Tohoku
We’ve compiled the best of the best in Tohoku - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Hoon-ji Temple
On the outskirts of Mt. Atagoyama is a temple district where a dozen temples are clustered. This one houses 499 statues of Buddha's disciples that were carved between 1731 and 1735, in a time of severe famine and increased religious devotion. Each is unique, and if you look hard, you will see disciples laughing, chatting with their neighbors, eating, drinking, and even napping. Behind Ho-Onji are a small cemetery and a tranquil Japanese garden. Monks ring a bell periodically; the sounds echo through the premises and the city. It is a bit out of the way, but if you enjoy wooden architecture, you will not be disappointed.
31--5 Nasukawacho, Morioka, Iwate-ken, 020-0016, Japan019-651–4415Sight Details
Rate Includes: ¥300 -
2. Hanamaki Onsenkyo
Among 12 onsen that collectively make up these gorges of hot water gushers, Osawa and Namari stand out for their quality and well-kept ryokan, offering comfort and long-cherished histories. Osawa is known as poet Miyazawa Kenji's favorite, and Namari is famous for Japan's 600-year-old deepest standing bath. Osawa is 30 minutes by bus from Iwate's Hanamaki Station (not the airport of the same name), Namari 50 minutes. From Morioka the easiest way is to take a train to Hanamaki Station and then use the bus to reach the onsen, which are on the outskirts of town. There is an information center at the station that can help you with bus connections, but be advised that it's a very quiet place, so you might be waiting. It's also possible to get to the area from Shin-Hanamaki Station (which is a different station than "Hanamaki") on a bus operated by the onsen association that stops at several different ryokan in town. If you are staying over, check with your ryokan for free shuttle times (usually only twice a day) and note from which train station and ask about pickup services from the onsen-area bus station.
Yuguchi Aza Osawa 181, Hanamaki, Iwate-ken, 025-0244, Japan019-825–2021-Osawa OnsenSight Details
Rate Includes: ¥700 for a day visit to either onsen -
3. Iwate Park
This park is large enough to get lost in, with varied landscapes, an astonishing variety of artfully placed flowers and trees, shady groves, streams, and colors in every season. It's a good place for a romantic walk. In 1597 the 26th Lord of Nambu had a fine castle built here, but all that remains are ruined walls. Even so, the walls themselves are fascinating enough.
Morioka Shiroato Koen, Morioka, Iwate-ken, JapanSight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
4. Kamasada Iron Casting Studio
The six casters here create the fine ironwork, and their products are as authentic and beautiful as Nanbu-tekki can be. Depending on the time of day, you can peer into the workshop to watch them at work. Attractive teakettles come in all sizes and prices. If you want to place a special order, you'll have to be patient: your piece will be produced and shipped to you in up to two years for the kettles and two or three months for other items.
2--5 Konyacho, Morioka, Iwate-ken, 020-0885, Japan019-622–3911Sight Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. -
5. Mitsu-Ishi Shrine
Literally "the Shrine of the Three Rocks," here you will find said boulders wrapped with Shinto straw festoons. In case you're wondering why this matters, according to legend a troublesome oni (demon) named Rasetsu was captured around here, and as a promise to begone forever, he left his hand print in the stone of Mt. Iwate (there are signs in English pointing the way). Iwa is rock and te is hand in Japanese, and that's how Iwate Prefecture got its name. It's worth a peek only if you're on your way to nearby Ho-Onji Temple.
Nasukawacho 2-2, Morioka, Iwate-ken, 020-0016, JapanSight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Daily dawn–dusk -
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