Places to seeWhere to go in Tochigi
Start with the first of these. Each is worth half a day.
Tochigi栃木県
Tochigi holds Nikko, and Nikko holds the most heavily decorated buildings in Japan.
Tochigi holds Nikko, and Nikko holds the most heavily decorated buildings in Japan.
Start with the first of these. Each is worth half a day.
Above the shrines the road climbs in a series of tight hairpins to Lake Chuzenji at 1,270 metres, with Kegon Falls dropping 97 metres out of it. The autumn colour here is the one people come from Tokyo for. The road up is genuinely jammed on November weekends — go on a weekday, or take the first bus of the morning.
Getting in: No airport — Utsunomiya Station (shinkansen, 50 min from Tokyo) · Nikko by direct limited express
Pick the season first and the days will arrange themselves.
Snow leaves the upper lake in April. Strawberries from January to May, and fresh green by late May.
Wet in June. The lake at 1,270 metres is much cooler than Tokyo in August — a genuine escape.
Autumn colour that people come from Tokyo for, peaking around late October up high and November below. Go on a weekday.
The shrines in snow are worth the cold.
