Top 10 Must-Visit Destinations in Japan for 2024

Japan offers a true feast for travelers, with its mountain-side onsen (hot spring) villages, serene coastal islands, and bustling metropolises. You could spend a lifetime experiencing the wonders of this country, but some towns and landmarks stand out as essential components for any Japanese adventure. Here are CTS MOBILE's top 10 places to visit in Japan.

Tokyo is a city perpetually looking toward the future, pushing the boundaries of what is possible in a densely populated, earthquake-prone region with taller, more slender structures. It is Japan's top destination for contemporary art and architecture, pop culture, shopping, dining, and entertainment (and rivals Kyoto for gastronomy). But more than anything else, the city itself captivates visitors. Tokyo is vast, sprawling to the horizon, ever-changing with a collection of diverse neighborhoods ensuring no two experiences in Tokyo are the same.

Travel Tip: Sumo, kabuki, and Giants baseball tickets are typically sold one to two months in advance. The Imperial Palace and Ghibli Museum are other popular spots that require planning ahead.

Kyoto, Japan's imperial capital for a thousand years, is home to over a thousand temples. These range from grand ones like Kinkaku-ji (a completely gold-leaf-covered pavilion) to tranquil ones like Ryōan-ji, featuring a simple Zen rock garden. And temples are just the beginning; there’s also tea culture, which you can enjoy in one of the city's elegant tea houses; geisha arts, with performers renowned for their music and dance; and a rich culinary tradition, including kaiseki (high-end Japanese cuisine).

Naoshima is one of Japan’s greatest success stories: a rural island on the brink of becoming a ghost town, now transformed into a global hub for contemporary art. Many of Japan's most famous architects have contributed to this transformation, designing museums, boutique hotels, and even a public bath—all to honor the island's natural beauty and complement its existing settlements. This fusion of cutting-edge and rural Japan is compelling. It also inspires some Japanese people to seek a slower life outside major cities, relocating to Naoshima to open cafes and inns.

Travel Tip: Plan your trip during one of the three exhibitions of the Setouchi Triennale, held in spring, summer, and fall every three years—the next one is in 2022. Naoshima's arts, theater, music, and dance events make this festival special.

Even from afar, Mount Fuji will take your breath away. Up close, the perfectly symmetrical cone of Japan’s highest peak is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Watching the sunrise from the summit? Pure magic. Fuji-san is one of Japan’s most revered and unchanging landmarks. Hundreds of thousands climb it each year, continuing the ancient tradition of pilgrimages up the sacred volcano. Those looking for perfect views from less daunting mountains nearby can follow in the footsteps of Japan’s most famous painters and poets.

Travel Tip: The best time to climb Mount Fuji is during its official season from July 1 to mid-September, to avoid rain and snowfall. Always check tropical storm warnings before hiking in Japan.

Modern Hiroshima is a forward-looking city with green boulevards. It's only when you visit the Peace Memorial Museum that the humanitarian disaster caused by the atomic bomb becomes clear. A visit here is a heart-breaking but vital history lesson. The surrounding park, mostly designed by Tange Kenzō, Japan’s great modern architect, offers many opportunities for reflection. Yet, the city's resilient spirit—and its food—will ensure you leave with positive memories.

Often described as magical and enchanting, or even otherworldly, Yakushima is a place where words fail and cliches appear. Home to some of Japan’s last primeval forests, it features yakusugi, ancient cedar trees native to the island, with huge roots forming giant, giraffe-leg shapes. Trails winding beneath these giants cover rugged terrain often blanketed in moss. The landscapes here are said to have inspired Studio Ghibli’s iconic film, Princess Mononoke.

Destination Highlight: When you’re not hiking, visit the Yakusugi Museum to learn more about the importance of the Japanese cedar to the people of Yakushima. An English audio guide is available.

Traveling via cable car up to the sacred Buddhist monastic complex of Kōya-san feels, apropos, like ascending to another world. Over a hundred temples here include the standout Oku-no-in, where paths meander between towering cedar trees and ancient, moss-covered stone markers. Other temples offer a different experience: the chance to stay overnight, enjoy traditional Buddhist vegetarian cuisine, and wake early for morning meditation with the resident monks.

Travel Tip: Although Japanese temples and shrines have no dress code, visitors are expected to maintain relative silence and reverence in these sacred spaces.

Okinawa and the Southwest Islands offer a completely different experience from the rest of Japan. This tropical archipelago forms a string between Kyūshū and Taiwan. Until annexed by Japan in the 19th century, they were an independent kingdom—the Empire of Ryūkyū—and cultural differences are evident in everything from architecture to cuisine. Here, you’ll find Japan’s best beaches, such as those in the Yaeyama and Kerama Islands, fringed with sugar-white sand, palm trees, and turquoise waters. Enjoy the sunshine, or go snorkeling and diving.

Tokyo is not the only city with great urban experiences. Osaka, Japan’s third-largest city, leads in street food: don’t miss its iconic takoyaki (grilled octopus dumplings). It also boasts the most impressive night scenes: a dazzling display of LEDs, animated billboards, and video screens flickering along the canal-side strip of Dōtombori. The city, Japan’s oldest commercial hub, has its own pace, spirit, and zest for life; its unofficial motto is kuidaore (eat until you drop).

Travel Tip: In addition to nightly room fees, Osaka hotels often charge a lodging tax that varies with the standard nightly rate.

One of Japan’s most stunning natural landscapes, Kamikōchi is a highland river valley encircled by the towering peaks of the Northern Japanese Alps. You can undertake a day’s hike along the crystal-clear Azusa River through peaceful forests of willow, larch, and spruce. The birthplace of Japanese alpinism, Kamikōchi also serves as the gateway to more challenging hikes up some of the country’s tallest mountains, such as Yari-ga-take (3180m). Private cars are banned in Kamikōchi to minimize crowd impact.

Japan, with its blend of timeless tradition and cutting-edge modernity, offers an unparalleled travel experience. Whether you're looking for serene natural beauty or vibrant city life, Japan has something for everyone. Don’t miss these ten incredible destinations on your next trip to the Land of the Rising Sun!