Japan Highlights

Kyoto is Japan's ancient imperial capital and the most culturally rich city in Asia — a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 17 individual World Heritage properties, 1,600 Buddhist temples, 400 Shinto shrines, and the finest traditional Japanese arts and crafts. The Fushimi Inari Shrine — with its thousands of vermilion torii gates winding up the mountain — is the most photographed site in Japan. The Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is one of the most extraordinary natural landscapes in Asia. The Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion) is the most beautiful building in Japan. And the Gion district — where geisha still walk the stone-paved streets in the evening — is the most atmospheric neighbourhood in Japan.

Tokyo is the most exciting city on earth — a megalopolis of 37 million people that combines the world's finest food (more Michelin stars than any other city), extraordinary technology, ancient temples and shrines, the most vibrant pop culture in the world, and a safety and efficiency that makes it the most liveable megacity on earth. The Shibuya Crossing — the busiest pedestrian crossing in the world — is the symbol of modern Tokyo. The Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa is the most visited spiritual site in the world. The Tsukiji Outer Market has the finest sushi in the world. And the view from the Tokyo Skytree (634m) — the tallest tower in the world — over the vast expanse of the city is extraordinary.