My Japan Trip - Enjoying The Nature In Nikko (Part 1)

Hello there! It's my first post in the Pinmapple community under the World Map Pin! Trying to do the tag as well! If you haven't read about them, please take a look at this link.

As background, I have done a few overseas trips last year, as some of my friends here would know, and I have been wanting to share some of the interesting places that I have visited. However, life has been busy and I have been procrastinating penning these entries and recently, I revisited this target of mine and finally broke the inertia!

One of my memorable trips in 2023 was to Tokyo, Japan, and during that trip, I did quite a few day trips to nearby cities and towns. Earlier this year, I wrote about visiting the peaceful Karuizawa and scenic Atami. In this post, I will share about Nikko.

As it was planned to be a day trip from Tokyo, we took the JR to Nikko and the journey was pretty easy. I remembered it was probably around 1-2 hours from Tokyo. Nikko is a UNESCO World Heritage Site - for those who are not familiar:

A World Heritage Site is a natural or cultural site that demonstrates influence or significance in a global context (i.e., has “Outstanding Universal Value”), and has been inscribed on the World Heritage List by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee.

We had a quick lunch before we began our journey. First up, we saw the Shinkyo Bridge at the entrance of the Nikko National Park. With all the greenery and flowing waters, it definitely had the peaceful and zen vibes.

Another checkpoint to indicate that this is a World Heritage Site, and the key attractions here are really the shrines and temples.

Like they say, nature is one of the best therapies. Even the leaves are so beautiful.

I wasn't really well versed into temples and shrine culture so for me, it was really looking at the structures and sculptures, and just admiring how majestic and how amazing they are. With the backdrop of the nature, it was really an enjoyable experience. Some random photos along the way, as we headed towards the main attraction in this area, which would be Toshogu Shrine. These photos were taken at Nikkosan Rinnoji Temple.

There was some climbing of stairs, and the gradient can be quite sloppy at times, but overall, it was okay. I think the cool weather and nature made the journey less tiring.

With that, that's all for my sharing for Nikko for the first part. Do catch the second part where we head towards the main attraction Toshogu Shrine as well as other interesting places! Also, let me know in the comments if you have been to Nikko, and what are your thoughts about this place?

Finally, thanks for reading my 5th post in the community and the first one under World Map Pin! More to come I promise! :)

P.S. I have also tried to document my posts in one table so it's easy to reference too!