Destination
Photo: Dennis Peterson / Unsplash
Yamagata
Travel plans
Tsuruoka & Sakata: The Shonai Gastronomy Coast — 2 Days
A UNESCO gastronomy city and the world's best jellyfish aquarium, then a rice port of storehouses and a maiko teahouse
Zao: The Crater Lake, Summit Trails & Acid Springs — 2 Days
A ropeway to the summit ridge and two acid-spring baths, then a round crater lake and an alpine marsh
Dewa Sanzan Pilgrimage: The Three Mountains of Rebirth — 2 Days
Haguro's 2,446 stone steps and a thatched summit hall, then secret Yudono and the self-mummified monks
Ginzan Onsen & the Mogami River: A Taisho Hot-Spring Escape — 2 Days
A flat-bottomed boat down the Mogami, then a gas-lit Taisho hot-spring gorge
First-Time Yamagata: The Cliff Temple of Yamadera & the Castle City — 2 Days
The thousand-step cliff temple of Yamadera, then the moated castle city and a samurai onsen town
Yamagata travel guides
7 min read
Dewa Sanzan Guide 2026: The Three Sacred Mountains of Yamagata
6 min read
Ginzan Onsen Guide 2026: Yamagata's Gas-Lit Taisho Hot-Spring Town
6 min read
Mount Zao Guide 2026: Okama Crater Lake & the Snow Monsters
6 min read
Tsuruoka & Sakata 2026: Yamagata's Shonai Gastronomy Coast
7 min read