Hidden Japan: Off the Well Travelled Road

There is something quietly timeless about Kamakura. Once the seat of Japan’s first shogunate, it has long since traded power...

High in the forested mountains of Wakayama lies Koyasan, a spiritual world unto itself. Founded by the monk Kūkai over...

Scattered across the Seto Inland Sea, Japan’s Art Islands of Naoshima, Teshima, and Inujima have transformed remote fishing communities into...

Arriving in Shirakawago feels like stepping into another time. The steep, thatched-roof farmhouses are unlike anything you see in Japan’s...

There’s something haunting about standing on Gunkanjima, better known as Battleship Island. Once a thriving coal mining community, it’s now...

Takayama sits in the mountains, where mornings begin with bustling markets along the riverside. Walking through the stalls, you see...

Japan’s mountain routes hold some of its deepest stories. Hiking along the Kumano Kodo or similar ancient pilgrimage trails, you...

In Kyoto, away from the famous temples and crowds, there are villages where life moves differently. One of our favourite...

The further you go into Japan’s countryside - along routes like the Nakasendo - the more you find communities holding...