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  Lake Yamanaka, Yamanashi Prefecture - Sunset Shore & Autumn Leaves Festival

  I went to Lake Yamanaka in Yamanashi Prefecture to photograph the autumn leaves. It was a 20-min bus ride from the Fujikyuko Line's Fujisan Station to the Lake Yamanakako: Asahigaoka bus stop...

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  It takes 120 minutes from Tokyo! Let's go to the Hitachi Seaside Park and viewing blooming 32,000 of flowers!

  Summer cypress dramatically turn to crimson and beautiful Cosmoses.

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  World Heritage Site – Mt. Koya (Part 1) – Autumn Leaves at Kongobu-ji and Danjogaran

  Wakayama Prefecture. Mt. Koya, a sacred place of which Kobo Daishi (Kukai), a famous poet, sang praises of its autumn leaves. He was fascinated by the brilliant autumn leaves during clear weather.

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  Numata City, Gunma Prefecture – Autumn Leaves, Sightseeing Spots, and Access Information for Fukiware-no-Taki Falls

  Fukiware-no-Taki Falls, sometimes referred to as the “Niagara of the East,” happens to be a famous location for viewing gorgeous autumn leaves. The falls, which are 7 meters tall and 30 meters wide, make for an amazing view when backed by the area’s suspension bridge and autumn leaves! Next, I’ll introduce some more information about Fukiware-no-Taki Falls, which was designated as a natural monument and scenic spot in 1936.

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  I visited the「 Naiku 」of the Ise-jinguu(shrine) and strolled around the「Oharai-machi」

  Ise-jingu in Mie prefecture is said to be the representative for all Shinto shrines in Japan.

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  A Round Trip to Saitama Prefecture’s Gyoda for a Visit to Ravishing Ancient Lotuses, Tumulus Clusters and the Historic Castle in One Day!

  It is only a 1-hour train ride from Tokyo’s Ueno Station on the Takasaki Line (JR East) to Saitama Prefecture’s Gyoda, where ancient lotuses are in full bloom! Besides, there are Saitama Kofun (tumuli, ancient burial mounds) Park and Oshi Castle, which are rarely seen in other cities in Japan. Here is an account of my one-day round trip to Gyoda and I hope it could be helpful to you.

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  Four Must-visit Hanami Spots in the Suburbs of the Kanto Region during the Golden Week

  Japanese people enjoy several continuous days of holiday between late April and early May, which are called the Golden Week in Japan. Then various regions of Japan will be bustling with crowded vacationers. Our careful selection finds that, in the suburbs of the Kanto region, the following four hanami spots seem most worth your visit during the Golden Week.

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  Cherry blossoms at day・night in Tokyo・Roppongi Midtown

  Tokyo's Roppongi Midtown is a cherry blossom spot next to Hinokicho Park. Today we would like to introduce you each spot around the area. Please see map at the end of this article for reference.

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  Tokyo・Roppongi Hills,Cherry blossoms daytime&night at Mohri Garden!

  This is Tokyo Roppongi Hills. Mohri Garden is a traditional Japanese landscape garden where has attractive cherry blossoms scenery in Spring next to Roppongi Hills Mori Tower and TV Asahi building.

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  Chichibu’s “Icicles of Misotsuchi” and Nagatoro’s “Robai-en” Travel Plans!

  Why not try visiting winter locations in Tokyo’s neighboring Saitama Prefecture’s Chichibu? This area is 3 hours away from Ikebukuro by bus or the Seibu Line. I’ve come to visit the back-country areas of Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture. First off, I stopped to appreciate the artful ice formations!

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  Yamagata Prefecture’s “Yamadera” – Amazing Snowy Scenery!

  You can reach Yamadera Station from Tokyo Station by taking the Yamagata Shinkansen for 2 hours and 30 minutes, then changing to the Senzan line at Yamagata Station and riding for about 20 minutes.

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  Aomori in Winter – Hirosaki City Sightseeing – A Journey With Nebuta, Tsugaru Shamisen, and Gourmet Food!

  You can reach Shin-Aomori Station from Tokyo Station in about 3 hours by taking the “Hayabusa” Tohoku Shinkansen. Switch to the standard train line for about 40 minutes, and you will reach Aomori Prefecture’s Hirosaki. Here I will report on that area in the wintertime.

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  Fall foliage in Angyo (Kawaguchi City, Saitama)! “Kouzenin” and “Kobayashi Momiji-en”.

  Especially in the article, I am going to write about highly recommended fall foliage spots in the area, “Angyo”.

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  Lake Kawaguchi, Yamanashi Prefecture – A hot spring with picturesque views of the autumn leaves and Mt. Fuji!

  I stayed at SHUHOUKAKU KOGETSU hotel & hot springs, which is located beside Lake Kawaguchi in Yamanashi Prefecture, to explore the areas surrounding Lake Kawaguchi and Lake Yamanaka.

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  A Field of Rape Blossoms in Central Tokyo! Hamarikyu Gardens in March

  Shimbashi, the gateway to Odaiba, Tokyo. If you approach Daiba Station on the Yurikamome Line, a veritable forest of skyrises, the Shiodome district, comes into view. The Hamarikyu Gardens are nestled in the depths of Shiodome. A “carpet of rape blossoms” blooms there every year in March.

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  World Heritage Site – Mt. Koya (Part 2) – Walking Around “Okunoin,” Mausoleum for Kobo Daishi

  Wakayama Prefecture. After enjoying the autumn leaves at Kongobu-ji and enjoying sesame tofu and shojin-ryori for lunch, let’s continue on and walk around “Okunoin.” Okunoin hosts the graves of historical figures and daimyo from across the country, is filled with interestingly shaped graves and memorial towers, and is home to Kobo Daishi’s mausoleum. In this second part, I’ll provide information on accessing Mt. Koya and some great value tickets.

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  There’s no better time to check out Ikegami Honmonji Temple’s 5-story pagoda than during cherry blossom season!

  Ota-ku, Tokyo is home to the vast grounds of Ikegami Honmonji Temple, which is also incidentally a popular cherry blossom viewing spot. In particular, people flock to see and photograph the magical sight of the 5-story pagoda surrounded by the fluffy, pink flowers.

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  Moka Railway – Steam Locomotive with Cherry Blossoms and Rape Blossoms in Full Bloom! A Day Trip with Beautiful Scenery!

  The Moka Railway is a local train line that spans 41.9 kilometers, from Ibaraki Prefecture’s Shimodate Station to Tochigi Prefecture’s Motegi Station. On weekends and holidays, the steam locomotive line, which makes one round-trip per day, offers a spring-limited special trip through the pink cherry blossoms and yellow rape blossoms. I highly recommend taking a trip through this area, as even those with no interest in railways can appreciate the scenery!

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  An exploration day trip to Saitama Prefecture! Ogose Plum Grove and Kuroyama Three Waterfalls

  You can get to Saitama Prefecture's famous Ogose Plum Grove from Ikebukuro, Tokyo in about 70 minutes via the Tobu Tojo Line (with one transfer to the Tobu Ogose Line at Sakado Station). Today I’d like to share my Ogose exploration day trip plan with you, which includes flower viewing at the Ogose Plum Grove and a visit to the Kuroyama Three Waterfalls.

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  Trip Through Aomori in Winter on Tsugaru Railway’s “Stove Train” - Hirosaki, Kanagi, and Goshogawara

  To get to our destination this time, I got onto the JR Gono Line from Hirosaki Station, and eventually I arrived at Goshogawara Station. The Tsugaru Railway’s Goshogawara Station building is located adjacent to the JR station.

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  Chichibu’s Winter Art “Icicles,” Part 3! “Icicles of Onouchi”

  Chichibu, of Saitama Prefecture, is famous for its winter “icicles.” So far, I have introduced two famous icicle locations, and this article will feature a third. With this, the “Three Great Icicles” of Chichibu will be completed!

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  Chichibu’s Winter Art “Icicles,” Part 2! “Ashigakubo Icicles”

  I visited another icicle formation, other than the “Icicles of Misotsuchi,” on January 11th, 2016. The icicle formation I’ll introduce this time is conveniently accessible on foot from the nearby station.

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  ”Dr Yellow”. Rumor has it, just catching sight of it will make you happy!

  I have some exciting news! For the first time in my 40 years of train spotting, I saw the “Dr Yellow” Shinkansen for real!

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  Special outdoor lighting of Kyoto’s autumn leaves at Kiyomizu-dera Temple

  I went to Kyoto and saw Kiyomizu-dera Temple at night for the first time. They had special outdoor lighting set up to make the autumn leaves appear even more magical than usual.

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  A Visit to Onuma Park in Southern Hokkaido for Dining on a Tour Boat and Going Canoeing on the Lake (Summer & Fall)

  Onuma (great marsh) Quasi-National Park, located in Southern Hokkaido, is a famous idyllic spot that boasts three beautiful lakes and encompasses Hokkaido Koma-ga-take (Horse Mountain) behind the lakes. Such a park is well worth a visit, which is definitely rewarding than a glimpse of its magnificent scenery from a passing Hakodate-Sapporo express.

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  A Tour along the Oigawa Railway Lines! Taking a Steam Locomotive Train to Visit Shizuoka that Features Gorgeous Red Leaves, Beautifying Hot Springs and Thrilling Experience on a Suspension Bridge!

  It is only an around 1-hour ride by the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Shizuoka, where steam locomotive trains, once having disappeared from our lives, are revived and still running on the Oigawa Railway Lines. You may follow my trail to embark on a romantic tour on a vintage train in pursuit of red leaves and hot springs there.

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  A Sightseeing Tour of Hakodate Tinted with Red and Yellow to Make the Acquaintance of Hokkaido in Fall

  Hakodate is the capital city of southern Hokkaido. From the end of October, the trees in Hakodate start to be tinted with red and yellow by lovely red leaves, which elaborately adorn the picturesque street-scape of Hakodate.

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  I visited the「Shima Kanko Hotel」 where the 2016「Ise Shima Summit」 was held.

  The「Ise Shima Summit」 was held between May 26th and 27th, 2016. The「Shima Kanko Hotel」 was the stage for the summit and national leaders stayed there. This hotel is located on Kashiko Jima.

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  The location of the Ise-Shima G7 summit, Kashikojima and Ago Bay cruise (Espana cruise)

  Ise-Shima G7 summit was held over May 26th and 27th 2016. It was hosted on Kasiko island in Shima city, Mie prefecture. I decided to visit the island...

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  Day trip from Chubu Centrair International Airport to National Treasure Inuyama Castle!

  One hour by train from Nagoya's Chubu Centrair International Airport, the entrance to the Chubu region, you'll find Inuyama.

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  Staying in Kyoto? The newly opened “Machiya Ryokan [Luck you]” located in central Kyoto is highly recommended.

  Recently I stayed at 「Kyo-Machiya Luck you Horikawa gojo」 (just launched on June 17th 2016). It’s conveniently located in central Kyoto, just a 6 minute taxi ride from Kyoto station.

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  A day return trip to view beautiful “Annabelle hydrangeas” at Gongendo Park·Satte city of Saitama Prefecture.

  From Tokyo · Asakusa Station and take Tobu Skytree Line about 50 minutes will lead you to “Gongendo Park” at Satte city of Saitama Prefecture, where is famous for it's seasonal flowers.

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  The excellent performace of cherry blossoms and rapeflowers! One day trip to visit the Spring at Watarase River and Ashio from Tokyo.

  Today we would like to introduce you a place where visitors are able to see cherry blossoms and rapeflowers in full bloom.

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  A large natural curtain with wisteria in purple and white. “Ashikaga Flower Park” for day trip. (Ashikaga City of Tochigi Prefecture)

  After enter the park, you will see a huge curtain-like made of Japanese wisteria in colour purple and white in front of you...

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  “Large orange and golden carpet” made by Iceland poppy, rapeflower, and Nemophila! Please come and visit the Showa Kinen Park (Tachikawa-shi of Tokyo).

  Showa Kinen Park is located in Tachikawa-shi where is out of central Tokyo, and is a park comprises about 160 hectares of completed area.

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  Let’s go to Hitachi Seaside Park to enjoy the sight of a blue flower carpet and a world of tulips! It takes only 90 minutes from Ueno!

  There are so many nice resorts in Japan in the spring. Beautiful cherry blossoms in particular come out here and there, and have Japan beautifully and impressively decked out. But Hitachi Seaside Park I recommended to you features not merely cherry blossoms, and it is a wonderland of a varieties of flowers. Among them, the baby blue-eyes (nemophilas) in bloom from late April and to mid-May are especially captivating to me. Four million, five hundred thousand baby blue-eyes form a “blue carpet” merging into the blue sky, when the sky and the earth are difficult to tell apart in this fantastic scenery.

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  Hitsujiyama Park Reputed to Be Shibazakura Hill and Situated Only 80 Minutes from Ikebukuro Station

  In the eyes of many people, hanami in Japan presumably means viewing cherry blossoms. Actually, it is also a delight to view a vast expanse of shibazakura (moss phlox or moss pink), which will bloom from late April to early May, have a large field beautifully and lavishly decorated, and look extremely romantic.

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  【Saitama・Satte City】 Day trip at Gongendo Park to see 1,000 cherry trees and rape flowers.

  It takes about 50 minute from Tokyo・Asakusa by Tobu Skytree Line. It has been 3 years where I always wanted to go, and finally I have this opportunity to visit in a weekday.

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  Cherry blossom spot at night in Tokyo・Chidorigafuchi

  This time we would like to introduce you each spot around the area. Please see map at the end of this article for reference.

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  Tokyo・Asakusa Photo spots for cherry blossoms around Tokyo Skytree area.

  There are a lot of scenic spots for photo taking near Asakusa Station, as there are Sumida River, cherry blossoms and Tokyo Skytree.

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  Must-visit Cherry Blossoms viewing spot, Rikugienn Gardens (Bunkyō-ku of Tokyo).

  We have provided several reports for cherry blossoms in 2015 and promised will offer special series based on popular locations for cherry blossoms across Japan. This time we would like to introduce you is Rikugienn Gardens where is located in Bunkyō-ku of Tokyo.

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  Must-visit Cherry Blossoms viewing spot, Chidorigafuchi (Chiyoda-ku of Tokyo).

  It takes 5 minutes on foot from “Kudanshita Station” by Tokyo Metro Tozai Line • Hanzōmon Line • Toei Shinjuku Line.

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  Must-visit Cherry Blossoms viewing spot, Meguro River (Meguro-ku of Tokyo).

  To Nakameguro Station takes 1 minute on foot from Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line • Tokyu Toyoko Line...

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  Must-visit Cherry Blossoms viewing spot, Shinjuku-Gyoen (Shinjuku-ku of Tokyo).

  Shinjuku-Gyoen is one of the largest park in Tokyo and just a short walk from Shinjuku-Gyoen Station（しんじゅくぎょえんまえ） on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line.

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  Must-visit Cherry Blossoms viewing spot, Koishikawa Botanical Garden•Harimazaka (Bunkyou-ku of Tokyo).

  The place is just few minutes walking distance from Myougadani Station on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line. After pass the ticket gate and walk through Kasugadoori...

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  Kushiro, Hokkaido in winter. Beautiful Japanese cranes with dignity in cold, warm up your body with special hot spring and attractive nature views of Kushiro are only available in winter.

  Kushiro （くしろ）is in Kushiro Subprefecture of Hokkaido, where has direct flights from Tokyo Haneda airport.

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  Famous Autumn colour in Ibaraki Prefecture! Day trip to 【Fukuroda Falls】

  Take JR Jōban Line Ltd Express service train “HITACHI” departs at Tokyo・Uneo Station, and transfer to JR Suigun Line will lead you to “Fukuroda Falls” where has large and beautiful waterfalls, as well as attractive scenery of red leaves in autumn.

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  A Free Travel to Nagano in Winter to See Wild Japanese Macaques Loving Bathing in Hot Springs and Living in Jigokudani Monkey Park!

  An around 90-minute train ride on the Nagano Shinkansen (now a part of the Hokuriku Shinkansen) can take us from Tokyo Station to Nagano Station, where we can take another train by the Nagano Electric Railway to get to Yudanaka Station. The station is close to the entrance of Jigokudani (hell valley), which is a paradise on earth for Japanese Macaques loving bathing in onsens (Japanese hot springs). Tourists from Europe and America have given the macaque inhabiting this area an affectionate nickname “snow monkey”.