Area Guide - NipponStays

Japan

Autumn Leaves in Japan: 2 Months, North to South

Japan's autumn is not a month. It is a nine-week wave from Hokkaido in September to Kyushu in December — and where each region lands.

The stone approach to Nanzen-ji's sanmon on an autumn morning, maples turning on both sides

Kyoto

Where to Stay in Kyoto for Autumn Leaves: 3 Bases

The constraint is not which temple you want to see — it is what time you can be at the gate. Three Kyoto bases for three different autumn trips.

Nanzen-ji's sanmon gate backlit by low morning sun, with maples turning red beside it

Kyoto

Kyoto Autumn Leaves: Be at the Gate by 8:40, Not 9:00

We were at Nanzen-ji's sanmon at 8:37 in late November — and a dozen people were already there. What an early start in Kyoto actually buys you.

The Takano River at Yase with mist on the wooded hillside behind and maples along both banks

Kyoto

Kyoto's Autumn Leaves in the Rain: Go North Instead

Rain is not a lost day in Kyoto — it changes where you should be. Walk-through temples lose most of their value; places you look out from get better.

Ryoan-ji's dry rock garden: white raked gravel with rocks and moss, an earth wall behind, a red maple above it

Kyoto

Kinkaku-ji, Ryoan-ji, Ninna-ji: 2h30, Going Backwards

Start at Ninna-ji and finish at the Golden Pavilion. We walked all three, visits included, in two and a half hours: 09:56, 10:53, 12:28.

A maple canopy at Ruriko-in seen from below, pink and orange leaves layered against green

Kyoto

Ruriko-in Autumn 2026: Two Windows With No Booking

Ruriko-in's peak autumn weeks are a postal lottery that closed in August. The other 50 open days need no booking at all.

Bronze statue of Inoue Masaru in a Western suit on a tall granite pedestal, with the Marunouchi office towers of Tokyo Statio

Japan

Koiwai Farm: The Name Is Three Men, and One of Them Built Japan's Railways

Koiwai Farm is named after Ono, Iwasaki and Inoue Masaru, father of Japan's railways. The 1891 founding story, plus hours, admission and access.

Bronze statue of Inoue Masaru in a Western suit on a tall granite pedestal at the Marunouchi plaza of Tokyo Station

Japan

Inoue Masaru, the Man Whose Statue Stands at Tokyo Station

Who is the statue on Tokyo Station's Marunouchi plaza? Inoue Masaru, father of Japanese railways: melted down in 1944, back on the plaza since December 2017.

Aomori

Sannai-Maruyama Jomon Site Aomori: Japan's 5,000-Year-Old Village, and How to Reach It

Sannai-Maruyama Jomon site, Aomori: UNESCO village dated 3,900-2,200 BCE, reached by Nebutan-go bus from Shin-Aomori stand 3 in 15 min for ¥300.

Aomori

Hachinohe Food Guide: Squid, a ¥1,850 Market Breakfast and a Local Izakaya

What to eat in Hachinohe: squid dressed in its own liver at a Japanese-only izakaya, and a ¥1,850 market breakfast when Minato Shokudo has a queue.

Aomori

Towada Art Center: Kusama, Nara and an Art Square You Can Walk Into

Towada Art Center guide: Kusama and Nara stand outside the ticket gate, free. Admission, hours, the JR-pass bus from Hachinohe and the taxi-app trap.

The Tokyo Station Marunouchi building's red-brick facade under a clear sky

Japan

Tokyo Station Guide Marunouchi Yaesu Exits: Which Side, Which Shinkansen Platform

Tokyo Station guide: Marunouchi vs Yaesu exits, which side has your shinkansen gate, and hotels within a 5-min walk of each, checked August 2026.