2 Best Sights in Side Trips from Tokyo, Japan

Moored on the waterfront, more or less in the middle of Yamashita Park, is the Hikawa Maru. The ocean liner was built in 1929 by Yokohama Dock Co. and launched on September 30, 1929. For 31 years, it shuttled passengers between Yokohama and Seattle, Washington, making a total of 238 trips. A tour of the ship evokes the time when Yokohama was a great port of call for the transpacific liners. In summer, there's a beer garden on the upper deck.

The centerpiece of the park immediately southeast of Landmark Tower is the Nippon Maru, a full-rigged three-mast ship popularly called the "Swan of the Pacific." Built in 1930, it served as a training vessel and although it's now retired, it's an occasional participant in tall-ships festivals. It's also open as a museum, with enough English explanations to help bring its nicely preserved quarters to life. Adjacent to the ship is the Yokohama Port Museum, a two-story collection of ship models, displays, and archival materials that celebrates the achievements of the Port of Yokohama from its earliest days to the present. There are also a couple of boat and gantry crane simulators there, if you fancy a hands-on taste of port life.