Japan is very proud of its four seasons and I don’t know why but quite a few Japanese people often think that not many other countries are blessed with four seasons… Although its summers might be too humid and winters too dry and cold, Japanese autumns and springs are the best time to visit the country. Both during the cherry blossom season and the autumn leaves season, there are forecasts published online so that visitors can learn when it’s best to visit certain places.
We are already fastly approaching the end of November, however, my autumn leaves hunt just started last weekend (November 16-17) with a trip to Tachikawa to see the golden ginkgo biloba leaves at Showa Kinen Park. Autumn leaves start changing colors quite late both in Tokyo and Kyoto and they often overlap with Christmas illuminations/light-ups. I always feel time flies by too fast and I cannot enjoy my autumn leaves in peace as preparations for the next season are already here… This year, in particular, the autumn leaves season was late because up until the beginning of November, temperatures were not going down at all. In Hokkaido, on the other hand, the autumn season starts much earlier as it is colder there, whereas they have to wait longer for cherry blossoms. The advantage for tourists is that no matter when in autumn or spring you decide to come, you might still find a place where the leaves are red or the cherry blossoms are in full bloom.
I found an interesting list of beautiful places to see this autumn and when it’s best to see them, nicely organized on prefectures followed by the name of the place. It was on an app I am currently using for gaining points from vending machines (Coke ON app) and if you go to one of these places in the specified time and walk at least 5000 steps, you get a special “Autumn Campaign” stamp. Isn’t this a nice idea? Being rewarded while doing fun activities.
The list was all in Japanese, thus I decided to translate it and share it with you. They present as many as 70 places! Unfortunately, I have only visited very few of these (8/70, mainly around Tokyo and Kyoto) so, I shared some photos from the Internet while mentioning the source below. I posted the photos I took for the places I visited and are marked with a ✔️. I guess it would be impossible to visit them all in a lifetime and they are not all major tourist destinations like Kyoto or Tokyo, but some of them sparked my interest. I think there are no major changes from year to year when talking about the period when to visit certain places, thus you can save the below list for next year as well and check the forecasts just before going to make sure 🙂 I am thinking to visit one or two of the places which are closer to Tokyo during the following weekends, while leaving the ones that are further away for next year.
I hope you will also find some inspiration to visit Japan in the autumn!
*I also added some links to the places where I found some interesting info about or to older posts from my blog about these places. Feel free to check them out!
■10月12日(土)-10月13日(日) October 12-13
1. 北海道 大雪山旭岳 Hokkaido Daisetsuzan Asahidake
2.北海道 然別湖 Hokkaido Lake Shikaribetsu
3.秋田県 八幡平 Akita Hachimantai
4.山形県 山形蔵王 Yamagata Ｍount Zao
■10月19日(土)-10月20日(日) October 19-20
5.北海道 定山渓温泉 Hokkaido Jozankei Onsen
6.青森県 八甲田ロープウェー Aomori Hakkōda Ropeway
7.宮城県 栗駒山 Miyagi Mt. Kurikoma
8.新潟県 ドラゴンドラ Niigata Dragondola
9.奈良県 大台ヶ原 Nara Mt. Ōdaigahara
■10月26日(土)-10月27日(日) October 26-27
10.青森県 十二湖 Aomori Lake Juniko (Twelve Lakes)
11.富山県 有峰森林文化村 Toyama Arimine Forest Cultural Village
12.埼玉秩父ミューズパーク Saitama Chichibu Muse Park
13.広島県比婆山 Hiroshima Hibayama
■11月2日(土)-11月3日(日) November 2-3
14.秋田県 小安峡 Akita Oyasukyo
15.福島県 雪割橋雪割渓谷 Fukushima Yukiwari Canyon
16.栃木県 日塩もみじライン Tochigi Nichien Momiji Line
17.岐阜県 白川郷 Gifu Shirakawago
18.山梨県 西沢渓谷 Yamanashi Nishizawa Gorge
19.長野県 雲場池 Nagano Kumoba Pond
20.鳥取県 大山 Tottori Daisen Mountain
21.長崎県 雲仙(仁田峠) Nagasaki Unzen Ropeway
■11月9(土)-11月10日(日) November 9-10
22.岩手県 中尊寺 Iwate Chūson-ji
23.群馬県 伊香保温泉 Gunma Ikaho Onsen
24.新潟県 弥彦公園もみじ谷 Niigata Yahiko Park
25.島根県 三瓶山 Shimane Mt. Sanbe
26.熊本県 下城の大イチョウ Kumamoto Shimojo no Oicho (Ginko tree)
■11月16日(土)-11月17日(日) November 16-17
27.茨城県 袋田の滝 Ibaraki Fukuroda Falls
28.東京都 国営昭和記念公園 Tokyo Showa Kinen Park✔️
29.神奈川県 芦ノ湖 Kanagawa Lake Ashi✔️
30.兵庫県 有馬温泉瑞宝寺公園 Hyōgo Zuihoji Park
31.京都府 大江山 Kyoto Mt. Oe
32.岡山県 井山宝福寺 Okayama Hofukuji
33.香川県 寒霞渓 Kagawa Kankakei Ropeway
34.高知県 黒尊渓谷 Kōchi Kuroson Ravine
35.山口県 国宝瑠璃光寺五重塔 Yamaguchi Ruriko-ji Five-Story Pagoda
36.大分県 用作公園 Ōita Yujaku Park
37.宮崎県 白鳥温泉付近 Miyazaki Shiratori Onsen
38.福岡県 雷山千如寺大悲王院 Fukuoka Sennyo-ji
■11月23日(土)-11月24日(日) November 23-24
39.東京都 高尾山 Tokyo Mt. Takao✔️
40.静岡県 接岨峡 Shizuoka Sessokyō-Onsen
41.愛知県 香嵐渓 Aichi Kōrankei
42.愛知県 岩屋堂公園 Aichi Iwayado Park
43.石川県 鶴仙渓 Ishikawa Kakusenkei Gorges
44.福井県 花筐公園 Fukui Kakyo Park
45.滋賀県 湖東三山西明寺 Shiga Saimyoji
46.三重県 赤目四十八滝 Mie Akame 48 Waterfalls
47.京都府 圓光寺 Kyoto Enkō-ji✔️
48.京都府 大原三千院 Kyoto Sanzen-in Temple
49.大阪府 大阪城公園 Osaka Osaka Castle Park
50.大阪府 勝尾寺 Osaka Katsuō-ji
51.福岡県 ます淵ダム Fukuoka Masubuchi Dam
52.佐賀県 大興善寺 Saga Daikozen
■11月30日(土)-12月1日(日) November 30-December 1
53.千葉県 成田山公園 Chiba Naritasan Park
54.千葉県 本土寺 Chiba Hondoji Temple
55.埼玉県 国営武蔵丘陵森林公園 Saitama Musashi Kyuryo National Government Park
56.東京都 神宮外苑銀杏並木 Tokyo Jingu Gaien Ginkgo Avenue✔️
57.神奈川県 山下公園通りイチョウ並木 Kanagawa Yamashita Park Ichou Namiki
58.神奈川県 大山地区紅葉ライトアップ Kanagawa Oyama Autumn Leaves Light Up
59.愛知県 東山動植物園 Aichi Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens
60.大阪府 明治の森箕面国定公園 Osaka Meiji no Mori Minō Quasi-National Park
61.京都府 清水寺 Kyoto Kiyomizudera✔️
62.京都府 嵐山 Kyoto Arashiyama✔️
63.和歌山県 根来寺境内もみじ谷公園 Wakayama Momijitani Park
64.徳島県 眉山公園 Tokushima Bizan Park
65.愛媛県 奥道後壱湯の守 Ehime Okudogo Ichiyu no Mori
66.福岡県 秋月城跡 Fukuoka Akizukinotori
■12月7日(土)-12月8日(日) December 7-8
67.東京都 六義園 Tokyo Rikugien✔️
68.神奈川県 三溪園 Kanagawa Sankeien Garden
69.千葉県 養老渓谷 Chiba Yōrō Keikoku Okukiyosumi Prefectural Natural Park
70.鹿児島県 垂水千本イチョウ Kagoshima Tarumizu Thousand Ginkgo Biloba
Some of these places might not be major tourist destinations and might be quite off the beaten path, however, if you are visiting that prefecture/area, they might be worth checking. Also, this list doesn’t mention some major spots such as the lakes around Mt. Fuji or the Kawaguchiko area, which I truly recommend and will talk about in a future post. Except that, I think it is quite a comprehensive list and I feel like I traveled for a bit even just by searching for photos of these places. I hope you also enjoyed this list!
Thank you for your visit! Please come again 🙂
