The northernmost island of Japan, known for its abundance in nature and fresh produces. Hokkaido is also the original mecca for snow sports in Japan because of its heavy snow fall during winter season and the range of undeveloped natural terrains.

Aomori

Aomori is located just below Hokkaido and is surrounded by sea on three sides. It is the gateway to Hokkaido with car ferry and train lines going through. Aomori is famous for its apples and sake, as well as festivals like the Nebuta Matsuri Festival.

Blessed with a long coastline that faces the Pacific Ocean, Iwate has many natural fishing ports that provides the country with fresh seafood. A great range of outdoor activities can be enjoyed in Iwate, especially along Mt. Iwate and Appi Plateau.

Akita

Akita is rich in both mountainous and oceanic landscapes, as well as in traditional culture, which can be seen in small towns, hot springs and their many unique festivals. Akita is known for providing one of the best quality rice and sake in Japan.

Miyagi is one of the most scenic places of the Tohoku area. Not only does the grand Zao mountain range run through the inland of Miyagi, but over to the Pacific Ocean side, there are 260 or so islands that are topped with pine trees in Matsushima Bay.

Most known for the abundant snowfall around the Mt. Zao ski resort areas, Yamagata is frequented by skiers during winter. Yamagata also has deep ties with Japanese history, being the home for many famous temples, shrines, castles and hot springs.

Located just over an hour ride away on the bullet train from Tokyo, Fukushima offers a great array of activities. Each season brings a different set of attraction to the visitors of Fukushima, such as camping in summer and swan watching in winter.

Ibaraki has a mellow atmosphere surrounded by different natural landscapes such as the Pacific Ocean to the east, mountainous areas in the north as well as grand rivers, lakes and waterfalls, including Kasumigaura, the second largest lake in Japan.

Tochigi is located north of Tokyo, and its city of Nikko is frequented by both local and foreign visitors for its many UNESCO registered heritage sites. The many shrines and temples in Nikko include the extravagantly decorated Toshogu Shrine.

Gunma is mostly known for its hot springs and it is situated in between Tochigi and Nagano prefectures. Gunma is home to many famous hot spring resorts such as Kusatsu Onsen, which has one of the highest quality hot spring water in Japan.

Saitama is Tokyo’s next door neighbour to the north side. Although there are rural and mountainous parts towards the west along with Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park, it is a mainly suburban area, being so close to the city of Tokyo.

Located to the east of Tokyo, Chiba is a busy, metropolitan area that sees many Japanese and overseas visitors. The inflow of visitors mainly come for one of two reasons; to fly out from Narita International Airport or to visit Tokyo Disney Land.

The capital and the most well known city of Japan. Tokyo is one of the world’s most highly populated cities with over 13 million residents and it is the centre of both modern and traditional culture, technology and innovation that comes from Japan.

The fairly metropolitan prefecture that is Kanazawa is located south of Tokyo. Its capital city, Yokohama, is known as an industrial city. Kanazawa is also home to Kamakura, a coastal town with historic sites, including the Great Buddha of Kamakura.

Home to the northern half of Mt. Fuji, Yamanashi is an inland prefecture rich in nature and gorgeous scenery. The most famous attraction of Yamanashi is of course, Mt. Fuji and the Fuji Five Lake, but areas like Yatsugatake highland is also popular.

Nagano is known as one of Japan’s most popular snow holiday destinations that hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics game. It’s a landlocked prefecture that’s home to famous hot spring towns like Nozawa Onsen and the adorable hot-spring-loving snow monkeys.

Niigata faces the Sea of Japan and it is known for its extreme snow falls and excellent sake. The Echigo Mountain Range made of 2,000 meter-high-mountains runs through the middle of Niigata, providing prime destinations for snow sports enthusiasts.

Toyama is very rich in nature, surrounded by tall mountains on three sides and facing the Sea of Japan. It is a popular destination for hikers, who head to the world famous Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route to explore some of Toyama’s highest mountains.

Ishikawa is located on the coastline facing the Sea of Japan, it’s known for well preserved historic sites and fresh seafood. Thanks to the new Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet train line, Ishikawa’s fantastic attractions are easily reachable from Tokyo.

Fukui

Fukui is a part of the Chubu Region, and faces the coast of the Sea of Japan. It’s known for various attractions such as the Tojinbo cliff and Fukui Dinosaur Museum but it’s most well known for one of Japan’s top Zen temples, the Eiheiji Temple.

Shizuoka

Shizuoka is home to Japan’s most iconic, volcanic mountain Mt. Fuji, and it faces the Pacific Ocean giving it a versatile landscape. To the south of Shizuoka is the Izu Peninsula, most popular amongst visitors during summer for its sandy beaches.

Located in the centre of Japan, Aichi is a highly industrial land, where car manufacturer, Toyota is headquartered. Its capital City of Nagoya has Nagoya Castle which is well known for the two golden imaginary fish-like animals that top its roof.

Gifu is one of the most truly unique destinations of Japan. Most of Gifu’s land is covered in forest, and deep within it are small villages like World Heritage listed Shirakawa-go, which is home to traditionally built, thatched roof houses.

Mie

Mie face the pacific ocean with a rugged edged coastline, right in the middle of Japan’s main island. The coast is known for its abundant of Ise lobsters and cultured pearls. Mie is also where the holy ground of the Shinto religion, Ise-Jingu Shrine is located.

Shiga

Shiga is located in the Kansai region, and is centred around the largest freshwater lake in Japan, Lake Biwa. Throughout history, Shiga has had a lively culture due to the central location within Japan and offers many heritage site-seeing locations.

As a former capital city of Japan, Kyoto has always been one of Japan’s most important cultural capitals. Kyoto is filled with extravagant temples and shrines, such as the golden Kinkaku-ji Temples and offers traditional entertainment to its visitors.

Osaka is the cultural and economical centre of western Japan. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides, however, it’s Osaka’s vibrant and innovative culture that produced sushi trains and the tallest building in Japan that attracts its visitors.

Home to the UNESCO Wolrd Cultural Heritage listed Himeji Castle, Hyogo is a culturally rich prefecture that faces both the Seto Inland Sea and the Sea of Japan. There are several beaches and rugged yet beautiful oceanic scenery along the inland sea coastline.

Nara

Nara boasts the most amount of World Heritage listed sites in Japan. Nara was once Japan’s capital city, and it’s not only known for its carefully preserved heritage sites and Buddhist statues but for the wild deers that roam freely around the city.

To the south of Osaka is Wakayama, a naturally rich prefecture that has both mountainous and oceanic scenery. Wakayama is most known for Mt. Koya-san – a spiritual home for Buddhism in Japan and is surrounded by vast national parks and Buddhist temples.

Tottori

Tottori is located in the southwestern part of the main island of Japan and has a contrasting landscape full of nature. Towards the inland are green mountains that and along the coastline is the Japan’s largest sand dunes, the Tottori Sand Dunes.

Shimane

Shimane faces the Sea of Japan and is shadowed by the great Chugoku mountain range, making it a relatively isolated place even within Japan. Its culture has been influenced by neighbours like China and Korea, and was once the trade capital between these countries.

Okayama

Nestled in the Chugoku region, Okayama has many fantastic attractions for its visitors. You can experience the Edo Period townscape alongside a canal area in the city of Kurashiki or visit Koraku-en, which is one of Japan’s Three Great Gardens.

Hiroshima

Hiroshima is located facing the Seto Inland Sea and is most well known as the site of the atomic bombing in WWII. The most visited tourist attraction in Hiroshima is the Peace Memorial Park and the floating Itsukushima Shrine on the coast of Miyajima.

Yamaguchi

At the westernmost end of the main island is Yamaguchi also known as Kyoto of the West. It looks to the Boyo-shoto Island from its Seto Inland Sea coastline and at the western tip is a 3,461 meter long Kanmon Tunnel that connects to Kyushu Island.

Kagawa faces the Seto Inland Sea and it’s the smallest prefecture in Japan. Kagawa is famous for its udon noodles which was named ‘Sanuki’ after the area’s original name. Kagawa is also the very last stop of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage.

Ehime is a naturally rich and beautiful land that belongs to the the Shikoku Island. Ehime is home to the 3,000 years-old, Dogo-onsen hot spring - the oldest in Japan - that has welcomed visitors from all over the world including the emperor.

Tokushima is one of the four prefectures in the Shikoku Island. It is directly across the sea from Wakayama, and it’s surrounded by mountains on three sides. Tokushima is also known as the starting point of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage.

Located in the southern part of Shikoku, Kochi is rich in all kinds of natural sceneries. There is Cape Muroto to the east and Cape Ashizuri in the west. There’s even a beautiful, sandy beach - Katsurahama Beach - just half an hour from Kochi City.

Fukuoka could easily be said that it’s the capital of Kyushu Island. Most visitors of Kyushu pass through Fukuoka City. It is home to the world’s first space theme park Space World, and it’s also where thee pork-bone broth, Hakata ramen originate.

Situated across from Korea, Saga’s culture has been heavily influenced by Chinese and Korean culture for centuries. The influences can been seen at various historic sites as well as in Saga’s own style of pottery, the Arita-yaki chinaware.

Nagasaki is made up of five peninsulas and 971 islands. It was once Japan’s most important trade capital with countries like China, Korea, Portugal and Holland. Each of the islands that make up Nagasaki comes with its own unique natural characteristics.

Located towards the centre of Kyushu, Kumamoto is a land rich in nature with close to 20% of its land belonging to national parkland. Kumamoto is most known for Mt. Aso, an active volcano which heats local hot springs in areas such as Kurokawa Onsen.

Oita is located on the eastern coastline of Kyushu Island. Oita is most known for its unique landscapes and hot springs. The Beppu area boasts the largest output of hot spring water and the it’s home to countless hot spring resorts.

Miyazaki

Miyazaki belongs to the Kyushu Island and it is known for its fantastic beaches. There are a number of surf spots in Miyagi as well as swimming beaches like Aoshima. Visitors can take a walk across a bridge from Aoshima Beach to Aoshima Island.

Located right at the tip of Kyushu, Kagoshima is rich in a variety of natural scenery including oceans, mountains and rivers. There are 30 or so islands that belong to Kagoshima, including the UNESCO World Heritage Site listed Yakushima Island.

Okinawa is Japan’s souterhnmost prefecture, made up of hundreds of inhabited and uninhabited islands. Its most loved for it'."'".'s subtropical climate and its abundance in outdoor activities which include snorkelling, kayaking and trekking through mangroves.

Sydney is one of Australia’s largest and most populated cities. It is known for being closely located to a great range of scenery from white sandy beaches of Bondi, to the Blue Mountains as well as the busy multicultural cityscape of Sydney CBD.