Japan
Art is a way of life in Japan’s answer to Florence
Ishikawa prefecture is known for attracting the most talented artisans in the country, in a culture of creation that dates back centuries.
- by Ben Groundwater
Zen, with a little help from a club-wielding monk
The threat of violence has a way of focusing the mind. And this Japanese mountain temple offers enlightenment through an “awakening stick”.
- by Ben Groundwater
Japan’s capital of reinvention has a bamboozling spate of new attractions
Tokyo is an exhausting but exhilarating place to visit. Its glamour, organisation and startling contrasts provide the ultimate Japanese experience.
- by Brian Johnston
Japan’s hidden islands a paradise for locavores
Culture and great food merge on these spectacular isles.
- by Ute Junker
Opinion
Food and wine
The one secret about Japan that travel writers don’t want you to know
Your ticket to eating and drinking at all the best establishments in a country that can be famously difficult to navigate comes down to one word.
- by Ben Groundwater
Teen tourist carves name into 1200-year-old temple
According to police, a 17-year-old Canadian used his fingernail to carve “J” and “Julian” into a pillar of Japan’s Toshodaiji Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
- by Natalie B. Compton and Julia Mio Inuma
Tokyo’s vintage stores have no trash, only treasure
There is tremendous respect and love for vintage items in Tokyo and if you’re shopping for vintage, the hard work has been done.
- by Ben Groundwater
This Japanese snack uses the chicken equivalent of Wagyu beef
The more you know about Japanese cuisine, the more readily you understand that yakitori is anything but simple.
- by Ben Groundwater
Destination Guide
Tokyo
The must-do highlights of Tokyo in three days
With three days in Tokyo you can experience a vast spectrum of places and attractions, a smorgasbord of incredible food, and a wondrous contrast of old and new.
- by Ben Groundwater
The tasty reason locals flock to this Japanese beach town in winter
Itoshima may not be on most Australian visitors’ radar, but locals know there’s a good reason to flock here: oysters, cheap and plentiful.
- by Emily McAuliffe