Is Tohoku worth visiting on a two-week trip?

If you've already done the Golden Route, absolutely. Tohoku offers mountain onsen, samurai towns, and outstanding regional food, all accessible by Shinkansen from Tokyo. Sendai is 90 minutes from Tokyo Station and makes an excellent base.

How do I get to Yamadera from Sendai?

JR Senzan Line direct from Sendai Station, 60 minutes. The 1,000 steps up to the mountain temple take about 30-40 minutes. Go early morning for the best light and fewest people. Budget half a day including travel.

Is Ginzan Onsen worth the detour?

Yes, if you book ahead. The town is tiny and photogenic, especially in winter. Getting there requires a train to Oishida plus a 40-minute bus, so it's not a casual side trip. Plan one night and reserve early because rooms are limited.

How do I combine Kakunodate with Nyuto Onsen?

Both are on the Akita Shinkansen line. Visit Kakunodate's samurai district, then take the train to Tazawako Station (about 40 minutes). From Tazawako, a 50-minute bus goes up to Nyuto Onsen. Stay overnight at Nyuto, then bus back to Tazawako the next day.

Northern Japan

Mountain onsen, samurai towns, and the regional food that keeps pulling people north of Tokyo.

The Second Trip

Where to Stay in the North

Sendai is your hub, 90 minutes from Tokyo on the Tohoku Shinkansen. The JR East Tohoku Area Pass covers the trains to everything on this page and pays for itself on the round trip. Budget 3-5 days for the region — our Tohoku itinerary covers the full route. Business hotels near Sendai Station run ¥7,000-8,000/night.

Tohoku is where you go when mainland Japan starts feeling crowded. Mountain onsen villages, samurai towns with original wooden houses, and temple hikes you can do in half a day. The food runs on gyutan, local sake, and soba. The Shinkansen connects Sendai to Morioka and Akita, but branch lines between smaller towns are slow, so plan your connections or you'll lose half the day on platforms.

Stay Overnight

Featured Destinations

One hub city, forest onsen, a riverside ryokan town, samurai houses, and the castle towns of Tohoku.

90 min from Tokyo

Sendai

Your Tohoku Hub

Tohoku's largest city and your base for the north. Gyutan (beef tongue) is the signature: charcoal-grilled, thicker cuts than Tokyo, served with barley rice and tail soup. Day trips to Yamadera (60 min, mountain temple carved into a cliff) and Matsushima (40 min, island-dotted bay with temple walks). Business hotels near the station run around ¥8,000/night.

Your base for this region Full guide

2.5 hrs from Sendai

Nyuto Onsen

Forest Onsen at the Edge of the Map

Seven rustic onsen ryokan scattered through beech forests near Lake Tazawa. Tsurunoyu, the most famous, has milky blue outdoor baths surrounded by snow in winter. A bus pass lets you soak at all seven in one stay. Train to Tazawako Station (Akita Shinkansen from Sendai, 90 min), then 50-minute bus. Book weeks ahead; these fill up.

1-2 nights recommended

3 hrs from Sendai

Ginzan Onsen

Riverside Ryokan in the Mountains

Wooden ryokan lining both sides of a narrow river gorge, with gas lamp posts on the main street. The town is tiny: ten minutes end to end on foot, a handful of ryokan, and one public bathhouse. Winter is when it looks best, snow piling on the wooden balconies, but December through February books up months ahead. Train to Oishida from Yamagata (35 min), then 40-minute bus. Reserve early because there aren't many rooms.

1 night recommended

1.5 hrs from Sendai

Aomori & Hirosaki

Nebuta, Apples & Japan's Best Cherry Blossoms

The Nebuta Matsuri in August is one of Japan's largest festivals: massive illuminated floats paraded through the streets. Hirosaki Castle (40 min by train) has 2,600 cherry trees and is widely considered the best hanami spot in Japan. The Aomori seafood market serves nokke-don: build-your-own sashimi bowls from market stalls.

1-2 nights recommended

1.5 hrs from Sendai

Kakunodate

Samurai Houses & Cherry Trees

The samurai district still has the original bukeyashiki houses and weeping cherry trees lining the main street. Dark wood, preserved gardens, and the kind of quiet that Kyoto's historic districts lost years ago. The town sits on the Akita Shinkansen line, making it an easy day trip from Sendai or a stopover en route to Nyuto Onsen: 40 minutes by train to Tazawako Station, then bus up to the ryokan. The samurai district works year-round, but spring cherry blossoms bring the biggest crowds.

Half-day or 1 night

40 min from Sendai

Hiraizumi

UNESCO Golden Hall

Chusonji's Konjikido is a 900-year-old gold-leaf temple that survived when everything else in Hiraizumi burned. The UNESCO site includes temple grounds, a Noh stage, and Motsuji's Pure Land garden next door. The town was once a rival to Kyoto in wealth. Take the Shinkansen to Ichinoseki (30 min from Sendai), then local train 10 minutes. Pair it with Geibikei Gorge (20 min by train) for a full day.

Half-day trip

Guides

Northern Japan Guides

How to plan your route through Tohoku.

Itinerary

Tohoku Itinerary

The northern Honshu route most visitors skip. Sendai, samurai towns, mountain onsen, and how to connect them by rail.

Northern Japan

Where to Stay in the North

Featured Destinations

Sendai

Nyuto Onsen

Ginzan Onsen

Aomori & Hirosaki

Kakunodate

Hiraizumi

Northern Japan Guides

Tohoku Itinerary

If You Like This Region

Hokkaido

The Japanese Alps

Greater Tokyo

Got an itinerary? Check it before you book.