10 Unique Things to Do in Japan: A Japanese Local's Picks for Families and Couples

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1. The 10 experiences at a glance
2. 10 unique things to do in Japan
3. Can’t do everything? How to choose
4. Let a Japanese local shape your trip

What kind of memories do you want to bring home from Japan? A day at a theme park with the children, a quiet evening in a hot spring for two, or an hour in a Kyoto tea room learning something completely new. This guide brings together 10 experiences you can only have in Japan.

I was born in Japan and lived there for 26 years before moving to Dubai, so I know both what makes Japan special and what matters to travellers from the Gulf. These are the experiences I would want a close friend to have on their first trip. I chose ones you can enjoy in any season and fit easily into a family or couple’s trip.

The 10 experiences at a glance

Experience	Area	Best for	Time needed	Price from	Book ahead?
★ Relax in a private onsen	Hakone, Lake Kawaguchi	Families, couples	1 night	¥45,000 (AED 1,050) per person	Yes
★ Eat sushi at the counter	Tokyo, Kyoto	Families, couples	1.5–2 hours	¥20,000 (AED 470) per person	Yes
Walk through Kyoto in a kimono	Kyoto	Couples, families	Half day	¥5,000 (AED 115) per person	Yes
★ Whisk your own matcha	Kyoto, Tokyo	Families, couples	45 min–1.5 hours	¥7,700 (AED 180) per adult	Yes
Ride at Tokyo Disney Resort or USJ	Tokyo, Osaka	Families	1 day	¥7,900 (AED 185) per adult	Yes
See Mount Fuji from Lake Kawaguchi	Lake Kawaguchi	Couples, families	Half to full day	¥90,000 (AED 2,100) per car	Yes
Eat an ekiben on the shinkansen	Tokyo to Kyoto	Families	About 2 hours 15 min	¥700 (AED 16) per box	No
Make nerikiri Japanese sweets	Tokyo, Kyoto	Families	About 2 hours	¥5,000 (AED 115) per person	Yes
See Tokyo or Osaka from a private helicopter	Tokyo, Osaka	Couples, special trips	10–22 minutes in Tokyo	¥44,000 (AED 1,025) per flight in Tokyo	Yes
Shop in Ginza and Omotesando, and explore a depachika	Tokyo	Adults	Half day	Free to browse	No

★ = my top three picks. Prices are only a rough guide. They vary a lot depending on the place and provider you choose, as well as the date, season and number of people. AED at about ¥43 per dirham.

10 unique things to do in Japan

1. Relax in a private onsen

An onsen is a natural hot spring bath, and soaking in one surrounded by mountains is the most Japanese way to slow down. Many ryokan (traditional inns) in Hakone and around Lake Kawaguchi have rooms with their own open-air bath, or private baths you can reserve just for your family. Dubai has wonderful spas, but bathing in natural hot spring water with a view of forest or Mount Fuji is something you will only find here.

• Families: a private bath means everyone can relax together, with no strangers around.
• Couples: choose a room with its own open-air bath and enjoy it at sunset and again at sunrise. For more romantic ideas, see our guide to things to do in Japan for couples.

Local tip: stay at least one night. The ryokan experience includes the dinner, the quiet evening and the morning bath, not just the onsen. For ryokan ideas, see our guide to private onsen, and for what to do around the bath, read how to enjoy an onsen town.

2. Eat sushi made by a chef at the counter

At a sushi counter, the chef makes each piece in front of you and places it straight on your plate, one at a time, in the order he thinks you will enjoy most. It is less a meal than a performance, and the freshness of the fish in Japan is hard to match anywhere else. For many of my friends, this was the meal they talked about most after their trip.

• Families: go at lunchtime, when many counters serve shorter courses that suit children.
• Couples: book an evening omakase (chef’s choice) and sit at the counter to watch the chef work.

Local tip: tell the restaurant about allergies and anything you do not eat when you book, not at the table, so the chef can plan the course.

3. Walk through Kyoto in a kimono

Renting a kimono for the day and walking the old streets around Kiyomizu-dera and Gion is one of the most photographed moments of any trip to Japan. The shop dresses you completely, so you only need to enjoy the walk.

• Couples: walk the stone lanes of Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka up to Kiyomizu-dera, passing the Yasaka Pagoda. Early in the morning, it feels like stepping back in time.
• Families: Arashiyama is more open and relaxed for children. Walk through the bamboo grove, cross the Togetsukyo Bridge and take a short boat ride on the river. Children also love running through the red torii gates at Fushimi Inari Shrine; the first section is enough for small legs.

Local tip: start early. By late morning the streets around Kiyomizu-dera are very crowded.

4. Whisk your own matcha

The tea ceremony is one of the purest expressions of Japanese culture: every movement, from folding the cloth to turning the bowl, has a meaning. In a quiet tea room, a teacher explains the ceremony and then hands you the bamboo whisk, so you can make a bowl of matcha (powdered green tea) yourself. Kyoto is the best place to do it, and private sessions let your family enjoy it without strangers.

• Families: children enjoy whisking the foam themselves, and most sessions last under an hour. Some tea rooms also offer a Japanese sweet-making class, so you can add making nerikiri on the same visit.
• Couples: choose a longer private plan that adds wearing a kimono for the ceremony.

Local tip: book a morning session before Kyoto’s busiest sights get crowded, then walk to a temple nearby.

5. Enjoy the rides at Tokyo Disney Resort or Universal Studios Japan

Tokyo Disney Resort has two parks: Tokyo Disneyland, with its castle and parades, and Tokyo DisneySea, a Disney park found only in Japan, with themed ports from Venice to an underwater world. Universal Studios Japan in Osaka is home to Super Nintendo World, a favourite with children of every age.

• Families: Tokyo Disneyland suits younger children best, while older children often prefer the rides at Tokyo DisneySea. Plan the day around the rides they care about most, with a long lunch break. For 16 more ideas sorted by age, see our guide to things to do in Japan with kids.
• Couples: Tokyo DisneySea is popular with adults, especially in the evening when the harbour lights up.

Local tip: avoid Japanese school holidays and weekends, when the parks are at their busiest.

6. Walk by Lake Kawaguchi with Mount Fuji in view

Walking along Lake Kawaguchi with Mount Fuji rising in front of you is the view most people picture when they think of Japan. In the early morning, the mountain is often reflected in the still water, and the lakeside is almost empty.

• Couples: stay overnight at a lakeside ryokan with a Fuji view and walk out at sunrise.
• Families: combine the lakeside walk with a cable car ride for a wider view.

Local tip: check the forecast the day before and keep the plan flexible, so you can go on the clearest day of your trip.

7. Eat an ekiben on the shinkansen

An ekiben is a boxed meal sold at train stations, and opening one on the shinkansen (bullet train) is a small Japanese tradition. Tokyo Station has shops selling ekiben from all over Japan, so choosing one becomes part of the fun.

• Families: children love the shinkansen-shaped bento boxes, which they can keep as a toy afterwards. The portion is small, about right for a child. Many contain fried chicken or other meat, so check the contents if you eat halal.
• Couples: choose a seafood bento, such as salmon and salmon roe over rice, which is a comfortable one-person meal, or masu no sushi (pressed trout sushi from Toyama) in a round box that is large enough to share.

Local tip: sit on the right side of the train from Tokyo to Kyoto for a chance to see Mount Fuji on a clear day.

8. Make nerikiri Japanese sweets

Nerikiri are delicate wagashi (Japanese sweets) shaped like seasonal flowers. This is a hands-on craft class: a confectioner shows you how to colour the sweet bean paste and shape it into cherry blossoms or maple leaves with simple wooden tools. You take home the skill, and eat what you made at the end. It feels a little like modelling clay, so even young children can join in.

Local tip: choose a class that teaches the current season’s design, such as cherry blossoms in spring or maple leaves in autumn.

9. See Tokyo or Osaka from a private helicopter

A private helicopter flight shows Japan’s most famous sights from above. Over Tokyo, you see Tokyo Bay, Tokyo Tower and Tokyo Skytree, and at sunset the city lights stretch to the horizon. Over Osaka, you fly past Osaka Castle, the Umeda Sky Building and Osaka Bay, and at night the castle is lit up below you. It is a perfect surprise for an anniversary or a special birthday.

• Couples: book an evening flight timed for sunset in Tokyo, or a night flight over the illuminated Osaka Castle.
• Families: short day flights work well for older children, and in Osaka you can even spot Universal Studios Japan from the air.

Local tip: pair the flight with a dinner reservation nearby to make it a full evening.

10. Shop in Ginza and Omotesando, and explore a depachika

Ginza and Omotesando are home to luxury brands, Japanese designers and beautiful flagship stores. Underneath the department stores is the depachika (food hall), full of perfect fruit, Japanese sweets and gift boxes that make wonderful souvenirs.

• Couples: spend an afternoon in Omotesando’s side streets for Japanese designer boutiques.
• Families: the depachika is a fun place to taste and buy sweets for friends at home.

Local tip: visit the depachika in the late afternoon, when shops offer tastings and the gift selection is at its fullest.

Can’t do everything? How to choose

• First trip to Japan: sushi at the counter, matcha in Kyoto and Mount Fuji give you food, culture and scenery in one trip.
• Families with children: Tokyo Disney Resort, a nerikiri class, an ekiben on the shinkansen and a private onsen, with rest time between each.
• Couples: a private onsen, sushi at the counter and a kimono walk in Kyoto.
• A trip to remember: add a private helicopter flight over Tokyo or Osaka.

A 7-day example: start in Tokyo with sushi, shopping and Tokyo Disney Resort, spend a night at a ryokan by Lake Kawaguchi with Mount Fuji, then take the shinkansen to Kyoto with an ekiben for matcha, a kimono walk and a nerikiri class.

For prayer during your trip, Tokyo Camii in Shibuya is the largest mosque in Tokyo, and a private car makes it easy to fit prayer times into each day.

If you are still deciding when to go, our guide to the best time to visit Japan explains each season, and our guide to how much a trip to Japan costs helps you plan your budget.

Let a Japanese local shape your trip

Tell us which of these experiences you would like, and we will turn them into one smooth plan. Message us on WhatsApp with your travel dates, the number of travellers and the children’s ages. We will arrange the experiences, hotels, ryokan and transport around your family. Start a free chat.