Why travel to Japan?
Japan offers 6 curated city guides, 107 attractions and 42 signature dishes hand-picked by Korean travelers. Below you'll find essentials Korean passport holders actually need — visa requirements, daily budgets in USD, best season, and on-the-ground transport tips.
Best Season
Best in spring (March-April) for cherry blossoms and autumn (October-November) for foliage. Summers are hot and humid.
Budget
Daily budget around $70-145 (lodging $35-85; food $20-35; transport $7-15).
Visa
Korean passport holders may enter visa-free for up to 90 days.
Transport
From Narita Airport, the Skyliner reaches Ueno in 36 minutes; from Haneda, the monorail takes 20 minutes into the city. Within Tokyo, the JR Yamanote Line and subway are most convenient. SIM cards and pocket WiFi rentals are available at the airport (about JPY 500-800/day). IC cards (Suica/Pasmo) are convenient, and most places accept both cash and cards. Tipping is not customary.
🏙️ Top Cities
Get travel-ready
Affiliate link — RoadMento may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
🗺️ Attractions Across the Country
Asakusa Senso-ji Temple
Tokyo's oldest Buddhist temple. A must-visit along with the Nakamise shopping street.
View details →
Tokyo Tower
Tokyo's iconic symbol. A 333m red steel tower offering spectacular night views.
View details →
Shibuya Scramble Crossing
The world's busiest intersection where thousands cross at once in a remarkable spectacle.
View details →
Meiji Jingu Shrine
Japan's largest shrine, nestled in a lush forest in the heart of Tokyo.
View details →
Akihabara Electric Town
The holy land of anime, gaming, and electronics — the epicenter of Japanese otaku culture.
View details →
Tokyo Skytree
At 634m, the world's second-tallest tower and Tokyo's modern landmark.
View details →
Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
A 58-hectare Japanese garden in the heart of Tokyo, famed for cherry blossoms and autumn foliage.
View details →
teamLab Planets Tokyo
An immersive digital art museum where visitors walk through water and flower installations.
View details →
Ueno Park
Tokyo's largest city park, a top cherry blossom spot and cultural hub with museums and a zoo.
View details →
Tokyo National Museum
Japan's oldest and largest museum, founded in 1872, housing a treasure trove of Japanese art and archaeology.
View details →
Tokyo Imperial Palace
Home of Japan's Emperor, surrounded by moats and gardens offering a tranquil escape in the city center.
View details →
Ginza
Japan's premier shopping district, lined with luxury brands and historic department stores.
View details →
Roppongi Hills
A massive mixed-use complex combining shopping, art, and an observatory, crowned by Mori Tower's night views.
View details →
Rainbow Bridge
A suspension bridge spanning Tokyo Bay, the symbol of Odaiba and a famed night-view spot.
View details →
Yanaka
A neighborhood spared from WWII bombing, retaining old Tokyo's atmosphere and the famous Yanaka Ginza shopping street.
View details →
Ameya-Yokocho
A bustling Ueno market street that began as a postwar black market, packed with cheap seafood and street food.
View details →
Rikugien Garden
A masterpiece Edo-period daimyo garden, especially famed for its illuminated autumn foliage.
View details →
Ghibli Museum
A Studio Ghibli museum in Mitaka, designed with direct input from director Hayao Miyazaki.
View details →
Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion)
Kyoto's iconic gold-leaf-covered three-story pavilion reflected in a tranquil pond.
View details →
Fushimi Inari Taisha
A mystical shrine famed for its endless tunnels of vermilion torii gates.
View details →
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
A dreamlike tunnel path beneath a canopy of towering bamboo.
View details →
Kiyomizu-dera Temple
A UNESCO World Heritage temple with a breathtaking 13m wooden stage overlooking Kyoto.
View details →
Nijo Castle
A UNESCO-listed castle built by Tokugawa Ieyasu, famous for its 'nightingale floors' that chirp when walked upon.
View details →
Gion Geisha District
Kyoto's traditional geisha district lined with wooden machiya houses, where you might glimpse a maiko.
View details →
Nishiki Market
Known as 'Kyoto's Kitchen', a 400-year-old narrow arcade with around 130 specialty shops.
View details →
Ryoan-ji Temple
Zen temple home to the world's most famous karesansui (dry landscape) rock garden.
View details →
Ginkaku-ji (Silver Pavilion)
A Zen temple beloved for its refined garden and understated beauty, despite never being covered in silver.
View details →
Sanjusangen-do
Japan's longest wooden building, lined with 1,001 gilded statues of the thousand-armed Kannon.
View details →
Tenryu-ji
Arashiyama's leading Zen temple, home to Sogenchi Garden, Japan's first officially designated scenic garden.
View details →
Nanzen-ji
The highest-ranked Zen temple in Japan, famous for its striking red-brick aqueduct.
View details →
Philosopher's Walk
A cherry-tree-lined 2km canal path where philosopher Nishida Kitaro once walked in contemplation.
View details →
Byodo-in
The Phoenix Hall depicted on the 10-yen coin — a masterpiece of Heian-era Pure Land architecture in Uji.
View details →
Kyoto Imperial Palace
The former residence of Japan's emperors until the Meiji-era move to Tokyo, with expansive gardens and palace architecture.
View details →
Pontocho
A narrow traditional entertainment alley along the Kamo River, famed for summer riverside 'kawadoko' terraces.
View details →
Kodai-ji
A Zen temple built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi's widow Nene in his memory, famed for its bamboo grove and night illuminations.
View details →
Kyoto Tower
A 131m observation tower rising above Kyoto Station, uniquely designed to resemble a lighthouse.
View details →
Dotonbori
Osaka's vibrant heart, packed with neon and the iconic Glico running man sign.
View details →
Osaka Castle
Osaka's iconic castle, originally built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
View details →
Universal Studios Japan
Osaka's largest theme park, bringing Harry Potter, Mario, Minions and more under one roof.
View details →
Umeda Sky Building
A striking landmark of two towers linked by a sky garden, with a stunning 360-degree night view.
View details →
Shinsekai & Tsutenkaku
Osaka's retro Showa-era district anchored by the 100m Tsutenkaku Tower.
View details →
Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan
One of the world's largest aquariums, with a giant Pacific tank starring whale sharks.
View details →
Shitenno-ji Temple
Japan's first state-built Buddhist temple, founded in 593, with a 1,400-year-old layout.
View details →
Abeno Harukas
Japan's tallest building at 300m, combining a department store, art museum, and observation deck.
View details →
Sumiyoshi-taisha
The head shrine of Japan's roughly 2,000 Sumiyoshi shrines, with National Treasure halls in the distinctive 'Sumiyoshi-zukuri' style.
View details →
Shinsaibashi
A 600m covered shopping arcade connecting to Dotonbori, Osaka's biggest downtown district.
View details →
Tempozan Ferris Wheel
A 112.5m giant Ferris wheel offering panoramic views of Osaka Bay and the city skyline.
View details →
Osaka Museum of History
Built atop the ancient Naniwa Palace ruins, this museum spans 2,000 years of Osaka's history.
View details →
Osaka Tenmangu
A shrine dedicated to the god of learning Sugawara no Michizane, and the stage for the Tenjin Matsuri, one of Japan's three great festivals.
View details →
Hozen-ji
A small temple tucked in a Dotonbori back alley, where visitors splash water on a moss-covered Fudo Myo-o statue to make wishes.
View details →
Osaka City Central Public Hall
A Neo-Renaissance Western-style building completed in 1918, a landmark of Nakanoshima.
View details →
Nakanoshima Park
Osaka's first public park, opened in 1891, an urban oasis with a rose garden and riverside promenade.
View details →
Kishiwada Castle
The symbol of Kishiwada City in southern Osaka, home to the nationally designated 'Hachijin-no-zu' garden.
View details →
Dazaifu Tenmangu
Head shrine of Japan's Tenmangu shrines, dedicated to the deity of learning — the top day-trip from Fukuoka.
View details →
Kyushu National Museum
Japan's fourth national museum, themed on Asian cultural exchange, housed in a striking wave-shaped glass hall.
View details →
Ohori Park
A downtown lake park built around Fukuoka Castle's old moat, with a beloved 2km loop path circling the water.
View details →
Fukuoka Castle Ruins (Maizuru Park)
The stone ramparts and turrets of what was Kyushu's largest castle, now a park blanketed by 1,000 cherry trees each spring.
View details →
Fukuoka Tower
At 234m Japan's tallest seaside tower, sheathed in 8,000 half-mirror panels with sweeping Hakata Bay views.
View details →
Momochi Seaside Park
A man-made white-sand beach below Fukuoka Tower, famous for sunsets and the Marizon wedding hall on the water.
View details →
Canal City Hakata
A canal runs through this mega shopping complex, with hourly fountain shows and evening 3D projection mapping.
View details →
Kushida Shrine
Hakata's guardian shrine and home of July's Gion Yamakasa festival, with a 10m+ decorated float on year-round display.
View details →
Tochoji Temple (Fukuoka Daibutsu)
A Shingon temple founded by Kobo Daishi, home to the Fukuoka Daibutsu — one of Japan's largest wooden seated Buddhas at 10.8m.
View details →
Shofukuji Temple
Japan's first Zen temple, founded in 1195 by Eisai — the monk who brought tea culture to Japan.
View details →
Sumiyoshi Shrine Fukuoka
Reputedly the oldest of Japan's 2,000+ Sumiyoshi shrines, with a power-deity statue said to grant strength to matched palms.
View details →
Nakasu Yatai Street
Riverside rows of yatai food stalls — ramen, yakitori and oden shoulder-to-shoulder, the symbol of Fukuoka's night culture.
View details →
Tenjin
Kyushu's biggest downtown — department stores, an underground mall and the Daimyo backstreets in one walkable core.
View details →
Uminonakamichi Seaside Park
A vast national park on a sandbar between two seas — seasonal flower fields, cycling routes and a petting zoo fill a whole day.
View details →
Marine World Uminonakamichi
An aquarium themed on Kyushu's seas — dolphin shows against a real ocean backdrop and a shark-filled open-sea tank.
View details →
Nokonoshima Island Park
A flower park on a small Hakata Bay island, where rapeseed and cosmos fields overlook the sea and the city skyline.
View details →
Yanagibashi Market
A century-old market called 'Hakata's Kitchen', its lane packed with fresh seafood and mentaiko shops.
View details →
Fukuoka Asian Art Museum
The world's only museum systematically collecting modern and contemporary Asian art — a rainy-day savior in Hakata.
View details →
Churaumi Aquarium
Japan's most beloved aquarium, famed for whale sharks gliding through the vast Kuroshio Sea tank — Okinawa's undisputed #1 sight.
View details →
Emerald Beach
The free beach of Ocean Expo Park beside Churaumi Aquarium — a Y-shaped white strand wrapped in true emerald water.
View details →
Shuri Castle
The 450-year royal palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom and a World Heritage site, now showcasing the open-to-view reconstruction of its fire-lost main hall.
View details →
Kokusai Street
Naha's 1.6km main drag — the 'Miracle Mile' of souvenir shops, Okinawan restaurants and live-music izakaya running late into the night.
View details →
Makishi Public Market
'Okinawa's Kitchen' — buy rainbow-colored tropical fish or Agu pork downstairs and the 2nd-floor eateries cook it on the spot.
View details →
American Village
A retro-Americana town built on returned US base land, packed with photo spots and capped by Sunset Beach's famous dusk.
View details →
Cape Manzamo
Okinawa's signature seascape — an elephant-trunk cliff on a raised coral cape 'where ten thousand could sit'.
View details →
Kouri Island & Bridge
Cross a 1,960m bridge over emerald shallows to the 'Island of Love', home of the famous Heart Rock.
View details →
Okinawa World
A theme park bundling the 5km Gyokusendo limestone cave, a Ryukyu craft village and eisa dance performances.
View details →
Sefa-utaki
The Ryukyu Kingdom's holiest site and a World Heritage — through the great triangular rock cleft lies a view of sacred Kudaka Island.
View details →
Nakijin Castle Ruins
A World Heritage gusuku fortress of the old Hokuzan kingdom, famed for 1.5km of undulating ramparts and Japan's earliest cherry blossoms each January.
View details →
Kaichu Road
A free 4.7km causeway straight across the sea, linking four outer islands with water on both sides the whole way.
View details →
Cape Maeda (Blue Cave)
Home of the Blue Cave, where sunlight turns the water electric blue — Okinawa's snorkeling and diving mecca, with clifftop walks above.
View details →
Naminoue Shrine & Beach
The Ryukyus' foremost shrine perched on a seaside cliff, with Naha's only city beach below — a perfect last dip before the airport.
View details →
Fukushuen Garden
A full-scale Chinese garden in downtown Naha — pavilions, ponds and waterfalls built to honor ties with Fuzhou.
View details →
Ryukyu Mura
A village theme park of relocated century-old farmhouses — eisa performances, shisa crafting and hands-on Ryukyu culture.
View details →
Cape Zanpa
Two kilometers of 30m cliffs in Yomitan, crowned by a white lighthouse — the main island's last-light sunset spot.
View details →
Senagajima Umikaji Terrace
White terraced shops cascade down an islet by the airport — 'Okinawa's Santorini', where sunsets share the sky with landing jets.
View details →
Odori Park
Sapporo's green spine running 1.5km through downtown — main stage of the February Snow Festival and summer beer gardens.
View details →
Sapporo TV Tower
The 147m landmark at Odori Park's east end — its deck looks straight down the park through Sapporo's grid.
View details →
Sapporo Clock Tower
Sapporo's pioneer-era symbol from 1878 — an American-style wooden hall whose clock has kept time for over 140 years.
View details →
Former Hokkaido Government Building
The 1888 neo-Baroque 'Red Brick' capitol, reopened in 2025 after renovation — the emblem of Hokkaido's pioneer era.
View details →
Mt. Moiwa Observatory
One of Japan's 'New Top 3 Night Views' — two cable rides to the 531m summit, where the city's lights spill to the horizon.
View details →
Okurayama Ski Jump Stadium
The 1972 Winter Olympics ski-jump hill doubles as an observatory — see Sapporo from the jumper's start gate.
View details →
Shiroi Koibito Park
The factory of Hokkaido's signature Shiroi Koibito cookies turned theme park, with European gardens and baking workshops.
View details →
Sapporo Beer Museum
Japan's only beer museum — 140 years of brewing history in a red-brick former factory, capped with a fresh draft tasting.
View details →
Nijo Market
Sapporo's century-old downtown fish market — start the day with crab, uni and salmon-roe kaisendon.
View details →
Susukino
One of Japan's three great nightlife districts — neon-lit blocks of ramen alleys, izakaya and crab restaurants.
View details →
Hokkaido Shrine
Hokkaido's chief shrine to its pioneer guardians, wrapped in Maruyama's old-growth forest — famed for cherry and plum blooming together.
View details →
Hokkaido University Campus
Dr. Clark's 'Boys, be ambitious' university — a 1.77M㎡ downtown campus famed for its ginkgo avenue and poplar lane.
View details →
Moerenuma Park
A land-art park by sculptor Isamu Noguchi — a former landfill reborn as glass pyramids and sculpted hills.
View details →
Jozankei Onsen
A gorge hot-spring town an hour from downtown — 'Sapporo's back parlor', ablaze with maples in autumn.
View details →
Otaru Canal
Forty minutes by train from Sapporo — a gas-lit canal lined with stone warehouses, famous for glasswork and music boxes.
View details →
Hitsujigaoka Observation Hill
The hill of Dr. Clark's 'Boys, be ambitious' statue, where sheep graze against a panorama of Sapporo.
View details →
Tanukikoji Shopping Street
A 150-year-old, 900m covered arcade — Sapporo's all-weather artery for souvenirs and drugstore hauls.
View details →
JR Tower Observatory T38
Hokkaido's highest observatory at 160m, directly above Sapporo Station — floor-to-ceiling glass over the grid-lit city.
View details →