Plan with your AI

Only in Kansai

152 unique things to do. 466 in total

Cities inside Kansai

Kyoto163 things

Kobe93 things

Osaka90 things

Nara56 things

Himeji32 things

Uji32 things

152 unique things across 6 cities

Walk the oldest wooden buildings

Walk the oldest wooden buildings

The only one on Earth

Walk the oldest wooden buildings

Nara · Horyu-ji

The only one on Earth

Feed, and be bowed to by, a wild herd that is a national natural monument

Nara · Nara Park · Free

Stand under the Omizutori torches at Nigatsudō

Stand under the Omizutori torches at Nigatsudō

Stand under the Omizutori torches at Nigatsudō

Stand under the Omizutori torches at Nigatsudō

Stand under the Omizutori torches at Nigatsudō

The only one on Earth

Stand under the Omizutori torches at Nigatsudō

Nara · Nigatsu-do · Free · Seasonal

Make noodles where they began

Make noodles where they began

Make noodles where they began

The only one on Earth

Make noodles where they began

Osaka · Cup Noodles Museum Osaka Ikeda · Free

Walk past 1,001 Kannon

Walk past 1,001 Kannon

Walk past 1,001 Kannon

Walk past 1,001 Kannon

Walk past 1,001 Kannon

The only one on Earth

Walk past 1,001 Kannon

Kyoto · Sanjusangendo

Hear an android preach

Hear an android preach

Hear an android preach

Hear an android preach

Hear an android preach

The only one on Earth

Hear an android preach

Kyoto · Kodaiji Temple

Climb inside the Tower of the Sun

Climb inside the Tower of the Sun

Climb inside the Tower of the Sun

Climb inside the Tower of the Sun

Climb inside the Tower of the Sun

The only one on Earth

Climb inside the Tower of the Sun

Osaka · Tower of the Sun

The only one on Earth

Sleep in Nintendo's original 1930 head office

Kyoto · Marufukuro

The only one on Earth

Stand in front of the only statue that can be proven to be Jōchō's work, inside the Phoenix Hall

Uji · Byōdō-in

The only one on Earth

Watch the stags' antlers sawn off in a ring, the way it has been done since the 1670s

Nara · Rokuen · Seasonal

Eat takoyaki without sauce at the shop that named it

The only one on Earth

Eat takoyaki without sauce at the shop that named it

Osaka · Aizuya

Order one zenzai and receive two bowls, then splash the moss-covered Fudō

Order one zenzai and receive two bowls, then splash the moss-covered Fudō

The only one on Earth

Order one zenzai and receive two bowls, then splash the moss-covered Fudō

Osaka · Meoto Zenzai

See bunraku in the city where it was born

See bunraku in the city where it was born

The only one on Earth

See bunraku in the city where it was born

Osaka · National Bunraku Theatre

The only one on Earth

See Emperor Shōmu's possessions in the Shōsōin's two-week window

Nara · Nara National Museum · Seasonal

Collect a beckoning cat every month for four years at Sumiyoshi

Collect a beckoning cat every month for four years at Sumiyoshi

Collect a beckoning cat every month for four years at Sumiyoshi

Collect a beckoning cat every month for four years at Sumiyoshi

Collect a beckoning cat every month for four years at Sumiyoshi

The only one on Earth

Collect a beckoning cat every month for four years at Sumiyoshi

Osaka · Sumiyoshi Taisha

Eat at the world's oldest sweet shop

The only one on Earth

Eat at the world's oldest sweet shop

Kyoto · Ichiwa

See Buddhas made from the ashes of two million people

See Buddhas made from the ashes of two million people

See Buddhas made from the ashes of two million people

See Buddhas made from the ashes of two million people

See Buddhas made from the ashes of two million people

The only one on Earth

See Buddhas made from the ashes of two million people

Osaka · Isshin-ji Temple · Free

Hear a horn summon wild deer

Hear a horn summon wild deer

Hear a horn summon wild deer

Hear a horn summon wild deer

Hear a horn summon wild deer

The only one on Earth

Hear a horn summon wild deer

Nara · Tobihino · Free · Seasonal

Play at the Nintendo Museum

Play at the Nintendo Museum

The only one on Earth

Play at the Nintendo Museum

Uji · Nintendo Museum

Stand in a giant fire character

The only one on Earth

Stand in a giant fire character

Kyoto · Mount Daimonji · Free

The only one on Earth

Eat fried maple leaves on the waterfall path at Minoh

Osaka · Hisakuni Kosendo

Sit in the last Lockheed monorail

Sit in the last Lockheed monorail

Sit in the last Lockheed monorail

Sit in the last Lockheed monorail

The only one on Earth

Sit in the last Lockheed monorail

Himeji · Tegarayama Kōryū Station · Free

Swing the longest monkey bars

Swing the longest monkey bars

Swing the longest monkey bars

Swing the longest monkey bars

The only one on Earth

Swing the longest monkey bars

Kobe · Sunshine Wharf Kobe · Free

The only one on Earth

See Osaka's own ukiyo-e, the actor prints Edo never made

Osaka · Kamigata Ukiyoe Museum

The only one on Earth

Watch bean paste being made, then go round the world's first azuki museum

Himeji · Gozasoro Azuki Museum

Eat gyōza at the very first Gyōza no Ōshō, Shijō-Ōmiya

Eat gyōza at the very first Gyōza no Ōshō, Shijō-Ōmiya

Eat gyōza at the very first Gyōza no Ōshō, Shijō-Ōmiya

The only one on Earth

Eat gyōza at the very first Gyōza no Ōshō, Shijō-Ōmiya

Kyoto · Gyoza no Ohsho Shijo Omiya

The only one on Earth

Order kitsune udon where the fried tofu first went in

Osaka · Usamitei Matsubaya

The only one on Earth

Spend an afternoon at the yose built for Kamigata rakugo

Osaka · Tenma Tenjin Hanjotei

The only one on Earth

Order fire ramen at the counter where it was invented

Kyoto · Menbaka Fire Ramen

Climb an original 1609 castle keep in your socks

Climb an original 1609 castle keep in your socks

Climb an original 1609 castle keep in your socks

Climb an original 1609 castle keep in your socks

Climb an original 1609 castle keep in your socks

The only one in Japan

Climb an original 1609 castle keep in your socks

Himeji · Himeji Castle

Take a lift down and walk under the Aji River through Japan's first immersed-tube tunnel

Take a lift down and walk under the Aji River through Japan's first immersed-tube tunnel

Take a lift down and walk under the Aji River through Japan's first immersed-tube tunnel

Take a lift down and walk under the Aji River through Japan's first immersed-tube tunnel

Take a lift down and walk under the Aji River through Japan's first immersed-tube tunnel

The only one in Japan

Take a lift down and walk under the Aji River through Japan's first immersed-tube tunnel

Osaka · Ajigawa River Tunnel · Free

Eat ekisoba standing on the platform where it was invented

Eat ekisoba standing on the platform where it was invented

Eat ekisoba standing on the platform where it was invented

The only one in Japan

Eat ekisoba standing on the platform where it was invented

Himeji · Maneki no Ekisoba, JR Himeji Station platform stand

Walk into Japan's first mosque, free

The only one in Japan

Walk into Japan's first mosque, free

Kobe · Kobe Muslim Mosque · Free

Watch the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri procession, unbroken since 1136

Watch the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri procession, unbroken since 1136

Watch the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri procession, unbroken since 1136

Watch the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri procession, unbroken since 1136

Watch the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri procession, unbroken since 1136

The only one in Japan

Watch the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri procession, unbroken since 1136

Nara · Kasugataisha Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Handle the tools in Japan's only museum of carpentry tools

Handle the tools in Japan's only museum of carpentry tools

Handle the tools in Japan's only museum of carpentry tools

Handle the tools in Japan's only museum of carpentry tools

The only one in Japan

Handle the tools in Japan's only museum of carpentry tools

Kobe · Takenaka Carpentry Tools Museum

Ride Japan's last carlator, a conveyor belt up a mountain

Ride Japan's last carlator, a conveyor belt up a mountain

Ride Japan's last carlator, a conveyor belt up a mountain

Ride Japan's last carlator, a conveyor belt up a mountain

Ride Japan's last carlator, a conveyor belt up a mountain

The only one in Japan

Ride Japan's last carlator, a conveyor belt up a mountain

Kobe · Sumaura Sanjo Amusement Park

The only one in Japan

Enter the national goldfish-scooping championship in the goldfish town

Nara · Yamatokoriyama City Sports Park · Free · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

Step into Japan's oldest surviving farmhouse, on weekends only

Kobe · Hakogi House

The only one in Japan

Walk a Meiji prison corridor at the only intact one of the Five Great Prisons

Nara · Nara Prison Museum

Watch Japan's oldest working planetarium projector, on the line that sets Japan's clocks

The only one in Japan

Watch Japan's oldest working planetarium projector, on the line that sets Japan's clocks

Kobe · Akashi Municipal Planetarium

Circle Japan's largest keyhole tomb, then see it from the city hall roof

Circle Japan's largest keyhole tomb, then see it from the city hall roof

Circle Japan's largest keyhole tomb, then see it from the city hall roof

The only one in Japan

Circle Japan's largest keyhole tomb, then see it from the city hall roof

Osaka · Daisen Kofun · Free

Visit the oldest standing shrine building in Japan

Visit the oldest standing shrine building in Japan

The only one in Japan

Visit the oldest standing shrine building in Japan

Uji · Ujikami Shrine · Free

Tour a working incinerator that Hundertwasser designed, free

Tour a working incinerator that Hundertwasser designed, free

Tour a working incinerator that Hundertwasser designed, free

The only one in Japan

Tour a working incinerator that Hundertwasser designed, free

Osaka · Maishima Incineration Plant · Free

Walk the Mint's riverside cherry passage in its one week of the year

Walk the Mint's riverside cherry passage in its one week of the year

Walk the Mint's riverside cherry passage in its one week of the year

Walk the Mint's riverside cherry passage in its one week of the year

Walk the Mint's riverside cherry passage in its one week of the year

The only one in Japan

Walk the Mint's riverside cherry passage in its one week of the year

Osaka · Japan Mint · Free · Seasonal

Ride a 1928 tram car that still carries passengers

Ride a 1928 tram car that still carries passengers

Ride a 1928 tram car that still carries passengers

Ride a 1928 tram car that still carries passengers

Ride a 1928 tram car that still carries passengers

The only one in Japan

Ride a 1928 tram car that still carries passengers

Osaka · Ebisucho Station

The only one in Japan

Eat doroyaki at the Himeji shop that invented it

Himeji · Nanpū Himeji Honten

The only one in Japan

Make a leather piece in the district that tans most of Japan's cowhide

Himeji · Pelletteria

The only one in Japan

Walk from the bullet-train station to a sacred waterfall and Japan's first concrete gravity dam

Kobe · Gohonmatsu Dam · Free

Tour Japan's first malt whisky distillery

Tour Japan's first malt whisky distillery

Tour Japan's first malt whisky distillery

The only one in Japan

Tour Japan's first malt whisky distillery

Osaka · Suntory Yamazaki Distillery

Ride Japan's first cable car up to a 1929 flying-machine ride

Ride Japan's first cable car up to a 1929 flying-machine ride

Ride Japan's first cable car up to a 1929 flying-machine ride

Ride Japan's first cable car up to a 1929 flying-machine ride

Ride Japan's first cable car up to a 1929 flying-machine ride

The only one in Japan

Ride Japan's first cable car up to a 1929 flying-machine ride

Nara · Ikoma Cable Toriimae Station · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

Walk through Japan's first modern river tunnel on an open Saturday

Kobe · Minatogawa Tunnel · Free

Tour Koshien, the stadium every Japanese high-school player dreams of reaching

Tour Koshien, the stadium every Japanese high-school player dreams of reaching

Tour Koshien, the stadium every Japanese high-school player dreams of reaching

Tour Koshien, the stadium every Japanese high-school player dreams of reaching

Tour Koshien, the stadium every Japanese high-school player dreams of reaching

The only one in Japan

Tour Koshien, the stadium every Japanese high-school player dreams of reaching

Kobe · The Museum of Hanshin Koshien Stadium

The only one in Japan

Walk through twelve farmhouses moved from Iwate to Kagoshima, in Japan's first open-air museum

Osaka · Open-Air Museum of Old Japanese Farm Houses

Stand on the dam of Japan's oldest reservoir, then walk through a slice of it

Stand on the dam of Japan's oldest reservoir, then walk through a slice of it

Stand on the dam of Japan's oldest reservoir, then walk through a slice of it

Stand on the dam of Japan's oldest reservoir, then walk through a slice of it

Stand on the dam of Japan's oldest reservoir, then walk through a slice of it

The only one in Japan

Stand on the dam of Japan's oldest reservoir, then walk through a slice of it

Osaka · Osaka Prefectural Sayamaike Museum · Free

The only one in Japan

Ride Japan's longest funicular up to Enryaku-ji, between two heritage stations

Kyoto · Cable Sakamoto Station

Ride all eight free city ferries across the working rivers

The only one in Japan

Ride all eight free city ferries across the working rivers

Osaka · Senbonmatsu Ferry · Free

Climb Mt Atago overnight

Climb Mt Atago overnight

Climb Mt Atago overnight

Climb Mt Atago overnight

The only one in Japan

Climb Mt Atago overnight

Kyoto · Atago Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Step into a 15th-century farmhouse just recommended as a National Treasure

Step into a 15th-century farmhouse just recommended as a National Treasure

Step into a 15th-century farmhouse just recommended as a National Treasure

Step into a 15th-century farmhouse just recommended as a National Treasure

Step into a 15th-century farmhouse just recommended as a National Treasure

The only one in Japan

Step into a 15th-century farmhouse just recommended as a National Treasure

Himeji · Furui Family House · Free

The only one in Japan

Watch Japan's first captive-bred sea cormorants fish the Uji River, tethered in summer and untethered in spring and autumn

Uji · Uji Park · Seasonal

Eat fucha ryōri at Mampuku-ji, the temple whose founder brought the cuisine to Japan

Eat fucha ryōri at Mampuku-ji, the temple whose founder brought the cuisine to Japan

Eat fucha ryōri at Mampuku-ji, the temple whose founder brought the cuisine to Japan

Eat fucha ryōri at Mampuku-ji, the temple whose founder brought the cuisine to Japan

Eat fucha ryōri at Mampuku-ji, the temple whose founder brought the cuisine to Japan

The only one in Japan

Eat fucha ryōri at Mampuku-ji, the temple whose founder brought the cuisine to Japan

Uji · Manpuku-ji

Walk Kasuga Taisha when all three thousand lanterns are lit

Walk Kasuga Taisha when all three thousand lanterns are lit

Walk Kasuga Taisha when all three thousand lanterns are lit

Walk Kasuga Taisha when all three thousand lanterns are lit

Walk Kasuga Taisha when all three thousand lanterns are lit

The only one in Japan

Walk Kasuga Taisha when all three thousand lanterns are lit

Nara · Kasugataisha Shrine · Seasonal

See a whole hillside set alight at Wakakusa Yamayaki

See a whole hillside set alight at Wakakusa Yamayaki

The only one in Japan

See a whole hillside set alight at Wakakusa Yamayaki

Nara · Wakakusayama · Free · Seasonal

Watch silent masked plays

Watch silent masked plays

Watch silent masked plays

Watch silent masked plays

Watch silent masked plays

The only one in Japan

Watch silent masked plays

Kyoto · Mibu-dera Temple · Seasonal

See Noh by firelight where outdoor Noh began

See Noh by firelight where outdoor Noh began

See Noh by firelight where outdoor Noh began

See Noh by firelight where outdoor Noh began

See Noh by firelight where outdoor Noh began

The only one in Japan

See Noh by firelight where outdoor Noh began

Nara · Kofuku-ji · Seasonal

Climb aboard a Gion Matsuri float on the evenings before the parade

The only one in Japan

Climb aboard a Gion Matsuri float on the evenings before the parade

Kyoto · Shijo Karasuma · Seasonal

Pass a seven-kilo tea bowl around at Saidaiji's Ōchamori

Pass a seven-kilo tea bowl around at Saidaiji's Ōchamori

Pass a seven-kilo tea bowl around at Saidaiji's Ōchamori

Pass a seven-kilo tea bowl around at Saidaiji's Ōchamori

Pass a seven-kilo tea bowl around at Saidaiji's Ōchamori

The only one in Japan

Pass a seven-kilo tea bowl around at Saidaiji's Ōchamori

Nara · Saidaiji · Seasonal

Drink bodaimoto sake at the temple where refined sake was born

Drink bodaimoto sake at the temple where refined sake was born

Drink bodaimoto sake at the temple where refined sake was born

Drink bodaimoto sake at the temple where refined sake was born

Drink bodaimoto sake at the temple where refined sake was born

The only one in Japan

Drink bodaimoto sake at the temple where refined sake was born

Nara · Shoryaku-ji

The only one in Japan

Find Arima's pop-up doll brushes at the one shop that still makes them

Kobe · Haifukiya Nishida Fudeten

The only one in Japan

Squeeze a handful of raw ink into your own stick of Nara sumi

Nara · Kobaien · Seasonal

Watch a hundred boats carry the gods down the river at Tenjin Matsuri

Watch a hundred boats carry the gods down the river at Tenjin Matsuri

Watch a hundred boats carry the gods down the river at Tenjin Matsuri

Watch a hundred boats carry the gods down the river at Tenjin Matsuri

The only one in Japan

Watch a hundred boats carry the gods down the river at Tenjin Matsuri

Osaka · Osaka Tenmangu Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Laugh for twenty minutes on command at Hiraoka Shrine

The only one in Japan

Laugh for twenty minutes on command at Hiraoka Shrine

Osaka · Hiraoka Jinja · Free · Seasonal

Run, or watch, the dawn sprint for Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine

Run, or watch, the dawn sprint for Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine

Run, or watch, the dawn sprint for Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine

Run, or watch, the dawn sprint for Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine

Run, or watch, the dawn sprint for Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine

The only one in Japan

Run, or watch, the dawn sprint for Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine

Kobe · Nishinomiya Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Collect a papier-mâché tiger on the medicine street

Collect a papier-mâché tiger on the medicine street

Collect a papier-mâché tiger on the medicine street

The only one in Japan

Collect a papier-mâché tiger on the medicine street

Osaka · Sukunahikona Shrine · Free · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

See a premiere at the Takarazuka Revue's home theatre

Kobe · Takarazuka Grand Theater

The only one in Japan

Eat a Shōkadō bentō in the garden where the box was born

Kyoto · Kyoto Kitcho Shokado

Ride a steam train out of Japan's oldest surviving reinforced-concrete locomotive roundhouse

Ride a steam train out of Japan's oldest surviving reinforced-concrete locomotive roundhouse

Ride a steam train out of Japan's oldest surviving reinforced-concrete locomotive roundhouse

Ride a steam train out of Japan's oldest surviving reinforced-concrete locomotive roundhouse

Ride a steam train out of Japan's oldest surviving reinforced-concrete locomotive roundhouse

The only one in Japan

Ride a steam train out of Japan's oldest surviving reinforced-concrete locomotive roundhouse

Kyoto · Kyoto Railway Museum

Go through the 1890 Lake Biwa Canal tunnels by boat

Go through the 1890 Lake Biwa Canal tunnels by boat

Go through the 1890 Lake Biwa Canal tunnels by boat

Go through the 1890 Lake Biwa Canal tunnels by boat

Go through the 1890 Lake Biwa Canal tunnels by boat

The only one in Japan

Go through the 1890 Lake Biwa Canal tunnels by boat

Kyoto · Keage Boarding Area · Seasonal

Read the history of Japan's largest Korean community where it lives

Read the history of Japan's largest Korean community where it lives

Read the history of Japan's largest Korean community where it lives

Read the history of Japan's largest Korean community where it lives

Read the history of Japan's largest Korean community where it lives

The only one in Japan

Read the history of Japan's largest Korean community where it lives

Osaka · Osaka Korea Town History Museum

Study netsuke with a loupe in Japan's only museum devoted to them

Study netsuke with a loupe in Japan's only museum devoted to them

Study netsuke with a loupe in Japan's only museum devoted to them

Study netsuke with a loupe in Japan's only museum devoted to them

The only one in Japan

Study netsuke with a loupe in Japan's only museum devoted to them

Kyoto · Kyoto Seishu Netsuke Art Museum

Watch geiko and maiko dance their district's annual public odori

Watch geiko and maiko dance their district's annual public odori

The only one in Japan

Watch geiko and maiko dance their district's annual public odori

Kyoto · Gion Kobu Kaburenjo · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

Drink tea at the bridge where Tsuen has served it since 1160

Uji · Tsuen

Drink sake from a green bamboo cup to ward off cancer at Daianji

Drink sake from a green bamboo cup to ward off cancer at Daianji

The only one in Japan

Drink sake from a green bamboo cup to ward off cancer at Daianji

Nara · Daianji · Seasonal

Eat the 1910 curry that comes already mixed, with a raw egg on top

Eat the 1910 curry that comes already mixed, with a raw egg on top

Eat the 1910 curry that comes already mixed, with a raw egg on top

Eat the 1910 curry that comes already mixed, with a raw egg on top

Eat the 1910 curry that comes already mixed, with a raw egg on top

The only one in Japan

Eat the 1910 curry that comes already mixed, with a raw egg on top

Osaka · Jiyuken

Meet 1,200 stone disciples, each carved by an ordinary pilgrim

Meet 1,200 stone disciples, each carved by an ordinary pilgrim

Meet 1,200 stone disciples, each carved by an ordinary pilgrim

Meet 1,200 stone disciples, each carved by an ordinary pilgrim

Meet 1,200 stone disciples, each carved by an ordinary pilgrim

The only one in Japan

Meet 1,200 stone disciples, each carved by an ordinary pilgrim

Kyoto · Otagi Nenbutsuji

Crawl through the Great Buddha's nostril

Crawl through the Great Buddha's nostril

Crawl through the Great Buddha's nostril

Crawl through the Great Buddha's nostril

Crawl through the Great Buddha's nostril

The only one in Japan

Crawl through the Great Buddha's nostril

Nara · Todai-ji

The only one in Japan

Shout for bamboo at Toka Ebisu, then knock at the back door

Osaka · Imamiya Ebisu Shrine · Free · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

Watch coopers build a sake cask in Japan's biggest sake district

Kobe · Kiku-Masamune Tarusake Meister Factory · Free

Feel the floats take the corner at full run in Kishiwada

The only one in Japan

Feel the floats take the corner at full run in Kishiwada

Osaka · Kishiwada Danjiri Kaikan · Free · Seasonal

Eat on a deck over the river

Eat on a deck over the river

Eat on a deck over the river

Eat on a deck over the river

Eat on a deck over the river

The only one in Japan

Eat on a deck over the river

Kyoto · Pontocho · Seasonal

Walk Japan's first state temple free on the 21st, among the market stalls

Walk Japan's first state temple free on the 21st, among the market stalls

Walk Japan's first state temple free on the 21st, among the market stalls

Walk Japan's first state temple free on the 21st, among the market stalls

Walk Japan's first state temple free on the 21st, among the market stalls

The only one in Japan

Walk Japan's first state temple free on the 21st, among the market stalls

Osaka · Shitennoji Temple · Free

Climb to the top of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge's main tower

Climb to the top of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge's main tower

Climb to the top of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge's main tower

Climb to the top of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge's main tower

Climb to the top of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge's main tower

The only one in Japan

Climb to the top of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge's main tower

Kobe · Bridge Exhibition Center · Seasonal

Go to the Manjū Festival at the shrine of the man who brought manjū to Japan

Go to the Manjū Festival at the shrine of the man who brought manjū to Japan

The only one in Japan

Go to the Manjū Festival at the shrine of the man who brought manjū to Japan

Nara · Kangō Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Watch rice planted by hand in Sumiyoshi's sacred paddy

Watch rice planted by hand in Sumiyoshi's sacred paddy

Watch rice planted by hand in Sumiyoshi's sacred paddy

Watch rice planted by hand in Sumiyoshi's sacred paddy

Watch rice planted by hand in Sumiyoshi's sacred paddy

The only one in Japan

Watch rice planted by hand in Sumiyoshi's sacred paddy

Osaka · Sumiyoshi Taisha · Free · Seasonal

Climb a kofun restored to look as it did when it was built

Climb a kofun restored to look as it did when it was built

Climb a kofun restored to look as it did when it was built

The only one in Japan

Climb a kofun restored to look as it did when it was built

Kobe · Goshikizuka Tumulus · Free

Climb the mountain that is itself the god, at Ōmiwa

Climb the mountain that is itself the god, at Ōmiwa

Climb the mountain that is itself the god, at Ōmiwa

Climb the mountain that is itself the god, at Ōmiwa

Climb the mountain that is itself the god, at Ōmiwa

The only one in Japan

Climb the mountain that is itself the god, at Ōmiwa

Nara · Omiwa Jinja

The only one in Japan

Walk into the governor's office of Japan's oldest government building still in use

Kyoto · Kyoto Prefectural Government Old Main Building · Free

The only one in Japan

Walk the dormitory rooms of the only emigrant hostel left in Japan

Kobe · Kobe Center for Overseas Migration and Cultural Interaction · Free

Climb a 4.5 m mountain and collect the certificate

Climb a 4.5 m mountain and collect the certificate

Climb a 4.5 m mountain and collect the certificate

Climb a 4.5 m mountain and collect the certificate

Climb a 4.5 m mountain and collect the certificate

The only one in Japan

Climb a 4.5 m mountain and collect the certificate

Osaka · Tempozan Park · Free

Eat omurice in the 1950 sukiya house of the restaurant that named it

The only one in Japan

Eat omurice in the 1950 sukiya house of the restaurant that named it

Osaka · Hokkyokusei

Follow the torches through Kurama

Follow the torches through Kurama

The only one in Japan

Follow the torches through Kurama

Kyoto · Yuki Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Eat kushikatsu at the 1929 Shinsekai counter and keep to the one-dip rule

Eat kushikatsu at the 1929 Shinsekai counter and keep to the one-dip rule

Eat kushikatsu at the 1929 Shinsekai counter and keep to the one-dip rule

The only one in Japan

Eat kushikatsu at the 1929 Shinsekai counter and keep to the one-dip rule

Osaka · Kushikatsu Daruma Shinsekai Main Shop

Place a candle among 8,000 stone Buddhas of the unclaimed dead, last weekend of August

Place a candle among 8,000 stone Buddhas of the unclaimed dead, last weekend of August

Place a candle among 8,000 stone Buddhas of the unclaimed dead, last weekend of August

The only one in Japan

Place a candle among 8,000 stone Buddhas of the unclaimed dead, last weekend of August

Kyoto · Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple · Seasonal

Read the roof of Gangō-ji for 1,400-year-old Asuka tiles

Read the roof of Gangō-ji for 1,400-year-old Asuka tiles

Read the roof of Gangō-ji for 1,400-year-old Asuka tiles

Read the roof of Gangō-ji for 1,400-year-old Asuka tiles

Read the roof of Gangō-ji for 1,400-year-old Asuka tiles

The only one in Japan

Read the roof of Gangō-ji for 1,400-year-old Asuka tiles

Nara · Gango-ji

Go inside a working shipyard to the only intact shogunate battery of its kind

The only one in Japan

Go inside a working shipyard to the only intact shogunate battery of its kind

Kobe · Wadamisaki Battery · Free

Walk Imaichō, the largest preserved Edo townscape in Japan

Walk Imaichō, the largest preserved Edo townscape in Japan

Walk Imaichō, the largest preserved Edo townscape in Japan

Walk Imaichō, the largest preserved Edo townscape in Japan

Walk Imaichō, the largest preserved Edo townscape in Japan

The only one in Japan

Walk Imaichō, the largest preserved Edo townscape in Japan

Nara · Imaicho · Free

The only one in Japan

Ride Japan's oldest working elevator up to a Peking-cuisine dining room on the Kamo river

Kyoto · Tohka Saikan

The only one in Japan

Drink coffee in the first café in Japan registered as a cultural property

Kyoto · Salon de the Francois

See December's kaomise at Minamiza, under the hand-lettered name boards

See December's kaomise at Minamiza, under the hand-lettered name boards

See December's kaomise at Minamiza, under the hand-lettered name boards

See December's kaomise at Minamiza, under the hand-lettered name boards

See December's kaomise at Minamiza, under the hand-lettered name boards

The only one in Japan

See December's kaomise at Minamiza, under the hand-lettered name boards

Kyoto · Minamiza Theater · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

Go to Japan's only museum devoted to dung beetles, which exists because of the deer

Nara · Naramachi Hunchukan

Walk the full 2.6 km of Japan's longest shopping street

Walk the full 2.6 km of Japan's longest shopping street

Walk the full 2.6 km of Japan's longest shopping street

Walk the full 2.6 km of Japan's longest shopping street

Walk the full 2.6 km of Japan's longest shopping street

The only one in Japan

Walk the full 2.6 km of Japan's longest shopping street

Osaka · Tenjinbashi-suji Shopping Street · Free

Lift a 150 kg rice cake

Lift a 150 kg rice cake

Lift a 150 kg rice cake

Lift a 150 kg rice cake

Lift a 150 kg rice cake

The only one in Japan

Lift a 150 kg rice cake

Kyoto · Daigo-ji Temple · Seasonal

The only one in Japan

Drink stone-ground coffee from the shop that advertised Japan's first cup

Kobe · Hokodo Coffee

Eat a kakigori that has first been offered to the god of ice

Eat a kakigori that has first been offered to the god of ice

Eat a kakigori that has first been offered to the god of ice

Eat a kakigori that has first been offered to the god of ice

Eat a kakigori that has first been offered to the god of ice

The only one in Japan

Eat a kakigori that has first been offered to the god of ice

Nara · Himuro Shrine · Seasonal

Throw clay discs off a cliff at Jingo-ji, where kawarake-nage is said to have begun

Throw clay discs off a cliff at Jingo-ji, where kawarake-nage is said to have begun

Throw clay discs off a cliff at Jingo-ji, where kawarake-nage is said to have begun

Throw clay discs off a cliff at Jingo-ji, where kawarake-nage is said to have begun

Throw clay discs off a cliff at Jingo-ji, where kawarake-nage is said to have begun

The only one in Japan

Throw clay discs off a cliff at Jingo-ji, where kawarake-nage is said to have begun

Kyoto · Jingo-ji Temple

Copy a sutra before you are allowed into the Moss Temple

Copy a sutra before you are allowed into the Moss Temple

Copy a sutra before you are allowed into the Moss Temple

Copy a sutra before you are allowed into the Moss Temple

Copy a sutra before you are allowed into the Moss Temple

The only one in Japan

Copy a sutra before you are allowed into the Moss Temple

Kyoto · Saihoji Temple

The only one in Japan

Drink at Japan's oldest surviving grand cabaret

Osaka · Grand Cabaret Miss Osaka

Hear bell crickets sing in midwinter, during a sermon with tea

Hear bell crickets sing in midwinter, during a sermon with tea

Hear bell crickets sing in midwinter, during a sermon with tea

The only one in Japan

Hear bell crickets sing in midwinter, during a sermon with tea

Kyoto · Kegonji (Suzumushidera) Temple

Eat nishin soba at the shop that invented it, beside the Minamiza

Eat nishin soba at the shop that invented it, beside the Minamiza

The only one in Japan

Eat nishin soba at the shop that invented it, beside the Minamiza

Kyoto · Matsuba Nishin Soba

The only one in Japan

Drink mix juice at the Shinsekai shop credited with inventing it

Osaka · Sennariya Coffee

Drink from the carbonated spring, then eat the rice cracker it invented

The only one in Japan

Drink from the carbonated spring, then eat the rice cracker it invented

Kobe · Tansan Spring Park · Free

Bathe in both of Arima's waters: the brown kinsen and the clear ginsen

The only one in Japan

Bathe in both of Arima's waters: the brown kinsen and the clear ginsen

Kobe · Arima Onsen Kin no Yu

The only one in Japan

Order sobameshi with suji-kon in the Nagata streets where it was invented

Kobe · Aomori

Climb through the torii tunnels to the summit of Mt Inari, at the head shrine of all Inari shrines

Climb through the torii tunnels to the summit of Mt Inari, at the head shrine of all Inari shrines

Climb through the torii tunnels to the summit of Mt Inari, at the head shrine of all Inari shrines

Climb through the torii tunnels to the summit of Mt Inari, at the head shrine of all Inari shrines

Climb through the torii tunnels to the summit of Mt Inari, at the head shrine of all Inari shrines

The only one in Japan

Climb through the torii tunnels to the summit of Mt Inari, at the head shrine of all Inari shrines

Kyoto · Fushimi Inari Taisha · Free

Take your place in the Kamo riverbank's "equal spacing"

Take your place in the Kamo riverbank's "equal spacing"

Take your place in the Kamo riverbank's "equal spacing"

Take your place in the Kamo riverbank's "equal spacing"

Take your place in the Kamo riverbank's "equal spacing"

The only one in Japan

Take your place in the Kamo riverbank's "equal spacing"

Kyoto · Kamogawa River · Free

Stand in silence at 5:46 among 6,000 bamboo lanterns on 17 January

The only one in Hyogo

Stand in silence at 5:46 among 6,000 bamboo lanterns on 17 January

Kobe · Higashi Yuenchi Park · Free · Seasonal

The only one in Hyogo

Eat oden with grated ginger and soy, the Himeji way

Himeji · Nadagiku Kappatei

Get a guided walk through the Foreign Cemetery on one of twelve open days

Get a guided walk through the Foreign Cemetery on one of twelve open days

Get a guided walk through the Foreign Cemetery on one of twelve open days

Get a guided walk through the Foreign Cemetery on one of twelve open days

Get a guided walk through the Foreign Cemetery on one of twelve open days

The only one in Hyogo

Get a guided walk through the Foreign Cemetery on one of twelve open days

Kobe · Kobe Municipal Foreign Cemetery · Free · Seasonal

The only one in Hyogo

Eat hinepon, old laying hen with ponzu, in the egg-farming country that invented it

Himeji · Yakitori Kimura

The only one in Hyogo

Watch three portable shrines smashed together at the Nada Fighting Festival

Himeji · Matsubarahachiman Shrine · Free · Seasonal

Watch seven torch-bearing oni dance at Nagata Shrine on Setsubun, with no beans thrown

Watch seven torch-bearing oni dance at Nagata Shrine on Setsubun, with no beans thrown

The only one in Hyogo

Watch seven torch-bearing oni dance at Nagata Shrine on Setsubun, with no beans thrown

Kobe · Nagata Jinja · Free · Seasonal

Catch the daily 2 pm rakugo matinee in the old entertainment district

Catch the daily 2 pm rakugo matinee in the old entertainment district

Catch the daily 2 pm rakugo matinee in the old entertainment district

Catch the daily 2 pm rakugo matinee in the old entertainment district

Catch the daily 2 pm rakugo matinee in the old entertainment district

The only one in Hyogo

Catch the daily 2 pm rakugo matinee in the old entertainment district

Kobe · Kobe Shinkaichi Kirakukan

Bathe in a 1923 sento that is a national Registered Tangible Cultural Property

Bathe in a 1923 sento that is a national Registered Tangible Cultural Property

Bathe in a 1923 sento that is a national Registered Tangible Cultural Property

Bathe in a 1923 sento that is a national Registered Tangible Cultural Property

Bathe in a 1923 sento that is a national Registered Tangible Cultural Property

The only one in the state

Bathe in a 1923 sento that is a national Registered Tangible Cultural Property

Kyoto · Funaoka Onsen

The only one in the state

Pull a rope through a wall to ring the hidden bell that calls the dead home

Kyoto · Rokudo Chinnoji Temple · Free · Seasonal

Shop Kōbō-san, the market of about a thousand stalls at Tō-ji on the 21st

Shop Kōbō-san, the market of about a thousand stalls at Tō-ji on the 21st

The only one in the state

Shop Kōbō-san, the market of about a thousand stalls at Tō-ji on the 21st

Kyoto · To-ji Temple · Free

Hunt for antiques on the 25th at Tenjin-san, Kitano Tenmangu's monthly fair

Hunt for antiques on the 25th at Tenjin-san, Kitano Tenmangu's monthly fair

Hunt for antiques on the 25th at Tenjin-san, Kitano Tenmangu's monthly fair

Hunt for antiques on the 25th at Tenjin-san, Kitano Tenmangu's monthly fair

Hunt for antiques on the 25th at Tenjin-san, Kitano Tenmangu's monthly fair

The only one in the state

Hunt for antiques on the 25th at Tenjin-san, Kitano Tenmangu's monthly fair

Kyoto · Kitano Tenman-gu · Free

Dip your takoyaki in sauce, then in dashi, at the shop where customers started it

The only one in Hyogo

Dip your takoyaki in sauce, then in dashi, at the shop where customers started it

Himeji · Himeji Takopii

The only one in Hyogo

Climb Takatori-yama before breakfast and sign the teahouse book

Kobe · Takatoriyama · Free

The only one in Hyogo

Watch the red and blue oni dance on Mt Shosha on 18 January

Himeji · Engyōji · Seasonal

Wade Shimogamo's icy spring pond holding a candle, during the Mitarashi festival

Wade Shimogamo's icy spring pond holding a candle, during the Mitarashi festival

Wade Shimogamo's icy spring pond holding a candle, during the Mitarashi festival

Wade Shimogamo's icy spring pond holding a candle, during the Mitarashi festival

Wade Shimogamo's icy spring pond holding a candle, during the Mitarashi festival

The only one in the state

Wade Shimogamo's icy spring pond holding a candle, during the Mitarashi festival

Kyoto · Shimogamo Shrine · Seasonal

The only one in Hyogo

Order almond toast with your morning coffee, the Banshū café standard

Himeji · Sabō Tairiku Honten

Stay up for the Agata Matsuri, the Uji festival where the lights go out at midnight

The only one in Kyoto

Stay up for the Agata Matsuri, the Uji festival where the lights go out at midnight

Uji · Agata Jinja · Free · Seasonal

Crawl through the stone that cuts bad ties, then back through it to tie good ones

The only one in the state

Crawl through the stone that cuts bad ties, then back through it to tie good ones

Kyoto · Yasui Konpiragu Shrine · Free

Eat Okinawan in Taishō, where one resident in four has Okinawan roots

The only one in the state

Eat Okinawan in Taishō, where one resident in four has Okinawan roots

Osaka · Sanks Hirao · Free

Carry sacred fire home on a whirling rope on New Year's Eve

Carry sacred fire home on a whirling rope on New Year's Eve

Carry sacred fire home on a whirling rope on New Year's Eve

Carry sacred fire home on a whirling rope on New Year's Eve

Carry sacred fire home on a whirling rope on New Year's Eve

The only one in the state

Carry sacred fire home on a whirling rope on New Year's Eve

Kyoto · Yasaka Shrine · Free · Seasonal

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