If you’ve been planning a trip to Kyoto, you’ve probably seen pictures of the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest – along with the torii tunnels of Fushimi-Inari-Taisha Shrine and Kinkaku-ji Temple, it’s one of the most photographed sights in the city. But no picture can capture the feeling of standing in the midst of this sprawling bamboo grove – the whole thing has a palpable sense of otherness that is quite unlike that of any normal forest we know of.

Fushimi Inari Shrine (伏見稲荷大社, Fushimi Inari Taisha) is an important Shinto shrine in southern Kyoto. It is famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates, which straddle a network of trails behind its main buildings. The trails lead into the wooded forest of the sacred Mount Inari, which stands at 233 meters and belongs to the shrine grounds. Fushimi Inari is the most important of several thousands of shrines dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. Foxes are thought to be Inari's messengers, resulting in many fox statues across the shrine grounds. Fushimi Inari Shrine has ancient origins, predating the capital's move to Kyoto in 794.

Mount Fuji (富士山, Fujisan) is with 3776 meters Japan's highest mountain. It is not surprising that the nearly perfectly shaped volcano has been worshiped as a sacred mountain and experienced big popularity among artists and common people throughout the centuries. Mount Fuji is an active volcano, which most recently erupted in 1707. It stands on the border between Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures and can be seen from Tokyo and Yokohama on clear days.

Himeji Castle (姫路城, Himejijō), also known as White Heron Castle (Shirasagijo) due to its elegant, white appearance, is widely considered Japan's most spectacular castle for its imposing size and beauty and its well preserved, complex castle grounds. The castle is both a national treasure and a world heritage site. Unlike many other Japanese castles, it was never destroyed by war, earthquake or fire and survives to this day as one of the country's twelve original castles.

Easily accessible from Tokyo by the Tsukuba Express, Ibaraki Prefecture (茨城県, Ibaraki-ken) is known historically for being the home of the Mito branch of the Tokugawa clan during the Edo Period, including the famous daimyo Tokugawa Mitsukuni, or “Mito Komon,” the subject of a popular long-running TV series in Japan. Two of the most popular tourist destinations in Ibaraki include the majestic Fukuroda Falls (which can spectacularly freeze over in the winter), as well as Kairaku-en, one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan.

Tokyo (東京, Tōkyō) is Japan's capital and the world's most populous metropolis. It is also one of Japan's 47 prefectures, consisting of 23 central city wards and multiple cities, towns and villages west of the city center. The Izu and Ogasawara Islands are also part of Tokyo. Prior to 1868, Tokyo was known as Edo. Previously a small castle town, Edo became Japan's political center in 1603 when Tokugawa Ieyasu established his feudal government there.

Akihabara (秋葉原), also called Akiba after a former local shrine, is a district in central Tokyo that is famous for its many electronics shops and has also gained recognition as the center of Japan's otaku (diehard fan) culture. Many shops and establishments devoted to anime and manga are dispersed among the electronic stores in the district. On Sundays, Chuo Dori, the main street through the district, is closed to car traffic from 13:00 to 18:00 (until 17:00 from October through March).

Sensoji (浅草寺, Sensōji, also known as Asakusa Kannon Temple) is a Buddhist temple located in Asakusa. It is one of Tokyo's most colorful and popular temples. The legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida River, and even though they put the statue back into the river, it always returned to them. Consequently, Sensoji was built nearby for the goddess of Kannon. The temple was completed in 645, making it Tokyo's oldest temple.