Nikkō
This grand hotel from 1893 has hosted such notables as Albert Einstein, Helen Keller and King George V in its charming if slightly worn environs. The newer wing has Japanese-style rooms with excellent vistas, spacious quarters and private bathrooms; the cheaper rooms in the main building are Western style and have an appealing old-fashioned ambience.
The lobby bar is deliciously dark and particularly amenable to whisky drinkers. Rates rise steeply in high season.
0.49 MILES
Tōshō-gū is Nikkō's biggest attraction, a shrine to the powerful shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543–1616). No expense was spared: when the original structure …
0.67 MILES
Taiyū-in, completed in 1653, is the mausoleum of Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604–51), the third Tokugawa shogun and grandson of Ieyasu. (Ieyasu was deified, which…
0.48 MILES
Adorned in gold leaf and some 500 carved images depicting folk tales, mythical beasts and Chinese sages, the 'Sunset Gate' is the most revered traditional…
0.29 MILES
Rinnō-ji's grand main hall, Sanbutsu-dō ('Hall of Three Buddhas'), was first built in 848; the current structure dates to 1645 and, with restoration work…
0.6 MILES
Futarasan-jinja was founded over 1200 years ago as a place to worship the mountain Nantai-san (2484m), his mountain consort, Nyohō-san (2483m), and their…
Nikkō Tamozawa Imperial Villa Memorial Park
0.7 MILES
About 1km west of Shin-kyō bridge, this splendidly restored imperial palace (c 1899) of more than 100 rooms showcases superb artisanship, with parts of…
5.74 MILES
The big-ticket attraction of Chūzen-ji is this billowing, 97m-high waterfall. Take the 1930s elevator down to a platform to observe the full force of the…
0.8 MILES
Along this particularly scenic stretch of the Daiya-gawa, where white rapids swirl around rocks, is a row of Jizō statues, the small stone effigies of the…
0.08 MILES
This much-photographed red footbridge over the Daiya-gawa is located at the sacred spot where Shōdō Shōnin is said to have been carried across the Daiya…
0.24 MILES
This Edo-era strolling garden can feel like a refuge from the temple crowds – except during autumn, when the turning leaves are a great attraction.
0.24 MILES
This museum has an interesting collection of temple artefacts, sculptures and scrolls. Admission includes entry to the lovely Edo-period garden Shōyō-en.
0.29 MILES
Rinnō-ji's grand main hall, Sanbutsu-dō ('Hall of Three Buddhas'), was first built in 848; the current structure dates to 1645 and, with restoration work…
0.33 MILES
Opened in 2015 for the 400th anniversary of Tokugawa Ieyasu's death, this modern building behind Rinnō-ji contains artefacts relating to the shogun,…
0.37 MILES
A towering stone torii (entrance gate) at the head of the stone steps on Omotesandō leading up to Tōshō-gū, burial place of Tokugawa Ieyasu.
0.4 MILES
This five-tiered pagoda at Tōshō-gū is an 1819 reconstruction of the mid-17th-century original. Buying a supplementary ticket affords you the chance to…