DuckAbroad Day Trip Planner

Day trips from Tokyo

1. Kamakura

Kamakura was the seat of Japan’s first shogunate (1185–1333), leaving a dense concentration of temples, shrines, and samurai-era sites within an easy walk or short local train ride.

• Great Buddha (Kōtoku-in) bronze statue and temple grounds
• Tsurugaoka Hachimangū shrine and samurai-era Kamakura history
• Hase-dera temple with hillside views and Kannon hall

By train, about 55–70 minutes from Tokyo Station or Shinjuku Station (JR Yokosuka Line or JR Shōnan-Shinjuku Line) to Kamakura Station.

2. Nikkō (Tōshō-gū Shrine area)

Nikkō is one of Japan’s most important sacred and political heritage centers, famed for ornate Tokugawa-era shrines and temples set in mountainous forest.

• UNESCO-listed Nikkō Tōshō-gū, mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu
• Rinnō-ji temple complex and Shōyō-en garden
• Futarasan Shrine and historic cedar-lined approaches

By train, about 1 hour 50 minutes from Asakusa Station to Tōbu-Nikkō Station (Tōbu Railway limited express), then local bus or walk to the shrine area.

3. Kawagoe ("Little Edo")

Kawagoe preserves the look and feel of Edo-era commerce with clay-walled warehouses, historic streets, and key sites connected to the Tokugawa period.

• Kurazukuri Warehouse District (Edo-period merchant architecture)
• Kawagoe Castle Honmaru Goten (surviving palace building)
• Kita-in temple with ties to Tokugawa-era history

By train, about 30–60 minutes from Ikebukuro Station or Shinjuku Station to Kawagoe Station (Tōbu Tōjō Line or JR Saikyō Line), then bus or walk to the historic district.

4. Yokohama (Yamashita Park & Motomachi/Foreign Settlement area)

Yokohama was one of the first treaty ports opened to foreign trade in the mid-19th century, and its waterfront districts retain strong Meiji-era and international history.

• Yokohama Archives of History (opening-of-Japan era documents and exhibits)
• Motomachi and the Bluff (foreign settlement-era neighborhoods and churches)
• Red Brick Warehouse (Meiji/Taishō-era port architecture)

By train, about 25–35 minutes from Tokyo Station to Yokohama Station (JR Tōkaidō Line), then local train/subway to the waterfront districts.

5. Odawara (Odawara Castle)

Odawara is synonymous with its castle, a strategic fortress central to Sengoku-era conflicts and the rise of the Tokugawa shogunate.

• Odawara Castle (key Sengoku-period stronghold)
• Castle museum exhibits on samurai warfare and regional history
• Historic town streets and nearby temple sites tied to the Hōjō clan

By train, about 35–60 minutes from Tokyo Station to Odawara Station (Shinkansen ~35 minutes or JR Tōkaidō Line ~75–90 minutes), then about 10–15 minutes on foot to the castle.

6. Narita (Naritasan Shinshō-ji Temple)

Narita’s temple complex has drawn pilgrims for over a millennium, and the approach street preserves a traditional atmosphere that complements the site’s long religious history.

• Naritasan Shinshō-ji, a major temple founded in 940
• Omotesandō historic approach lined with traditional shops
• Peace Pagoda and temple gardens

By train, about 55–75 minutes from Tokyo Station to Narita Station (JR Sobu Rapid/ Narita Line) or from Ueno Station via Keisei line to Keisei-Narita Station, then about 10–15 minutes on foot to the temple area.

7. Chōshi (Inubōsaki Lighthouse & coastal heritage)

Chōshi offers a distinctive slice of modernizing Japan through Meiji-era coastal infrastructure and a long-standing maritime economy, anchored by one of the country’s best-known lighthouses.

• Inubōsaki Lighthouse (Meiji-era Western-style lighthouse, 1874)
• Chōshi’s historic fishing-port culture and coastal viewpoints
• Local museums and preserved streets reflecting maritime history

By train, about 1 hour 50 minutes from Tokyo Station to Chōshi Station (JR Sobu Line limited express), then local Chōshi Electric Railway or bus/taxi to Inubōsaki.