Weekend trips worth leaving Tokyo for
These are the five weekend trips I keep coming back to from Tokyo: an onsen town, a Fuji lake, a mountain escape, shrines and waterfalls, and the coast. Every guide starts from a stay I’ve actually done.
Hakone
The onsen flagship · ~2.5 hrsHakone is where Tokyo goes to soak. I stayed in Ashinoyu, at one of Japan’s oldest ryokan — quiet, in the hills, and the baths do most of the talking.
Start with: A night at Matsuzakaya Honten in Ashinoyu → straight to your room’s private open-air bath.
Kawaguchiko
Fuji and the lakes · ~2 hrsI go for the Fuji views and the slow lake-town pace. Stay by the water, wake up early, and let the mountain set the schedule.
Start with: Sunrise over the lake → Oishi Park and the north shore.
Karuizawa
Mountain air and old Ginza street · ~2.5 hrsTokyo’s mountain escape: cooler air, the old Ginza shopping street, and the kind of quiet you can actually hear.
Start with: Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza street → a forest-side café.
Nikko
Shrines and waterfalls · ~2.5 hrsShrines and waterfalls with real weight to them. Toshogu is ornate in a way photos don’t prepare you for.
Start with: Toshogu Shrine → Lake Chuzenji and Kegon Falls.
Izu
Coast and onsen · ~3 hrsThe coast trip: ocean on one side, onsen on the other. I stayed down in Imaihama — beach in front of you, bath after.
Start with: Imaihama beach → an ocean-view open-air bath.
Next up: Karuizawa at Christmas
Headed back to Karuizawa over Christmas — the winter version of the guide (snow, the Christmas market, off-season ryokan) gets written from that trip. Longer trips join the list after: Takayama is first in line as the long-weekend chapter.
All five, in one free PDF-style mini-guide
The same five trips, condensed. The free sample of the bigger guide to come.