We Ranked Our Top 11 Places To Visit in Japan 

There is something poetic about Norm having the shitties camera quality while sitting infront a wall of high end cameras

I crunched the numbers for anyone wanting to know the *average* scores of everyone in this video: 1. Tokyo (3.2 average) 2. Hiroshima (4.4) 3. Osaka (4.8) 4. Hokkaido (5.6) =5. Ehime (6.2) =5. Fukuoka (6.2) =7. Fukushima (6.6) =7. Oita (6.6) 9. Kyoto (7) 10. Sendai (7.2) 11. Okinawa (10.2)

Norm: let's explore Chris: good food Sharla: damn those tourists

So Sharla & Chris uploaded today and now they are both in the new Tokyo Creative video? I'm surely getting my Japan youtube fix today.

I feel like Chris was holding out for either Aomori or Yamagata

This video really shows how much the beloved veterans actually know about locations and when/why to go around. I love all the guys but damn, Chris and Sharla do know places and really just like their way of presentation.

shiori should’ve been apart of this so we could’ve seen what a native of japan would rate these places

what I learned from this video: Aki doesn't travel

“Damn this list, damn the rules of this game” -Chris 🤣🤣🤣

Fun to hear how they feel about the different spots, but asking people to rank anything one by one blindly without knowing all the options is just pointless. I'm just glad they got to rearrange their list at the end.

Having them rank them without knowing all the options up front makes absolutely no sense haha.

I have been to all 47 prefectures and made following ranking. (from nominated 11 prefectures and additional 1) 1、Kanagawa Why is it not even nominated? Minatomirai district in Yokohama is the best bay side area in Japan. Despite so close to Tokyo, It's not busy and is comfortable to stay. Compared with other big cities, Yokohama is cooler in the summer and warmer in winter. Hakone is good place to go for onsen and it's easy to access from Yokohama and Tokyo. 2、Fukuoka Foods are cheap and delicious. Especially seafoods are amazing. Streets are modern and clean. People are kind. Hospitality is high. 3、Kyoto There are a lot of beautiful places. Back streets are amazing. Vegetables and green tea are delicious. But it's too hot in the summer. 4、Tokyo Everything is there. 5、Hiroshima As far as I know, Shimanami Kaido is the most beautiful place in Japan. Miyajima and rabbit island Okunoshima are good too. Okonomiyaki Hiroshima style is so tasty. 6、Okinawa Ishigaki island is amazing. Warm even in winter. 7、Hokkaido Foods are cheap and delicious. Seafoods and melons are amazing. 8、Sendai (Miyagi) Clean and cozy city. I guess it's good to live in. 9、Osaka I like the main lobby of the Ritz Carlton Osaka. As a football fan, Panasonic Stadium Suita is one of the Top 3 football stadiums in Japan with Kashima and Toyota. 10、Ehime The view from Kirozan park observatory in Shimanami Kaido is stunning. A little far from other big cities. 11、Fukushima Camping near by lake Inawashiro is not bad. 12、Oita Onsen is not bad but the accessibility from other big cities is not good. Thanks for reading.

Man, Jun and Rachel should have gotten in on this one.

You'd think the guy that's called "Tokyo Lens" and has a camera warehouse for an apartment wouldn't have the worst video footage...but he does.

I really agree with TokyoLens, that Kyoto early in the morning and in the night is so gorgeous.. Arashiyama and Fushimi Inari early in the morning are so serene and beautiful.. Love it so much..

"One of these youtubers is not like the other"

woah. that underwater place Aki mentioned sounds amazing!

Absolutely loved the points made by Chris, Emma and Sharla! Norm gave me great inspiration for my next trip. And Aki...she seems like a cool girl but this is the second video I see of her being included in this group, and being asked questions she has no idea about. Please maybe include her only in videos in which she can have positive contribution. Instead maybe replace her with Ryotaro or Paulo from Tokyo for travel-related videos. Aki can definitely join for videos in her areas of expertise. My points aside, I'm totally loving the series! Keep it up guys!

The two things that surprised me most: 1) When on earth has Sendai become a prefecture??? 2) With Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Osaka and Kyoto, everyone seemed to be talking just about the cities. Which is a shame since the actual prefectures have quite a bit more to offer. As for my list, having visited all of these prefectures I'd rank them like this: 1) Tokyo 2) Hokkaido 3) Okinawa 4) Osaka 5) Hiroshima 6) Ehime 7) Kyoto 8) Fukushima 9) Fukuoka 10) Miyagi 11) Oita I actually very much liked all of these prefectures, so no losers here. Even when with the 36 remaining prefectures included, some of them would drop quite a bit further. I mean, Aomori, Akita, Tochigi, Nagano, Toyama, Gifu, Shizuoka, Shiga, Kochi, Kumamoto, Nagasaki, Kagoshima, all of these 12 should make the top-11, even when I wouldn't want to remove some of the other ones. So please, next time you want to use some epic number, make it a top-42 :-)

chris has a nice way with words. really enjoy listening to him describe cities

aki needs to travel more :P

Stealthy Natasha sneaks back in to a TC video

Looks like Chris still holds a grudge over that Pizza-incident in Okinawa...

The ranking method was a bit weird... You could have the names in papers and organize them. That way you are not restricted to the original order

Once you leave Kyoto City, the atmosphere becomes quite different. Most people flock around the touristy spots, but you’ll see a completely different side of the prefecture outside the city center. The nature is marvelous, I’ve seen hawks flying above the beach, fishing! The people are so warm and welcoming. I highly recommend anyone going to Kyoto to explore the outskirts of the prefecture after seeing the popular spots :)

A lot of ranking and rating stuff got Aki in it, but most of it she doesn't know a thing. To be fair, she's new in Japan. Probably would make a lot more sense if Joey (her boyfriend) is the one featured since he's in Japan longer. Or any other Japan travel youtuber from TC.

I love Norms passion. I really relate to it... exactly how I feel about Hokkaido👌

I was just surprised that Sharla has not been to Okinawa. Just because she has literally been anywhere and lived there for so long ^^

Norm is so passionate about Japan

Shoutout to Criss for being the only one who did not use potato to shoot this bit

I like it how Chris is always right in the middle on these thumbnails.

It seems kind of strange to include someone in the ranking process that has been to less than half of the place they are ranking. It would have also made a lot more sense for everyone to have seen the list of locations in advance and simply reveal its position on their list. The process of them guessing where it will be adds nothing in term of informing the viewer.

I feel like 1 hr from where you live is a reasonable jumping off point to explore for the day. I'd love to see the TC crew each pick a place that they would go to that's 1 hr by train from where they live, whether Shinkansen or local train and film a day there including a food stop.

Norm: has super nice kameraboxes in the background Also Norm: films with a shitty webcam in 360p

I like how diverse the answers were, it's nice to hear opinions from people who value different things while traveling or exploring their own city.

So interesting to see the disparate opinions! This is one of those videos that really reenergizes me to want to travel; hope it can happen again soon.

Conspicuous by its absence is any mention of Hakone! In every video I've seen, it's gorgeous no matter what season you're there.

LOOOOL sorry ehime 😳😳😳 I would love to visit ehime to eat a mountain of Mikans... they literally have orange everything!

It was so nice hearing Natasha's voice at the end. If I ever get to make it to Japan, I'm definitely visiting Tokyo first, mostly Akihabara and Kabukicho. Osaka just seems like a really nice place and I want to learn their dialect if I ever get to really learn Japanese.

EHIME -- The meaning of kanji for "E" is actually "LOVE" instead of "Eh...."(^_-)-☆ I'm so glad you guys all try to see and have found out what is special about each prefecture throughout Japan! I hope you keep it up and will find a lot more precious places for you in Japan!!!

Poor Kyoto. I absolutely love it there and no trip to Japan for me is complete without at least some time there.. but I can also understand the complaints about it. I think Norm really hit the nail on the head with it. Kyoto really is a very early morning or later in the evening place for sure. Thankfully, it's so well located and connected that you can easily take day trips all over that general area and avoid the crowds. There's also a good bit to see and do in Kyoto itself outside of the big attractions. These lists really do help fill out my to-do list for the next trip though. I love the more general view and the different perspectives, especially with Aki included as she's not as been there, done that as the experienced others.

I see Chris. I click.

1. Osaka - that's where I chose to go and study and so lived there for 3 months and it was the best experience of my life, fist time I went there I was there for 1 night 1 day and instantly felt in love with it, nothing to complain. 2. Kyoto - every time I went there I discovered something new 3. Fukuoka - That's where I landed when I first went to Japan on holiday, feel like I should have explored more of it but had great experiences 4. Hokkaido, Sapporo in particular because it was an adventure to get there. 5. Hiroshima well Fukuyama in particular - because I took a random bus from the station and ended up in Tomonoura and found out it's where Ponyo was inspired, also Sesuijima was Amazing. I feel like I didn't give Hiroshima the city too much of a chance only a full day it's a must visit city if you're going to Japan the first time. 6. Oita, I went past it and it looks amazing it's in my want to visit list. 7. Fukushima - Went past it on a Shinkansen on my way to Aomori and it's somewhere I would visit 8. Sendai - went past it on a Shinkansen on my way to Aomori and it's somewhere I would visit 9. Ehime - would visit, been to Tokushima to see the whirlpools of Naruto, Shikoku is beautiful. 10. Okinawa - too hot for my skin probably. 11. Tokyo - Didn't particularly like it, I enjoyed where I stayed in Asakusa and the experience of being able to see a tuna auction back in 2014, would go back if I'm travelling with a friend or family member simply because in my opinion everyone when coming to Japan should visit Tokyo at least once if it's their first time.

I’m Japanese but I’ve only been to four of these prefectures.... I need to travel more

Love how whenever Chris shows up you're reminded your "video quality" is not set to 360p.

Everyone: 240p 12fps Chris: 8k 120fps

i love how norm has 10 camera boxes behind him and his video quality is like he filmed it with a toaster

Osaka is #1!!! ♥ I realize it's touristy and busy, but the vibe is just so chill and fun, and I think it has a decent amount of spots to explore that are less busy - especially for first time visitors, who are excited about less dramatic things (like seeing random parks everywhere, walking beside all the students when school lets out, etc).

I'm so glad I'm not the only one that felt like Kyoto (at least the central parts) feels very touristy, and this is coming from someone who only spent 3 weeks there for a summer school. It was my first time going abroad and even though I did love the country side part of Kyoto and where I was staying in, the actual popular places felt touristy. I had so many foreigners trying to take pictures of me in my Yukata

Fun drinking game: take a drink every time Shar mentions tourists

What I've learnt from watching Tokyo Creative and Jvloggers in general is that my list for when i return to travel Japan just keeps growing. I honestly think if I can ever go back I'm gunna need at least 3months now to travel all the places.

Great video, I definitely have to see all the places on these lists in the future.

The perfect video to reminisce on my one year Japan-niversary of my month long visit to the country. I have not stopped thinking about that trip! Thanks!!

Wooo! Love these videos with the gang❤️❤️

glad to see that hiroshima got some love, i lived there for 10 months and it was wonderful, food and people in particular

I really like Aki and love her videos but clearly she was not the best person to ask to appear in for this video lol

Aki needs to travel more.

Best video ever made by Tokyo Creative. Well done.

What is the point of the person who has never been to half the places

Look at all these experienced travelers with great insights. Oh hey, Aki is here too!

I would have thought Kyoto would be higher, but I guess the number of tourists there take away from what makes it special. I also never really thought to consider Fukuoka as a destination for my first trip to Japan, might need to reconsider! Cool to know that it's very lively at night, too.

Awesome to see my old Home Prefecture Oita rate so highly. I spent 3 years living in Yufu Shi! Totally beautiful!

I loved living in Fukushima, now I am moving to Sendai in 2 weeks! I’m looking forward to it so much, was happy to hear about it.

Hey, Tokyo Lens your favorite shamisen is modified version of sanshin from Ryukyu, a country originally ruled Okinawa. And Okinawa has an independent musical background. It's not a small island for you I guess.

I like Norms ranking. I love the Japanese countryside and I love Shikoku. It was the first place I ever visited in Japan taking part in an exchange program in 2019. It was a beautiful experience. Also, the people in Shikoku are so nice!!

I’m shocked that so many haven’t been to Okinawa it’s one of the only places I’ve heard of prior to watching lots of Japan travel videos

I was a bit confused with Sharla. Places with high tourism were ranked low, and then low tourist areas "I wish more people would visit". Wouldn't it then be less desirable if it was busy with visitors?

Aki, I'm so sad you've not traveled more. You've got hobbies the closest to my own of the Tokyo creative team. My dream city has been Fukuoka for a few years

Wow just checked out what's in Oita..looks really great. I've been saving and planning to go to Tokyo for a long time, but I will make a second trip for this prefecture some time.

What a fun game. Here's my list: 1. Okinawa 2. Hiroshima 3. Fukuoka 4. Tokyo 5. Hokkaido (never been) 6. Oita (never been) 7. Fukushima 8. Kyoto 9. Ehime 10. Osaka 11. Sendai

I've visited friends in Fukushima and Yamanashi and I always tell people how great both areas are and always recommend visiting them (as well as Tokyo)

Thank you I love this video and I now have two hidden gems to visit on my next trip 💕

Putting Kyoto so low just because of all the tourists is mind-blowing. You can go to Kyoto during the off-season when there's a low amount of tourists in the city.

Went to Tokyo once for my entire stay. I had so much fun exploring everything, and it's really not that busy save for the touristy spots and major train stations.

My lanking(Japanese view) 1 Okinawa 2 Kyoto 3 Tokyo(living) 4 Osaka 5 Hokkaido(Birth place) 6 Fukuoka 7 Hirosima 8 Ehime 9 Sendai 10 Fukushima 11 Oita(never been) I love Hokkaido. Best food, nice people, But life in winter is too hard. Sendai&Fukushima same reason.

I went to Kyoto, Osaka, and Hyogo towards the beginning of covid and it was nice sightseeing without a bunch of tourists. The downside was everything closed pretty early.

Emma's list is pretty spot on for me, based on my short 1 month vacation. I spent 2 weeks in Tokyo and 2 weeks in Osaka/Kyoto/Kobe. I feel I've seen 10-20% of any of those locations. I need more time to visit.

Interesting... I think the order at the end was the most relevant. It seems like it really depends on what you are after, how long you have, and your budget. The different team members expressed that pretty well... I only had 10 days, and did the typical, "Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka" route, with a couple day trips to smaller towns. I didn't regret my itinerary, and next time (hopefully in 2022) will see some of the other locations mentioned.

I’m glad I got the girls input who hadn’t been to half of the cities. “Well I haven’t heard about it if that says anything”… i think it just means you don’t get around as much as the others…

Norm is the mvp of this video his picks are genuinely great

Okinawa right next to Thailand... Yup 🤣

this was very interesting since I learned more about places I already knew and learned about places I didn't even know about

I want to go back so bad! 💕 I visited Osaka, Tokyo, Kyoto, Kobe, Nara, and Sendai! I was there for 21 days and still didn’t feel like I had enough time to see everything!

I would rather want to hear what Shiori thinks for all those places, than ..never been there or never heard of it

Ehime and Shikoku are amazing. My number 1 spot for sure. I have been to most of the list, and I will say it is by far one of my favorite places to visit for stunning beauty, low tourist populations, and the locals are really fun. I think it is hard to arrange them, but I think if you go to any of the 11 places listed and a few more not listed, you cannot go wrong. Japan is wonderful and an amazing place to live and visit for the most part.

Thank you, Sharla! Hiroshima is my hometown. I love Shimanami kaido, too!

Emma's list lined up with mine the most 😊😊😊

My list! XD 1. Okinawa! Okinawa is amazing!!! Nature, food, and the people are amazing! I actually didn't see foreigners there. Also I strongly recommend to travel around all the small islands! The water is super clear, blue and very warm! Love it! Also sugar cane ice cream amazing and Okinawan style Shabu Shabu heaven! 2. Kyoto! I actually loved kyoto even with all the tourists! I think it made the experience very enjoyable! some Chinese tourists became my friends and all! XD the nature amazing as well! I feel like every corner of Kyoto is magical :') canal 3. Hokkaido!! It is sooo beautiful specially during winter! Definitely recommend trying Sapporo's Ramen, going to eat at Sapporo's beer factory, enjoy the canals at Otaru and their sushi and experience the hot springs at Noboribetsu! :') 4. Tokyo! I liked living in Tokyo but I needed to escape the city life at least in the weekends! I used to work in Shibuya and it was overwhelming to stay there all the time, although even Shibuya has this small roads with amazing restaurants and people. Also is pretty easy to move around from Tokyo and explore more nature :') I loved how everything is connected somehow in Tokyo as well. in one day you can go to omotesando to harayuku to shinjuku to shinokubo and shibuya XD 5. Osaka! I liked Osaka but I feel that you don't need to stay there for a long time to explore. In just a day or two you can check out most of it. The food amazing! 6. Sendai! I actually haven't been to Sendai but I did went to Yamagata, which is pretty close and if Yamagata was in the list it will probably be the #2! Specially because of Ginzan Onsen! It is a very small, cute and breathtaking onsen city that in winter it looks like out of a fairy tale.

I havent been a lot of places in Japan, but here are my favorites: 1) Tokyo - I had to put it #1 because there's so much to see & do there and if you can visit only 1 place in Japan, this has to be it. 2) Hokkaido - This really shouldnt be just 1 place because it is so big. I loved Mt Hakodate - it's one of the most iconic views in Japan. I also think that Lake Mashu (a crater lake) in Daisetsuzan Nat'l Park is the most naturally scenic place I've seen in Japan. 3) Himeji - Himeji Castle was the highlight of my 1st trip to Japan. Another one of the most iconic places in Japan. You've probably seen it many times in movies and TV shows w/o knowing what it was. It was such a gorgeous day when I saw it, too. 4) Mt Fuji and the 5 sacred lakes - I tried to see Mt Fuji both times I visited Japan but it is a "shy" mountain usually shrouded in clouds. I did catch a glimpse of it when I flew from Haneda to Hokkaido. But if you cant see Fuji-san, I think the 5 sacred lakes are worth seeing. I would love to climb it one day, also. Easily accessible from Tokyo. 5) Kyoto - Yeah, I guess this is the place to see "old Japan". 6) Osaka - I didnt get to see much of it but it had 2 of my favorite things - jazz clubs and baseball. I would love to see old Koshien Stadium. 7) Kamakura - I dont know what else is there besides the great Buddha but that is Japanese icon that is definitely worth seeing. Easily accessible from Tokyo. A couple places I like to see next time I go to Japan are: - Kyushu (including Ganryu Island, the Nat'l Parks there and Nagasaki) - Kegon Falls

The Underwater monument is amazing!! Saw it in a documentary on the BBC called Wild Japan I think.

I live in Taiwan, Okinawa is the closest place to me to travel directly to Japan, I love it and go often, also cheap flights.

Yay SHarla and Chrislove the places on my itinerary!

Kyoto is amazing and has really beautiful rural areas without too many tourists.

Okinawa #1, because that's where my family is from.

Been to Battleship Island😉 Love Hokkaido because it has everything!

I love Norm’s grandma coffee mug.

Hokkaido #1 for me. Been to Tokyo, Kansai, and Hokkaido. Was planning to go to Hokkaido again this year if not for the pandemic

could ye do this with places to live?? i feel like thatd be interesting to show the contrast between nice places for tourists vs habitants

Now I really want to visit Oita and Ehime. I’ve seen some vids from there and it does look magical. I’d also like to visit Sendai. I’ve always been curious about the tranquility of the Japanese countryside.

ok so...I've lived in Okinawa (the northern-ish part of the main island), Nagano (prefecture, not the city) and Kyoto (city) and travelled everywhere except of Northern Japan (unfortunately). And I enjoyed living in Okinawa the most. Indeed, it's very different from the "typical Japan" but it's not americanized per se, it's a great mix of jp/us and the traditional ryukyu culture. And I'm a person who vastly prefers mountains to the sea and hot weather kills me but I still enjoyed my life more in Okinawa than in Nagano. And I'm no foodie but I love Okinawan cuisine, it's superior to whatever they have on the mainland;). As for Kyoto, I loved my life there (very recently moved back to Europe). So many people who don't live there have very unfair preconceptions tbh:,) And if I move back to JP in the future, I would choose Hiroshima or anywhere in the Seto inland sea area, which is my favourite part of Japan.