Nagoya

Atsuta Shrine is one of Japan's most revered Shinto shrines, said to house the sacred sword Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, one of the three Imperial Regalia of Japan (though the actual sword, like the other regalia, is never displayed publicly). Its wooded grounds, dating back some 1,900 years by tradition, include over a thousand trees and several sub-shrines spread through a quiet forest setting within the city. A treasure hall on the grounds displays other artifacts related to the shrine's history and Shinto ritual objects, offering more to see for visitors who want to go beyond the main shrine building itself.

Inuyama Castle, overlooking the Kiso River, is one of Japan's twelve castles with an original (non-reconstructed) keep, and among the very oldest, with parts dating to the 1440s-1600s. Its compact wooden interior, with steep original staircases, gives a more authentic feel than the many concrete reconstructions found elsewhere in Japan. The surrounding castle town retains some traditional streetscape, and the nearby Meiji Mura and Little World theme parks make Inuyama a reasonable half-day or full-day base for a few different sights outside central Nagoya.

Ise Jingu is Shinto's most sacred shrine complex, dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu, and is actually made up of two main shrines several kilometers apart — the Inner Shrine (Naiku) and Outer Shrine (Geku) — plus over a hundred associated smaller shrines across the region. Following ancient tradition, the main shrine buildings are entirely rebuilt every 20 years in an ongoing ritual called Shikinen Sengu, using the same design and techniques, so what visitors see is never more than two decades old despite representing a design tradition over a thousand years old. Photography of the innermost shrine buildings is prohibited, and the sheer scale of forest, gravel paths, and torii gates gives the site a hushed, formal atmosphere distinct from more tourist-oriented shrines elsewhere in Japan.

Korankei is a wooded valley famous as one of the Chubu region's premier autumn foliage spots, where thousands of maple trees turn vivid red and orange along a river gorge, particularly around mid-to-late November. Outside peak foliage season, it's a quieter, pleasant hiking and walking area with a historic temple, Kojaku-ji, and traditional buildings scattered through the valley. During the autumn festival period, evening illuminations light up the maples and the valley becomes considerably more crowded, so timing a visit slightly before or after the absolute peak can mean a calmer experience with still-impressive color.

Legoland Japan is a theme park built around Lego bricks and models, with rides, a Miniland section recreating Japanese cities and landmarks entirely out of Lego, and attractions geared primarily toward younger children and families. It's smaller in scale than Universal Studios Japan or Tokyo Disney, aimed at a specific, younger age bracket rather than a general audience. An adjoining Sea Life aquarium and a Legoland Hotel are part of the same complex for those wanting to extend a visit.

Meiji Mura is an open-air architecture museum gathering more than 60 relocated buildings from the Meiji era (1868-1912), a period when Japan rapidly absorbed Western architectural styles alongside its own traditions. Highlights include part of Frank Lloyd Wright's original Imperial Hotel lobby, saved from demolition and reassembled here, along with churches, schools, and government buildings moved from across Japan. The park is large and spread across a hillside, with a steam locomotive and tram running between sections, making it a substantial half-day or full-day visit for anyone with an interest in architecture or the Meiji period's rapid modernization.

Nagaragawa: The Nagara River, running through Gifu city below its hilltop castle, is best known for ukai, traditional cormorant fishing using trained birds to catch sweetfish (ayu), a practice with over 1,300 years of continuous history here. Visitors can watch from riverside viewing boats in the evening as fishermen work by torchlight, a distinctive and rare living tradition. By day the river and surrounding area also offer views up toward Gifu Castle and a pleasant riverside walk, making it easy to combine daytime sightseeing with the evening ukai show if timing allows.

Nagoya Castle was built in 1610 by the Tokugawa shogunate as a strategic stronghold, notable historically for the pair of golden shachihoko (mythical dolphin-like creatures) that once topped its main keep, symbols so significant they became emblems of the city itself. The original keep was destroyed in World War II bombing, and the current concrete reconstruction has been undergoing ongoing renovation work, with the main keep sometimes closed to the public while restoration to a wooden reconstruction is planned or in progress — worth checking current status before visiting. The adjacent Honmaru Palace, however, has been faithfully reconstructed using traditional techniques and is open to the public, with elaborately painted screens and rooms giving a strong sense of Edo-period feudal architecture even when the main keep itself is inaccessible.

Nagoya-shi Science Museum: The Nagoya City Science Museum is known for its distinctive spherical planetarium, one of the largest in the world, set within a striking silver dome that has become a recognizable part of the city skyline. Inside, exhibits cover physics, biology, and space science with a strong hands-on focus, including a real snow and lightning demonstration room. The planetarium shows are popular and can sell out, so it's worth planning around specific showtimes, particularly on weekends when the museum draws large family crowds.

Osu Kannon is a Buddhist temple whose current buildings are mid-20th-century reconstructions after fire and wartime bombing destroyed earlier structures, though the temple's history and its library of ancient texts and manuscripts (kept elsewhere for preservation) date back centuries. It sits at the entrance to the lively Osu Shopping Street district, making the temple and the surrounding market atmosphere a natural combined stop. A lively flea market is held on the temple grounds on certain days of the month (traditionally the 18th and 28th), adding an extra reason to time a visit around those dates if convenient.

Osu Shopping Street is a dense, covered network of arcades mixing electronics and anime/manga shops (a smaller-scale echo of Tokyo's Akihabara), secondhand clothing stores, traditional crafts, and street food, making it one of Nagoya's most eclectic shopping areas. It has a scrappier, more youth-oriented feel than the city's more polished shopping districts elsewhere. It centers on Osu Kannon temple, so the two are naturally combined, and the area is worth a visit whether or not shopping is the priority, simply for its atmosphere and food stalls.

Sakae is Nagoya's main downtown commercial and entertainment district, packed with department stores, restaurants, and nightlife, along with the Nagoya TV Tower and Hisaya Odori Park running through its center. It's the practical hub for shopping, dining, and evening entertainment in the city rather than a historical or cultural sight. Oasis 21, a striking glass-roofed public plaza with a rooftop walkway, is one of the more visually distinct spots within the district, worth a stop even for those not shopping.

Tokugawa Art Museum: The Tokugawa Art Museum holds heirlooms of the Owari Tokugawa family, one of the three most prestigious branches of the Tokugawa shogunate lineage, including samurai armor, swords, tea ceremony items, and Noh theater costumes accumulated over generations. Its best-known holding is a fragment of the Genji Monogatari Emaki, an illustrated 12th-century scroll depicting The Tale of Genji, though the fragile original is displayed only briefly each year with reproductions shown otherwise. It sits next to Tokugawaen, a landscaped garden also tied to the same family history, making the two a natural combined visit for those interested in Edo-period samurai culture.

Tokugawaen is a landscaped strolling garden originally built in 1695 as part of a residence for a retired lord of the Owari Tokugawa family, destroyed in World War II bombing and later rebuilt with a modern reconstruction that opened in 2004 restoring much of the original design intent. Its centerpiece is a pond garden with a waterfall, bridges, and seasonal plantings including irises and cherry blossoms. It pairs naturally with the adjacent Tokugawa Art Museum, both tied to the same aristocratic family history, and gives a pleasant, well-maintained garden walk distinct from the older, more austere temple gardens found elsewhere in the region.

Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology: This museum, set in the actual former textile factory where the Toyota Group began, traces the company's origins from automatic power looms invented by Sakichi Toyoda through to the founding of Toyota's automobile division by his son Kiichiro. Working historic machinery, including operating looms and vintage vehicles, is demonstrated live by staff throughout the day, giving a tangible sense of the industrial processes rather than static displays. It's a well-regarded stop for anyone interested in Japanese industrial history or the origins of one of the world's largest car manufacturers, going well beyond a typical corporate showcase.