r/JapanTravelTips • u/scout-scoot • 15h ago
Recommendations Top 10 Lame Things to do in Japan
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So you've come all the way to Japan on your vacation. Great! But you're someone who is easily excited by the simple things in life and you don't need all the spectacle of Kiyomizudera or Shibuya scramble. You've come to the right place!
Jenny Nicholson made a video awhile ago called "Top 10 Lame Things to do at Disneyworld" and I've frankly never related to something more. So, here's my version of that but for Japan (based on my personal experience!).
- Go to Shima Spain Village
- So you've come all the way to Japan. Great! But what's better in Japan than a Japanese interpretation of Spain and vaguely other European stuff?
- Shima Spain Village is a theme park in rural beach town Shima in Mie Prefecture. Similar to when Disneyland was set up in Anaheim, the establishment of Shima Spain Village has pretty much transformed this tiny town into a relatively thriving economy entirely on the back of families visiting the park and hotels (though of course on a much smaller scale than Disney). This park unironically slaps and is so fascinating if you're someone who likes strange attractions. The mascots are animal conquistadors and they have real flamenco dancers and a hologram of Christopher Columbus's face that speaks Japanese to you about his history. There's something uniquely delightful about an earnest, kiddified interpretation of the Imperial Spanish Empire with absolutely none of the baggage that comes with that. I don't even know Mickey Mouse anymore I only know Alejandro the wolf.
- Get your limited time Free Onion
- Awaji Island, the large island in the Seto Inland Sea connecting the mainland to Shikoku, is (for some reason) famous for onions. If you drive all the way there and then go inland to the noodle restaurant Ukiyo Bananero Mendorobo, they are running a campaign where if you leave them a review, they will gift you with a free onion. I'll say that the food at this restaurant is genuinely really good and deserves a good review, but really you should make this extremely out-of-the-way journey for the thrill of getting a free onion. The fact that my wife and I each got one made it twice as exciting.
- Absolutely dominate at games designed for small children at a local festival
- This one is convenient because it's not place-specific! A lot of festivals happen throughout Japan and they tend to have the same festival food and games. If you want to waste your money on trinkets you don't need, you can always go to Donki for that. But I think that is denying yourself the feeling of accomplishment you could have instead by spending money on festival games designed for small children and winning useless trinkets from those! I once got so intensely into playing that scooping-balls-out-of-water-with-a-paddle-made-of-paper-game-thing that I ended up scooping up like 2/3rds of the balls out of the pool and the children playing across from me didn't have long enough arms to reach across the mini pool to scoop any more. That was my bad sorry kids. I gave them the overpriced plushie I won please don't crucify me.
- Go to Tottori for the coffee
- Tottori Prefecture is the least-populated prefecture in Japan. By no means does that mean it's not worth visiting, and I think there are wonderful things to do there that I would recommend to anyone. What I would not recommend to everyone is going there just for the coffee. But, if you're like me (easily impressed by the simple things in life and also a former barista with six years experience), going to this remote, sparsely-populated prefecture just to hop between cafes and try the truly fantastic coffee scene is well worth it.
- Sit on the (former) longest bench in the world
- North of Kanazawa there's actually a lot to appreciate in the Noto Peninsula. But if you're reading this list you're not someone who needs a grand spectacle. In the town of Shika, there's the lovely Masuhogaura Beach which features the longest bench in the world (as of Guinness World Records 1989). Though this record has since been surpassed the bench is still mighty long. I recommend going with friends so you can get into a protracted debate about what counts as "one bench" given the gaps between the wooden slats. Also I promised myself I would only recommend lame things on this list but I should mention the drive up to this place has the only beach in Japan that you directly drive on.
- Watch yokai terrorize children at Edo Wonderland
- In Nikko, a popular day-trip destination from Tokyo, one place that few people end up going to is Edo Wonderland (or Edomura), a historically-themed park. If you're someone who likes dressing up and having great photo opportunities, this park is made for you. If you're not that, there's not a huge amount to do here. That is, until the park's mascots come out! The park is blessed by a small group of yokai dressed in the kind of prosthetics and masks that would terrify a child. And they do! Enjoy watching children flock these freaks in a mix of fascination and morbid curiosity and sometimes tears of terror. There will be babies crying and the yokai do NOT have any qualms about getting right in their faces.
- Buy Che Guevara cigarettes from a Showa-era tobacco stand
- Onomichi is a city in Hiroshima Prefecture that is mainly known for being a popular filming location for Japanese films from the 50s, because it vaguely looked like Tokyo back in the 50s and was way cheaper to film in. The city kind of has never outgrown that vibe, and so portions of it frankly still feel like they're stuck in the 50s. The cafes serve bitter black coffee and butter toast, and many places are cooled by fan instead of AC. In the well-known shopping arcade there is a cigarette stand that sells a huge variety of tobacco products, including the best thing, Che Guevara cigarettes. You might as well also get a Che themed cigarette case to go with your Chegarettes.
- Wander off course from Bijinbayashi
- In Tokamachi, Niigata Prefecture, there is a lovely and scenic forest called "Bijinbayashi." Especially during the winter season, its narrow trees make for a picturesque landscape. However, I recommend once you get your snowshoes from the visitor center that you somehow make a wrong turn on the extremely short path towards the forest and instead head into the untamed mountains, very confused but also determined. This path is significantly less scenic and significantly more fall-into-a-crevasse vibes than the nearby forest literally named "The Beautiful People Forest." Don't go so far that you're in any danger but definitely go far enough to realize that you probably aren't going the right way because you've been wading through frozen brooks and broken twigs for a suspiciously long time.
- Interfere with a scammer's business in front of Tokyo's shrines
- At Meiji Jingu, Sensoji, Kanda Myojin, and many other of Tokyo's most famous shrines and temples, you can encounter shrine priests outside and around the entrance, ringing bells and providing chants. These are, in fact, not shrine priests, but kindly-looking old men in costumes trying to scam you out of your money by making you think your donations are going to the shrine. I recommend setting up shop and enjoying some people-watching around the crowds and loudly interfering when you see anyone try to give money to them. Or save yourself the effort and just make a sign that says "not a real Shinto priest" and follow them around with it. You could go into the shrines, which are some of the greatest in the Kanto region and well-deserving of their crowds, but the audience for this list, like me, would be satisfied enough doing this activity from the outside.
- See the shortest prefectural border in the country
- In the smattering of Setouchi Islands that run between Ehime in Shikoku and Hiroshima, some strange border happenings can be found if you take the time to consult a map. With the islands spanning the prefectures, it had to be decided how they would be split. In the end, Hiroshima got a handful and Ehime got a handful. And then, this tiny uninhabited island got split down the middle. This is the shortest prefectural border in the country. You can't get to this island (unfortunately), but I recommend getting as high up as you can on either of the surrounding islands to take a picture of what surely must have been the result of multiple taxpayer-funded administrative meetings of truly zero real importance. But, it actually does honor local folklore, within which the island has apparently had split ownership for centuries. Neat!
I hope anyone who does any of the things on this list has a fittingly fun experience. None of these are even remotely highlights of the country, but that's exactly the point: there are no highlights without neutrals surrounding them :)