Southern Japan — Tour Highlights and Travel Tips
Southern Japan Tour Highlights
- Participate in the 400-year-old traditional awa odori dance in the old city of Tokushima, near the Naruto Bridge and the stunning whirlpools. Visit in August for the colourful Awa Odori Dance Festival, the biggest in Japan!
- Stay in a traditional ryokan with tatami mats and shoji sliding doors, wear a yukata robe and bathe your aches away in the steaming waters. A southern Japan tour would not be complete without a visit to the Matsuyama Dogo onsen.
- There are 88 amazing shrines and temples on the Shikoku pilgrimage trail, all associated with the famous Buddhist monk Kukai. Wear the distinctive white top and sedge hat of a pilgrim and the locals will refer to you as O-henro-san (honored pilgrim).
- Stroll around Nagasaki’s Peace Garden,with its tranquil atmosphere and iconic memorials, then visit the colorful temples dotted around the city and find some local champon noodles.
- Visit the sacred shrine island of Miyajima with its famous crimson shrine gate which rises dramatically out of the sea, then explore the island’s forests and meet the semi-wild deer.
Southern Japan Travel Tips
- Bring a translation app; southern Japan is still getting used to tourists. Outside the main tourist sites not many people will know English, and those that do might be shy.
- If you embark on a southern Japan tour in early spring, you might be lucky enough to see the sakura. These beautiful cherry blossoms can be found all over Japan and when they bloom the country looks magical.
- If you see a raised floor and slippers, then put them on! Every house and any traditional business will expect you to remove your shoes and they will always have a spare pair of slippers for you.
- Japanese people are very friendly and inquisitive, if you get invited to someone’s house it is considered an honor. Say yes and enjoy true local food and hospitality, just remember to talk softly and smile often.
- Keep tattoos covered, especially in the onsens and in rural areas. Culturally, tattoos are associated with aggression and criminals, particularly outside the big cities.
