railway Museum. It was a bit disappointing that the castle was closed due to construction, but it is so pretty to look at from the outside, especially the park surrounding it with all the cherry blossoms. There are two Toyota museums in Nagoya, one inside the city and one a bit away. Both are excellent and shows the history of the Toyota company very well. The Railway museum was good fun as well especially the Shinkansen Emulator. And I also had one of best Tonkatsu I have ever eaten down at the harbour.
Himeji:
Before arriving in Himeji from Nagoya, I went to see the small town of Omihachiman. It is such a beautiful little town with a river going through the town with samurai residences on each side. I took some really beautiful pictures here and ate some delicious Ramen. I can definitely recommend going there. In Himeji I went to see the castle and the Taiyo theme park. The Castle with all the cherry blossoms surrounding it was very beautiful and probably one of the most breathtaking castles I have seen so far. It also had a nice japanese garden attached to it.
The Taiyo theme Park was probably one of the more unique experiences on my trip. The park is basically a theme park build so you can experience things from around the world without leaving Japan. There are things such as the Triumph Arc in Paris, the chinese Teracotta Warriors and the very impressive rebuild of the Neuschwanstein castle. The attention to detail in this place was absolutely astonishing and it was mind boggling of much time and money must have went into this project. Don't miss it, if you are in Himeji.
Matsue:
In Matsue I went to see the beautiful castle that is one of the few original castles still around in Japan. I also took a small trip to the Iwamai-Ginzan Mine. The Mine was not really anything special but the small samurai town called Omori that connected to it, was definitely worth the trip. It had that cozy japanese small town atmosphere that I love. I ate some great soba noodles here.
Okayama:
Next was Okayama where I went to see the Castle, the old town of Kurashiki and a samurai sword factory. The Castle was beautiful from outside, but nothing special inside, as it is not original. Kurashiki was a beautiful little town with a river running through and some nice aesthetics and atmosphere. The Samurai Sword Factory (located in Osafune, 40 mins east of Okayama) was a really cool experience as I was there on a day where I could see the sword smiths at work and how they made the swords.
Takamatsu:
Takamatsu only had very small castle, but the Ritsurin Gardens was probably one of the most impressive Japanese gardens I have seen except for some of the ones in Kyoto. It was huge and there was just much care put into it. Having Takamatsu as a base, I took a couple of daytrips.
First stop was gonna be the Shiotori Zoo most known for their white tigers. Unfortunately it was closed when I arrived there, so I had to find something else to do that day. I therefore went to the small castle town of Marugame, where I went to see the small but impressive castle that is standing very tall above the town. I also got some amazing Udon noodles here, which I think Muragame is famous for.
Next stop was one of the things I had been looking most forward to on my whole trip. I wanted to go here ever since I saw in on youtube a couple of years ago: The Nagoro Scarecrow Village. It takes a lot of time to get there and the taxi ride is expensive the last part of the way, but it is totally worth it. Visiting this small town that is inhabited by about 350 scarecrow dolls was one of the most unique experiences I ever had. All the dolls are made by one woman who still lives in the town and my god, it is an incredible job she has done. The attention to detail on each doll was incredible, and there was a special kind of ambience and atmosphere going through the town and meeting all the dolls. It made me experience what life might have been like when the town was still alive. If you are ever in the area, don't miss the opportunity to go there, it is one in a life time experience.
Matsuyama:
From Takamatsu I went to Matsuyama. Also a city where I had to experience its beautiful castle that is standing very tall up looking down on the city. In the castle you had the opportunity to wear a full piece of samurai armour, which was great fun to put on. In Matsuyama I also experienced the "Bansuiso", which is a western style mansion, that in old times functioned as the Emperors residence, if he ever decided to visit Matsuyama. Was an interesting watch for sure. From Matsuyama I also took a small trip to the town of Imabara to see the castle there. Was a cozy little town with some great food.
Shin-Yamaguchi:
From Matsuyama I took the ferry to Kure, the train to Hiroshima and then the train again to Shin-Yamaguchi. There was nothing notable to do in Shin-Yamaguchi but I just needed a place to stay before going to my next destination. My next destination was Kitakyushu, but before that I took a trip to the absolutely beautiful Motonosumi Shrine. It is a shrine located in northern Yamaguchi Prefecture along the coast of the Sea of Japan. It consists of a lot of red tori gates lined up with a breathtaking background of the Sea of Japan. Think of it as a the tori gates of Kyoto but on steroids and less tourists. It took a very long time to get there, but just like the Scarecrow Village, it was a truly unique and once in a life time experience, I just couldn't miss. It was breathtaking and gorgeous.
Kitakyushu:
In Kitakyushu I experienced a great night life in the city and probably some of the best food I had on the trip (wagyu beef and some special cabbage meat hotplate only made in Kitakyushu). I also experienced the castle which was very beautiful but also had great stuff inside that related to samurai life. There were video games there and dress up that made you learn a lot about samurai history, which was a breath of fresh air compared to other castles.
From Kitakyushu I also took the train to Kumamoto to experience the black Kumamoto Castle. Kumamoto Castle was probably the biggest disappoint on my trip. Beautiful on the outside but hollow on the inside with almost no english information and too many tourists. Of all the castles I visited, it was basically the biggest tourist trap. I can't recommend it.
Fukuoka:
In Fukuoka I didn't really have any plans except for staying there a night before my next destination. I took a stroll around the city and ate some great food at night, but overall the city was nothing special. What was special though was the day after where I went from Fukuoka to the Kirin Beer Brewery. Truly an amazing experience with such a great guide and staff. The Kirin Ichiban beer is probably one of the best beers I have had and the best Japanese beer for sure (better than any Sapporo, Asahi or Suntory I have tasted).
Nagasaki:
In Nagasaki my main goal was to go to the Hashima (aka Gunkanjima) Island, which inspired one of the main locations in the James Bond film "Skyfall". It was interesting to see what once had been a booming mining island, now was an abandoned ruin. Unfortunately it was a bit disappointing you could only see parts of the island on foot and not the whole thing, but it was still a very good experience. I also went to the Nagasaki Peace Museum, which was very beautiful structured inside with great history and insight of what happened on the day of the bombing.
After my days in Nagasaki my next destination was to go back to Kumamoto to take a flight from there to Nara (Okinawa). I therefore had planned to take the train to the small port town of Imabara and from there take the ferry to Kumamoto. In Imabara I had time to explore the town before going to the ferry. It is a castle town with a great castle, some nice food and a small samurai town with great atmosphere and ambience. I can recommend to go to Imabara if you ever have the time, it is such a nice place.
Naha (Okinawa)
A, 1 hour and 30 minute flight from Kumamoto had taken me to Naha on Okinawa. My main reason to go to Okinawa was to see the Churaumi Aquarium which has one of the biggest fish tanks in the world with whale sharks included. It was an amazing aquarium overall and seeing whale sharks for the first time was a great experience.
On Okinawa I also had time to see the Former Japanese Navy Underground Headquarters, which gave a brief history of the American occupation of Okinawa. And also the beautiful Southeast Botanical Gardens as well as a trip to the Helios Destillery to taste some great sake and whisky.
And that was basically my trip. It was truly an amazing experience and I enjoyed it so much. I miss it a lot now and I hope I can go back to Japan very soon. It is such a great country to travel in. Amazing and friendly people, food, history, unique encounters and ways of transportation makes it a pleasant and easy experience.