Narita, a gateway to Japan, is a city that goes beyond the international airport. The symbol of Narita, Naritasan Shinsho-ji Temple, is a large temple founded in the mid-10th century that attracts millions of worshippers a year. And Sakura-no-Yama park is a perfect spot for watching the planes come and go and beautiful cherry blossom in spring time!
So next time you visit Tokyo, before catching flight, spend a day exploring this city full of nature and history!
Narita-san Shinsho-ji Temple
Narita-san and its sando path, the only remnants of the old streets from the Edo Era
This temple boasts the second largest number of visitors in Japan on New Years Day, and also has buildings that have been designated National Cultural Properties. Easy to access from Narita airport, it's a place you can feel the Japanese atmosphere without having to travel into the city.
Strolling along the path to Narita-san Taking 10 minutes from Narita Airport by JR, you can reach JR Narita Station. The way from the station to Narita-san is called the Narita-san Sando (the path to Narita-san). The area around the temple once flourished with ryokan, and for that reason, there were many dining establishments to relax weary travelers. When walking along Narita-san Sando, you may notice a lot of signboards for eel which come from memories of hoping for travelers to work hard. On this path towards Narita-san which still retains...
Business hours
- Everyday
Phone
0476-22-2210
Price
- Free
Website
www.naritasan.or.jp
Naritasan Park
A park of plum blossoms and fall foliage close to Narita-san Shinsho-ji Temple
This is a large garden of 165,000㎡ spreading out below Heiwa-no-Daito (Great Pagoda of Peace) at the back of the Great Main Hall of Narita-san Shinsho-ji Temple. The walking course is popular among the rich nature which includes the plum blossoms of spring and the autumn colors.
After visiting Narita-san Shinsho-ji Temple, take a walk through the lush green park Naritasan Park is a garden in a hilly area at the back of the Great Main Hall of Shinsho-ji Temple. It is a resting area for visitors with a Western-style garden, 3 ponds, a waterfall and other features. Inside the park is the Naritasan Calligraphy Museum which exhibits works and information dating from the late Edo Era to the present day. Furthermore, to the side of the museum is a suikinkutsu (buried earthen jar) which is a feature of Japanese garden orname...
Business hours
- Everyday
Phone
0476-22-2111
Price
- Free
Website
www.nrtk.jp
Narita-san Omotesando
The closest place to Narita Airport to get a taste of Japanese spirit
Narita Station is just 10 minutes away from the airport. The 800m path leading to the temple from the station is an old town street where you can sample Japan through the famous regional delicacy of eel and traditional festivals. It would be a waste to simply visit Narita just to use the airport.
The town street with reminders of Edo is steeped in famous products Narita-san Omotesando is the closest place to the airport where the good old days of Japan remain. It is said that the area is the most tourist-friendly place for a taste of Japan in English due to the large number of foreign visitors. The first thing you notice as you walk along the street is the great number of establishments selling eel. Eel has been a Narita delicacy since the Edo Era. Eel cuisine has been popular due to its high nutritional value, its ability to energiz...
Phone
0476-22-2111
Price
- Free
Website
www.nrtk.jp
Sakura-no-Yama Park
A spectacular viewing spot for airplanes! Also ideal for taking photos of spring cherry blossoms.
A perfect location that is known as “Plane-Spotting Hill”. Used for filming of programs such as TV dramas, it has also been selected as one of The Top 100 Views of Chiba.
You can view flowers throughout the four seasons and get a close-up of planes Sakura-no-Yama of Narita City is a park situated on a small hill to the north of a 4000-meter runway at Narita Airport. It’s popular for being able to see the departure and arrival of airplanes at close range. You can also enjoy the rare sights of seeing the moment when the tires of a plane at takeoff tuck into the fuselage with the white steam coming off the wings. You will feel like cheering when the plane goes over your head as it roars by. It’s also...
Business hours
- Everyday (6:00 AM ~ 11:00 PM )
Phone
0476-20-1562
Price
- Free
Website
www.city.narita.chiba.jp
AEON Mall Narita
AEON Mall Narita has food and souvenirs. A shopping mall just 10 minutes away from Narita Airport
AEON Mall Narita is a short 5km distance away from Narita Airport. This shopping mall which boasts 180 different stores is a hit as a place that is easy for overseas tourists to visit.
You can enjoy everything from daily items to food AEON Mall Narita is 5 kilometers away from Narita Airport and takes 10 minutes via a direct bus ride from JR Keisei Narita Station. In addition, there are also direct buses from major hotels surrounding the airport such as Marroad International Hotel Narita, Hotel Nikko Narita and the Narita View Hotel, so the mall is very accessible for overseas visitors using Narita Airport. AEON Mall has various stores dealing in products such as food and daily items handled by the AEON Corporation, restaur...
Business hours
- Everyday (9:00 AM ~ 10:00 PM )
Phone
0476-23-8282
Website
narita-aeonmall.com.e.cb.hp.transer.com
Yamato no Yu
Narita’s only natural onsen facility is a hot spring resort for adults
An onsen facility ideal for day trips with an eye-catching modern exterior. There are 8 large and small outdoor baths with Japanese cuisine evoking the four seasons, a gymnasium and other features to provide a healing space for adults.
A hidden oasis to soothe travel fatigue Yamato-no-yu is located near Narita Airport and Narita-san Shinsho-ji Temple. You can get a full view of a rural landscape in front of your eyes, and beyond there, you can see Inba Marsh and Mt. Fuji. The facility is 3 storeys tall to realize the best scenery. The A and B areas switch between men and women on a daily basis so you are able to enter either area. Starting with the open-air baths where you can get a full view of Inba Marsh, you can enjoy relaxation through amenities such as the cypress ba...
Business hours
- Everyday (10:00 AM ~ 10:00 PM )
Phone
0476-28-8111
Price
- Adult: 700 JPY
Children under elementary school age are not allowed to enter the facility
Website
www.yamatonoyu.com
Boso-no-Mura
See, feel and experience Japanese history. A museum for the whole family.
Edo is right there as soon as you enter. On the huge 51-hectare site, there is The Furusato-no-Gi interactive area which involves the lifestyles of merchants and farmers, and the Fudoki-no-Oka area which goes into the learning of the history and nature.
Head into the Edo Era through the Furusato-no-Gi interactive area 16 buildings have been constructed ranging from dining establishments including soba shops and other eateries to blacksmith shops, referring to the old avenues of Boso from the late Edo Era to the early Meiji Era. Inari shrines[G1] , jizo statues and watchtowers, regular structures on the old streets, are reconstructed here. It’s a place which feels as if you‘ve entered a scene of a historical drama. From time to time, it is actually used for filming as a location...
Business hours
- Tuesday (9:00 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Wednesday (9:00 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Thursday (9:00 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Friday (9:00 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Saturday (9:00 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Sunday (9:00 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
Phone
0476-95-3333
Price
- Adult: 300 JPY
- Child: 0 JPY
Website
www.chiba-muse.or.jp
Sawara
Experience the “Living Little Edo”. The area is a virtual museum!
Sawara is a waterfront town. Along the river and its surroundings, the old townscape with remnants of Edo remains even now, and it has been recognized for the first time in the Kanto region as an Important Preservation District for a Group of Traditional Buildings.
Sawara, the Little Edo where films and TV dramas appear Located in northern Chiba Prefecture, Sawara flourished from the old days as a riverside town. Old merchant houses line the streets along the Katori Highway and the Ono River which runs from north to south through the town, and it is a place that overflows with Japanese spirit with so many movies and dramas being filmed there. It is also an area that is connected to Tadataka Ino who created Japan’s first actual survey map. With this legacy of historical scenery and the pursuit of...
Phone
0478-54-1111
Price
Differs depending on the facility
Website
en.wikipedia.org
National Museum of Japanese History
The only national museum of history in Japan. You must catch the enormous exhibits!
A museum that places importance on the history of the Japanese way of life. You can also enjoy the many life-sized reproductions and gigantic reconstructions with your very eyes. Audio guides in English, Chinese and Korean are available free of charge.
Well worth seeing for its 6 complete galleries and the spaciousness Gallery 1 covers the period from 37,000 years ago to the beginning of the 10th century. You can view the courses that shaped Japanese culture through earthenware and kofun burial tombs in the Paleolithic Era when humans first appeared in Japan and the gorgeous capital during the Nara Era. Gallery 2 spans the 10th to the 17th centuries which go from the Heian to Azuchi-Momoyama Eras. Cultural aspects such as the Japanese language adopting the hiragana and katakana syllabari...
Business hours
- Tuesday (9:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Wednesday (9:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Thursday (9:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Friday (9:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Saturday (9:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
- Sunday (9:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM )
Phone
043-486-0123
Price
- Adult: 420 JPY
- Child: 0 JPY
Website
www.rekihaku.ac.jp
Katori Shrine
One of the 3 main Jingu shrines of Japan. The main building (haiden) of the shrine within the forest boasts a history of 2600 years
Katori Shrine is the head shrine for about 400 Katori shrines in Japan. It is also popular as a spiritual spot due to features on the large shrine grounds such as the millennium-old sacred tree and a keystone which is said to mitigate earthquakes
The prestigious shrine built in 643 BC has a quiet majesty Only three shrines predating the Edo Era have had the label “Jingu” applied: Ise Jingu, Kashima Jingu and Katori Jingu. Such structures were given the rank of Jingu as gods to appease and protect the nation. Katori Jingu is a prestigious shrine established in 643 BC. Built on a slightly elevated mountain called Mt. Kamegase, the 123,000㎡ area known as Katori Woods is a Natural Monument of Chiba Prefecture. You can enjoy the four seasons through the several hundred tree...
Business hours
- Everyday
Phone
0478-57-3211
Price
- Free
Website
en.wikipedia.org
Museum of Aeronautical Sciences
Japan’s first aeronautical museum, located next to Narita Airport!
About 15 minutes away from the airport bus stop. With its observation tower that resembles a control tower, Japan’s first actual display of a Boeing 747 and hands-on experiences, even non-airplane fans can enjoy their time here
The attractions are all hands-on About 15 minutes away from the bus stops for Terminals 1 and 2. The museum is notable for its building that resembles a control tower. Passing through the outdoor exhibition area and going into the entrance, there is the central building, the east building to the right and the west building to the left. You can go through 4 experiences related to airplanes: operations of a model airplane, a training simulator, an experience with sound and boarding experience. First off at the vaulted west building on the fir...
Business hours
- Tuesday (10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM )
- Wednesday (10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM )
- Thursday (10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM )
- Friday (10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM )
- Saturday (10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM )
- Sunday (10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM )
Phone
0479-78-0557
Price
- Adult: 500 JPY
- Child: 200 JPY
Website
www.city.narita.chiba.jp
