Must Visit Religious Places in Honshu

Senso-ji

Historic Buddhist temple featuring traditional Japanese architecture and the iconic Kaminarimon gate. It serves as a major cultural and spiritual site with an adjacent vibrant shopping street.

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Meiji Shrine

Historic Shinto shrine dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shōken featuring traditional Japanese architecture and a large forested area.

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Kinkaku-ji

Zen Buddhist temple featuring a gold-leaf-covered pavilion and historic gardens. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its cultural and architectural significance.

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Yasaka Shrine

Yasaka Shrine is one of the Kanpei-taisha, which means that it is highly supported by the government. Its history dates back to 656.

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Todai-ji Temple

This temple, founded in the 8th century AD, is home to the largest bronze statue of Buddha in the world, which is seated in The Great…

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Asakusa Shrine

Also called Sanja-sama, after the three fishermen it is dedicated to, this shrine enjoys lasting popularity among the tourists and locals…

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Kasuga Grand Shrine

Founded in the 8th century, this Shinto shrine is easily recognizable for its bright red color and numerous bronze and stone lanterns…

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Yasukuni Shrine

Founded in 1869, this Shinto shrine is devoted to those who died in wars in the 19th and 20th century.

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Tōshō-gū shrine

Nikkō Tōshō-gū is a Tōshō-gū Shinto shrine located in Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

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Futarasan-jinja shrine

Futarasan jinja is a Shinto shrine in the city of Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

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Tsukiji Honganji Temple

This unusual temple sure is an eyecatcher. It is relatively young, having only been built in the 1930s.

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Kongobu-ji

Kongōbu-ji is the ecclesiastic head temple of Kōyasan Shingon Buddhism, located on Mount Kōya, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan.

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Kumano Hayatama Taisha Shrine

Kumano Hayatama Taisha is a Shinto shrine located in Shingu, Wakayama Prefecture, on the shores of the Kumanogawa in the Kii Peninsula of…

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Seiganto-ji

Seiganto-ji, Temple of Crossing the Blue Shore, is a Tendai Buddhist temple in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan.

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Niutsuhime-jinja Shrine

Supposedly founded before the 9th century, this UNESCO site is one of the oldest shrines in the region.

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Buttsuji Temple

Buttsū-ji is a Buddhist temple head one of fourteen autonomous branches of the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism, founded in 1397 by the lord…

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