Places samireland Wants to Go

A replica of an ancient alien-like idol humorously represents spectacles in a corner of this shrine complex.

Thanks to wordplay, the earthquake-causing catfish monster has become a god of confidence at this shrine.

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

A rare double-receiver payphone housed in a fake tree.

The alleged site of the months-long imprisonment of a Japanese prince.

Descendants of the samurai who guarded Matsusaka Castle during the Edo period still live in these charming historic houses (and visitors can enter one of them for free).

Associated with one of Japan's most famous fairy tales, this temple is home to a statue purportedly brought from the undersea palace of the Dragon God.

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

Off the beaten path along the coastline of Miura, a scenic cliff with an evocative name.

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

This bakery in Japan is one of the few places that still sells 'salad bread,' a short-lived staple in the post-World War II years.

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

The preserved ruins of the Hōjō clan’s palatial estate, hidden in the basement of a tourist information center.

A sacred place for ascetic training, set in a honeycomb-walled cliffside cave deep in the woods.

This ancient, tranquil shrine is the birthplace of ema prayer boards and the Ushi-no-toki-mairi curse ritual.

Visitors are encouraged to fish for water goblins at this haunted pool.

Dedicated to the victims of a phantom slasher, this memorial is claimed by some to be the source of a deadly curse.

This Spanish theme park stands out in the Japanese countryside.

The oldest surviving stele in Japan is a personal dedication from a monk to his late mother.

A town's namesake rock has served as a spiritual matchmaker for hundreds of years.

A raised Japanese building has preserved 8th-century artifacts for more than a millennium, earning this log cabin a reputation as the "world's oldest museum."

A relatively young Buddhist temple on hilltop, dedicated to a statue relocated from Mount Atago.

No one knows why this family’s graves stayed on the national museum's premises after all other tombstones were relocated.

Pilots from around the world come to this park to fly gliders.