Get off the beaten path and onto a more creative trajectory by planning your trip to Japan around art, design and architectural experiences. Featuring 99 unique locations covering every region in Japan, a new mini guide published by Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) aims to help you do just that.
With descriptions, photos and addresses for each location and handy pullout maps showing you where in Japan the various locations are, a quick flick through the guide is sure to bring up somewhere that piques your interest and fits in with your travel plans.
From Zaborin, a stylish and serene hot spring resort spread over 15 villas, and Space1-15, a hipster boutique complex housed in a re-purposed residential building, in the north in Hokkaido, to Kirishima Open-air Museum, with sculptures and artworks set on a hillside 700 metres above sea level, and Okinawa Prefectural Art Museum, a repository of unique Okinawan artifacts, in the deep south in Kyushu and Okinawa, the guide is sure to have somewhere that’s right for you.
With the guide in hand, you’ll be able to easily put together an art, design or architecture themed trip or to enhance your current travel plans by incorporating some more unusual locations into your itinerary. Comments by architects and designers and feature essays by writer Roland Hagenburg throughout provide additional insights to whet your appetite and deepen your curiosity.
The full guide can also be found online at art.japan.travel. Search by region as well as categories to cater for every persuasion of design or architecture fan, whether it’s public spaces or hotels that you’re interested in, and view suggested design itineraries.
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