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Places I visited in Japan 2025
63
items I went to Japan for three weeks in 2025. These are the places that I visited and my honest opinion of them.
Map
Sections
5
Tokyo
Yokohama
Yamagata
Kyoto
Other
Tokyo
Located on the 3rd floor of Chitose Kaikan shopping centre. It's a cool spot to drink, eat and play darts with mates. I was given the wrong address, so I was alone and didn't play darts. 🙁
DartsCafeDELTA
A former schoolroom turned bar. A little confusing to find it in the Home/Work Village. I went there to watch my sister's singing gig. It's spacious with plenty of tables and good vibes.
GOOD TEMPO
Ooo boy, it is fancy as hell and way above my budget! But I got to crash at my friend's room and help myself to the amneties and spa.
Grand Hyatt Tokyo | Luxury Hotel In Roppongi
Extremely cramped izakaya at the heart of Shibuya. The floor level is spacious enough, but if you're tall or overweight and end up on the upper levels, you'll be squashed. The food is banging though.
Yakiton Takichi Shibuya branch
A perfume making workshop. The organiser is very helpful in picking out the best notes for your ideal perfume. There are two branches in Tokyo (Asakusa and Ueno).
D.Anda - Perfume Making
A great Italian restaurant in Asakusa. I had a smoked salmon pizza which was really yummy.
LaVASARA CAFE&GRILL
Fresh juice bar in Azabudai Hills Tower Plaza.
Tokyo Juice
A stunning spot to see the gingko trees in the autumn. But for goodness sake, walk on the correct side of the pavement or you'll end up stuck in an endless traffic jam like I did.
Meiji Jingu Gaien Ginkgo Avenue
This was where we had a crazy karaoke session. I recommend bringing your own alcohol - the unlimited drink deal is pricey here.
Karaoke Big Echo Shibuya Center-gai Honten
The hojicha cinnamon bun is a must try! What a genius combo.
Cinnabon / Seattle's Best Coffee Roppongi Shop
The viral fried sandwich shop. Technically I was there, but I did not get a fried sandwich. The queue was too bloody long!
Age.3 GINZA
One of the most popular ramen spots in Shibuya. You order your food outside the restaurant and hand over a ticket to the waiter before you take a seat.
Oreryū Shio Ramen Jingūmae
It's like a free Disneyland Christmas show. The Christmas tree is enormous. It really lifts your spirits and make you feel like a kid again.
MIDTOWN CHRISTMAS イルミネーション
Delicious cream puffs in Roppongi Hills.
Crème de la Crème
An Italian restaurant on the floor level of the Grand Hyatt Hotel. The pastries looked nice, but I only ordered a small and expensive fruit salad for breakfast.
Fiorentina
Small bar with great DJ gigs and live music shows.
TenCups Cafe Bar & Lounge
Fancy patisserie in Daikanyama. I bought a chestnut pastry for my mum which she enjoyed.
LA BASE de Chez Lui (ラ・バーズ・ドゥ・シェ・リュイ)
Expensive but lovely perfumes. I'll buy a perfume from there the next time I visit.
NONFICTION DAIKANYAMA
A cafe, library and souvenir store in one place. We need more of these places in the world, and ideally not just from Starbucks.
Starbucks Coffee - Daikan-yama Tsutaya Books
A lovely park in Tokyo.
Yoyogi Park
It has a giant torii gate and giant vats of sake lined up in colourful barrels. Other than that it's meh.
Meiji Jingu
If you don't have a branch in your city, this is a must try. The boba is handmade and served fresh. Possibly my second favourite bubble tea place of all time.
Xing Fu Tang
If you're a Johnny Depp fan, you'll surely love this. This is 30 years worth of his art and music. You have to book a time slot in advance. The Japanese go mad for Johnny, so expect a packed merch store and nearly all of the best items sold out.
Johnny Depp: 'A Bunch Of Stuff' Exhibition
An Australian shoe brand made of kangaroo leather. They cost over £100 but are extremely good quality. I bought a pair that fitted my feet like a glove.
SPINGLE 品川
Yep, it's a hotel with robot dinosaurs. It's a novelty experience that creeped me out a bit. I don't think I'll try that again.
Henn na Hotel Tokyo Haneda
Yakiniku restaurant set up like a kaitenzushi with conveyer belts. Can't go wrong with Japanese BBQ!
Yakiniku no Watami
Yokohama
Beautiful lanterns and yummy street food, mainly soup dumplings and giant fried chicken. If you’re into palm reading, it’s very popular there.
Yokohama Chinatown
It's like the famous Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, but quieter and closer to Tokyo, which makes it a little better. It's chock full of cute fox porcelains.
Sasuke Inari Shrine
It's different to a usual Japanese curry restaurant. The dishes have a wider range of spices and tastes more nutritious. I had a pork “vindaloo” curry, which tasted more like a sweet, aromatic stir fry.
OXYMORON komachi
For ¥400 you walk around the temple's garden and bamboo forest.
Hokoukuji Bamboo Forest
It costs ¥300 to enter the temple grounds. The stairs are blocked for preservation. Apart from the stairs, the place doesn't have much to see.
Mossed Stairs
A kaitenzushi restaurant in Yokohama. You get a lottery after disposing every five plates.
Kura Sushi Konandai
A yakiniku restaurant in Northport Mall, Center Kita, Yokohama. I recommend the spicy egg soup set.
Gyutopia ギュウトピア
A lovely private Zen garden in Yokohama with old preserved houses, scenic routes and a little museum. It costs ¥900 to enter.
Sankeien Garden
A very cute cafe with a special English tea set menu. You need to reserve that in advance.
Sakurayama Hotel Cafe
A mid bubble tea place.
Mixue in Yokohama Chinatown
I swear, I had some of best desserts ever from this cafe! I would try all of the desserts on the menu if I could.
Cafe Lexcel
I went there to attend a ritualistic incense game called Kodo. It's situated in an area that looks like it hasn't changed in 50 years - quite charming.
Gokuraku-ji
Yamagata
A temple high in the Yamagata mountains with a 1000 steps. The climb to the top is not that bad as there are plenty of levels to take a break. In the autumn, the trees have beautiful colours.
Risshaku-ji Temple (Yamadera)
Traditional Japanese sweet shop in Yamadera. They sell manju, kintsuba, kurumi-yubeshi and cold arrowroot ice cream, delicious sweets to try out if you're adventurous.
SHOSEIDO
This soba restaurant is great. Their squid tentacle tempura (Yamagata speciality) is deliciously crispy.
Soba Higashitei Restaurant
A famous onsen area located in a valley. It's recommended to visit in the winter when the snowfall settles. We stayed in one of the ryokans, which had standard rooms, a mouldy bathroom, but nice breakfast and a lovely view of the waterfall. My mum sa...
Ginzan Onsen
A pretty waterfall at the end of the Ginzan Onsen. There's a scenic walk along it that leads to the Ginzan mine.
Shirogane Waterfall
One of the restaurants in Ginzan Onsen. They serve Yamagata meal sets - good portion.
Yukemuri Restaurant Shirogane
A cave near the Ginzan Onsen. There isn't much to see there because it has a short route. At least you don't have to pay to visit.
Silver Mine Cave, Obanazawa
A cafe with good vibes and tasty cakes. I had a nice warm apple cake and my mum had a pumpkin basque cheesecake.
ZAO stand MY
The ryokan we stayed in Zao, Yamagata. It's a family-run business, so you'll be in the same premise as the owner's family and be served delicious home-cooked food. In our room, we had an electric blanket on top of a kneeling table, which is a lifesav...
Takasagoya Ryokan, Zao Onsen
A museum that traces Yamagata's history, specifically during the Meiji Restoration. It's set in an English Neo-Renaissance building. The Japanese seem to be in awe of this building. As a Brit, it gives me prison vibes.
Yamagata Folk Museum Bunshokan
This is a stunning little park. Best time to go there is definitely in the autumn.
Momiji Park
An old samurai house not too far from Kaminoyama Castle. This particular house has a lovely front garden.
Samurai Residence of the Miwa Family
Also known as Tsukioka Castle, legends say that its grounds and spring were discovered by a monk who came across an injured crane healing her leg in the spring.
Kaminoyama Castle Ruins
Located in Gutto Yamagata, the tourist product centre. It had a banging pork belly Japanese curry.
Meat Nakamura
Kyoto
A sweet little cafe in Kyoto.
WHO SAYS KYOTO
The hotel that I stayed at in Kyoto. It's close to the main station but is a little awkward to find. The room is small but has everything you need.
Hotel Excellence Kyoto Station Nishi
Slick trendy cafe with a nice view of the Kamo River. Their matcha latte is nice.
M Stand Coffee - Sanjo Kamogawa Terrace Cafe
A kimono rental near Yasaka Shrine. There is a good range of kimonos, either traditional or Western style. It's super affordable, you can spend a minimum of £13 on a kimono, obi and a basic hairstyle.
Rental Kimono Okamoto Yasaka Shrine
The new teamLab in Kyoto. If you went to the Tokyo one, there might be some familiar visual art spaces, but it's still a magical, soothing experience.
teamLab Biovortex Kyoto
A scenic shrine and park where I had my kimono pictures taken.
Yasaka Shrine
It has the Kyoto special (matcha pancakes with brown sugar syrup and a red bean paste butter cream), which is nice but not worth the long wait. Because the restaurant is very small it has a ridiculously long waiting time. It took over an hour to get ...
A Happy Pancake Kyoto
A Chinese restaurant. I ordered pork and prawn dumplings, which were half burnt but still tasty.
XIUXIU SHĒNG JIĀN KYOTO HONTEN
I went to the studio park for a special yokai festival in mid November. It's a more interesting place to visit when there are special events included.
Toei Kyoto Studio Park
Other
A beautiful cemetery with a view of Mount Fuji. This was where my great-aunt and great-grandparents were buried.
Fujizakura Natural Cemetery Park
The restaurant near the cemetery. We were served by a robot cat waiter called Sakunyan. I had a yummy Fujinomiya curry, which had rice shaped like Mount Fuji.
Fujimitei Hakuun