Nikko Toshogu Shrine, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan
Photo: bethom33 via Flickr · CC BY-SA 2.0
栃木KANTŌ
KANTŌ · 栃木県 · Japan

Tochigi

Home to the ornate shrines and waterfalls of Nikkō.

Tochigi, about 100 km north of Tokyo, is home to Nikko's gilded UNESCO World Heritage shrines and temples and the surrounding national park of waterfalls, lakes and autumn foliage. The capital Utsunomiya is renowned across Japan as a gyoza (dumpling) town.

Tochigi (栃木) holds Nikkō (日光), where Tokugawa Ieyasu was enshrined in 1617 at the lavishly carved Tōshō-gū (東照宮), making it one of Japan's most important shrine complexes.

Nikko 日光市Utsunomiya 宇都宮市Nasu 那須町
Where it isTochigi, KANTŌ
Nikko Toshogu Shrine, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan
Nikko Toshogu Shrine
Kegon Falls, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan
Kegon Falls

Photos: Nikko Toshogu Shrine — bethom33 via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Kegon Falls — taka14 via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0

01

Getting there

Book buses & trains PR

Nikkō is ~2h from Tokyo (Tōbu line from Asakusa, or shinkansen + transfer).

Get a Japan eSIM before you fly (PR)

02

What to see

All tours · Tochigi PR
Nikko Toshogu Shrine, Tochigi Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Nikko Toshogu Shrine (日光東照宮)

Lavishly carved mausoleum of shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu and part of the UNESCO World Heritage 'Shrines and Temples of Nikko'. Famous for the Three Wise Monkeys…

MapOfficialTickets
Top pick

Nikko World Heritage complex - Rinnoji, Futarasan & Shinkyo Bridge

Beyond Toshogu, the UNESCO site spans 103 structures including 8th-century Rinnoji Temple, Futarasan Shrine dedicated to Nikko's sacred mountains, and the…

MapOfficialTickets
Kegon Falls, Tochigi Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Kegon Falls & Lake Chuzenji (華厳ノ滝・中禅寺湖)

A 97-meter waterfall near Lake Chuzenji at the foot of Mt. Nantai, one of Japan's most famous falls; a classic second-day pairing with the Nikko shrines,…

MapOfficialTickets
03

What to eat

Food tours & cooking classes PR
Utsunomiya Gyoza, Tochigi Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Utsunomiya Gyoza (宇都宮餃子)

Utsunomiya is Japan's self-styled gyoza capital with 300+ specialty shops; the local style is light and vegetable-forward, served pan-fried (yaki), deep-fried…

Sano Ramen, Tochigi Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Sano Ramen (佐野ラーメン)

A regional ramen from Sano city with a light soy-based broth and chewy, springy handmade noodles traditionally kneaded with a green bamboo stick (aodake).…

Tochiotome strawberries, Tochigi Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Tochiotome strawberries (とちおとめ)

Tochigi is Japan's top strawberry-producing prefecture; the sweet, juicy Tochiotome variety is a flagship. Pick-your-own strawberry farms (e.g. around…

04

Tochigi at a glance

Food Culture Nature City Access how we rank all 47 →
05

Say it in Tochigi

Practise with a tutor PR
Ask a local
Osusume wa nan desu ka?
What do you recommend?
Test yourself
Local word
gyōza
pan-fried dumplings — Utsunomiya's specialty
Test yourself
One more
ki wo tsukete kudasai
Please be careful / Take care
Practise more Japanese →
Nikko Toshogu Shrine, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan

Sleep in Tochigi

Compare ryokan, business hotels and local inns.

Find places to stay PR
07

Next door

IbarakiSeasonal flower parks, a giant Buddha, and natto just north of Tokyo.GunmaFamous hot-spring resorts and a UNESCO silk-mill heritage.Play the 47-prefecture mapUnlock Tochigi in the RPG-style explorer.

Links marked PR are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Photos: Nikko Toshogu Shrine — bethom33 via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Kegon Falls — taka14 via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Nikko Toshogu Shrine — bethom33 via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Kegon Falls — Yuto via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Utsunomiya Gyoza — Dick Thomas Johnson via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Sano Ramen — Nearby Tokyo via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tochiotome strawberries — Ryohei Noda via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. Map: Geolonia (MIT).