One of Japan’s oldest and largest cherry trees is said to have been planted by an ancient, heroic prince.

A peaceful place to spot the rare and iconic red-crowned crane.

A fantastical glow-in-the-dark mural inspired by the city’s most famous writer, Kenji Miyazawa.

This “forbidden” sanctuary has managed to preserve a unique, ancient ecosystem.

This train station meeting spot is an actual, millennia-old tree from the island of Yakushima.

A bizarre assault of surreal art hiding in bushes and huts on a hill.

A mysterious, perhaps haunted plot of land, untouched by modern development.

The sacred slope said to mark the gateway to the underworld.

The famed natural wonder that gave its name to a fishcake as well as one of the most popular anime series of all time.

This train station has no entrances or exits for pedestrians, and exists only to take advantage of the area’s view.

The bamboo that helped Thomas Edison develop a longlasting lightbulb.

Royal milk tea was invented here at the Far Eastern capital of Sir Thomas Lipton’s tea empire

Museum dedicated to extraterrestrial sightings in a town famous for them

The northernmost of the 12 surviving feudal castles of Japan is known as a cherry blossom viewing spot.