Last month, I've been to Chiba Japan for the second time in my life. 1st time was 9 years ago to Tokyo Disney Land, but back then i did not realize that Tokyo Disneyland is actually located in Chiba!
To be honest, before this trip, I had zero ideas about Chiba. My friend even knows more than me through anime. So I looked it up on internet and found Chiba is famous for sweet potato. So I thought to myself then it's an agricultural place? Nothing much to see then. Then after the trip, I found so many interesting places! The first shock I had when we landed, Tokyo Narita is not in Tokyo but Chiba. And so is Tokyo Disneyland, name vice, Tokyo but the actual location, Chiba
Since AirAsia had Openned a new route to the Narita Airport with lower fees, I think it's a great opportunity for Malaysians to explore this region. It's not too difficult to plan, move around and communicate, as long as you stay connected with a 4G Simcard or Wifi!
Day 1: Time Travel
Boss No Mura and Cosplay Annex
Admission Fee: 300 Yen for admission, but since you are gonna want to join their workshop, I recommend putting aside a minimum of 1500 yen for this.
Recommend to spend: 4 Hours, including
- around 1 hour to choose your cosplay package and wearing Kimono, believe me, it is quite tedious!
- around 40 minutes to enjoy your lunch in the farm restaurant
- around 30 minutes for tea ceremony
- 1 hour for the farm section and another 1 for merchant lane!
Boso no mura was our first introduction to Chiba. It's an open-air museum, or shall I say, Themepark! it's fun because it's not just an average see-but-no-touch museum, you can participate in the Edo lifestyle of the Boso region. Join workshops (can be customized to fit your interest and budget) from blacksmithing to mask painting to origami, sink into the local’s tradition by attending a tea ceremony at the Samurai House. There are 2 main sections of the village: the merchant houses and the farm section. Unfortunately, we couldn't make time for the farm part of the theme park, to be fair, the place is quite big and we had too little time. I heard there are different hands-on activities depending on the seasons, for example, crop harvesting and bamboo crafting. So I hope my followers can someday visit Boso No Mura and tell me the overall experience.
Before starting your visit, make sure to pick up an outfit at Cosplay Annex. There are plenty to choose from, depend on your mood, you might want to become a Kimono girl, a ninja, a bride, or even try on the Japanese armor! Then, enjoy your time travel journey walking the ancient streets! Do you know Boso No Musa is often used as filming locations for Japanese period dramas? You can film your own short movie here, like what I did! hah! I had chosen to be a Samurai because I've been to Japan several times and every single time I will have a chance to wear kimono. So I'm kinda bored I want something special and besides, I always have this thought that I wanna be my own samurai, I don't want to be a princess.
We rounded off our visit with an organic lunch at Yume Terrace, a farm restaurant at Boso No Mura Village. Just look at the beautiful all-glass walls surrounding the restaurant. We were surrounded by a panorama of greens while enjoying our healthy lunch. I picked a seasonal set as I was told that Yume Terrace only uses the freshest ingredients and the seasonal set will satisfy my taste buds with all the autumn-only goodness. So well.
Budget: around 1500 yen.
Transportation Guide:
JR East Pass holder: From Narita Airport, book a private transfer/ train to Narita Station. From Narita Station, ride on the JR Narita Line to Ajiki Station (10 minutes ride) then change to a Chiba Kotsu bus bound for Ryukakujidai-Shako. Get off at Boso no Mura ( which is another 10 minutes ride)
Koedo Sawara Townscape
Admission: Free
Recommended to spend: 2 hours
Sawara is an Edo small town that stole my heart at first glance! The town flourished in the 1600s as the main water route for rice shipments into the capital. There is a canal that snakes through the town, with several wooden bridges. The most interesting bridges of all would be the Ja Ja Bridge, also known as the waterfall bridge, which as its name suggests, will spout a waterfall every 30 minutes. Unfortunately, we didn't have a chance to explore the rest of the canal by taking the sightseeing boat, due to recent typhoon… but I would love to do it next round.
I believe the best time to visit Sawara is during the Sawara Matsuri festival during July and October (it is held twice in a year) when floats decorated grandiosely topped with giant dolls representing legendary warriors could be seen wheeled down the street. Such cultural experience! If you miss the festival, you can also check out Dashi Kaikan museum (400 Yen) to see some of the said floats.
In Sawara you simply cannot miss the popular snack, sweet potato dorayaki at Sawara Jusanriya! You know, Dorayaki, the snacks Doraemon loves. Take my advice, go for the matcha flavor, because matcha balance out the sweetness of the yam. Which is perfect.
Transportation Guide:
As you come back from Boso No Mura, you will have to transit at Narita Station no matter where you are planning of going next. Good news, this historic town center is within walking distance from Narita Station (about a 10-15 minute walk)
By car (Route trip in Japan!):
By car (Route trip in Japan!):
Stay: Taiyou no Sato, Sakura House
We spent our first night in Chiba in Kujukuri, Taiyou no Sato, Sakura House.
It’s a 2 star Onsen Ryokan, however, it gives me the vibe of at least 4 stars. We enjoyed an all seafood BBQ dinner, such a big treat for our first day in Chiba! The rooftop onsen had closed down for maintenance during our visit, what a disappointment. I did not get to enjoy the onsen and spa here because I was too tired from all the travels (8 hours on the plane and we sprung into action.) However, I would still like to recommend this hotel, not convinced? Click on the link above to check out Booking.com reviews!
Transportation guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan!): 1 hour 26 min drive
Transportation guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan!): 1 hour 26 min drive
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Day 2: Rail and Glass
Sugahara
Admission Fee: Free/ at least 1600 for glass making
Recommend to spend: 1 Hour, including 15-minutes glass making experience.
Today we visited a wonderful glass shop and factory. “SGHR”. SGHR is a very popular local brand for its elegant glassware. All glassware created here is one in the world, as they are all individually hand-crafted by artists. So even the products are from the same line and same collection, you will never find identical glassware. There will always be something different, be in the patterns, the shape or the hue of colors! Now, that is special.
If you thought all this shop produce and sell are containers, think again. In SGHR, you can find all types of glass items. From chopsticks to jewelry to, drumroll….. a glass speaker!
This 1 day craftsman experience is exciting for me as this is the first time I get to make my own glass cup! Craftsmen, there will help you from step 1 to the end, they are very friendly and patient, which is the most important coz I'm very clumsy... Tada!! I get to bring back my own creation. Don’t you think this is a meaningful souvenir to give to your loved ones?
Transportation guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan!): 21 minutes drive
Next, we had our lunch at Banya, a fisherman restaurant by the beach. While waiting for our meals, we took the chance to check out the beach with a spiral tower.
Banya Restaurant
Address: 450 Fudodo, Kujukuri, Sanbu District, Chiba 283-0113, Japan.
Budget: 1500 yen and above.
Recommended order: Banya Tempura Don ばんや天ぷら丼
Banya restaurant is operated by a local fisherman in Kujukuri town. The restaurant serves local delicacies with the freshest seafood caught by no other but the fisherman owner himself.
We were told that a lot of people drive far to taste the big bowl tempura at Banya. Well, to decide if the tempura really lives up to its hype, I decided to try its tempura set. Well, behold, I did not really expect so much food when our orders came to the table. The shrimps I got was HUGE and fresh.
Some of my friends ordered from the Italian food menu (Yeam they have that option if you are sick of Japanese food. but let’s be honest, will you ever? )
Transportation Guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan! ): 7 minutes drive
Transportation Guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan! ): 7 minutes drive
Isumi railway
Isumi Train fare: 550 Yen
Estimated time taken: 30 minutes
Boarding the train at Ohara station, I think it's a regret that we visited during mid-October because there were no flowers or beautiful leaves. But anyhow I still enjoy the serenity of Japanese kampung (countryside) vibes.
If you get to do this during autumn or spring, you'll get to witness maple trees and Sakura lining the tracks. Pretty amazing. The most popular time of the year is around mid-March through mid-April for rapeseed along the railroad, spreading as far as 15km! If this period magically correlates with the cherry blossom period, you will get a gorgeous view of pink and yellow! However, there aren’t many tourists who seems to know about this. You know what, this train actually a secret among railway enthusiasts in Japan.
Transportation guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan!): You will have to reach Ohara Station first in order to take the Isumi train.
Estimated time taken: 30 minutes
Boarding the train at Ohara station, I think it's a regret that we visited during mid-October because there were no flowers or beautiful leaves. But anyhow I still enjoy the serenity of Japanese kampung (countryside) vibes.
If you get to do this during autumn or spring, you'll get to witness maple trees and Sakura lining the tracks. Pretty amazing. The most popular time of the year is around mid-March through mid-April for rapeseed along the railroad, spreading as far as 15km! If this period magically correlates with the cherry blossom period, you will get a gorgeous view of pink and yellow! However, there aren’t many tourists who seems to know about this. You know what, this train actually a secret among railway enthusiasts in Japan.
Transportation guide:
By car (Road trip in Japan!): You will have to reach Ohara Station first in order to take the Isumi train.
Otaki
Admission: Free
Recommend to spend: 3 Hours
Otaki station is the end station of the Isumi railway and I think this castle is the closest one to Tokyo. Yea, boys will love this place because in the castle they have plenty of samurai sword collection.
This town and its castle have been attracting a lot of attention after a historical drama, "Sanada Maru." aired in Japan. If you asked me, my favorite view of the castle is actually from the Ōtaki Elementary School gate. It gives me the chills down the spine thinking this is the view all these blessed kids have every morning!
Stay: Kichimu Onsen Hotel
Booking.com link
A 3-star establishment providing 5-star service! This is by far my favorite hotel in Japan. Kichimu is situated in Kamogawa, not far from our next destination, the Kamogawa Seaworld. Not only that the room is spacious, but we also got a huge vanity area, a glass-walled shower room with a panoramic sea view, and a private outdoor jacuzzi onsen bath! Such Bathtub goal! In the next video, I’ll take you to a Hotel and room tour around Kichimu Ryokan! Let’s go!
A 3-star establishment providing 5-star service! This is by far my favorite hotel in Japan. Kichimu is situated in Kamogawa, not far from our next destination, the Kamogawa Seaworld. Not only that the room is spacious, but we also got a huge vanity area, a glass-walled shower room with a panoramic sea view, and a private outdoor jacuzzi onsen bath! Such Bathtub goal! In the next video, I’ll take you to a Hotel and room tour around Kichimu Ryokan! Let’s go!
Other than that, I am utterly impressed by the amount of handwork given into preparing the dinner.
I would say this is undoubtedly the best dinner treat I've gotten in Japan and I am honored to show the world how great was Kichimu in their work in this video:
Transportation guide
By car (road trip in Japan! ): 33 minute drive
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Day 3: Sea and Land
Kamogawa Seaworld
Admission fee: 2800 Yen
Recommend to spend: 5 Hours
Facing the Pacific Ocean, Kamogawa Seaworld is the 2nd most popular aquarium in all of Japan, just second to Okinawa! But to be fair, nobody will ever beat Okinawa. Featuring 3 main zones: Eco Aquarium, Tropical Island and Rocky World, replicating the natural habitats of the sea creatures, this is a place suitable for family travel, where you can spend a full day or at least half with your kids!
1. At the Ocean stadium, the Orcas show never fails to wow visitors over the years. You know the big killer whale which is so much harder to train than the regular dolphins,
2. Then they have the Beluga whales, which only lives in the Antarctic, the whales will sing for you and after that, you get to go backstage to meet the stars and pet them. It requires an additional discovery ticket on top of the admission ticket. Note that there are limited discovery tickets sold daily.
3. Kamogawa Seaworld has a smiling California sealion for your selfie needs. His name is Kanji.
4. have you seen the Ocean restaurant? It has a window to the underwater world so you can eat while whales swim by. Pretty rad.
Transportation Guide:
Awa-Kamogawa Station is the closest station to Kamogawa Seaworld. From there, you can take the free shuttle buses that run every 40 minutes. The ride only takes five minutes.
A lot of readers show interest in visiting Kamogawa seaworld from Tokyo. In my opinion, it is most conveniently reached taking the highway bus. Keisei Bus and Nitto Kotsu bus depart hourly from Tokyo Station to Kamogawa Seaworld. The bus fare is 2450 yen and it takes about 2 hours.
If you have the JR East Rail Pass, you can take JR Wakashio limited express train instead to Awa-Kamogawa (This takes 1.5 hours, about 4000 yen one way from Tokyo Station, one train every 1-3 hours).
By car (Road trip in Japan): drive 11 minutes
By car (Road trip in Japan): drive 11 minutes
Oyama Senmaida (Oyama Rice Terraces)
Admission Fee: Free
Recommend to spend: 30 minutes
The Oyama Senmaida located in Kamogawa is one of the largest networks of rice paddies closest to Tokyo. It is included in the Top 100 Terraced rice fields in Japan list. These 800-year-old terraces have also been designated as a Chiba Prefectural Landmark and as a "cultural landscape."
During Autumn to Winter, the rice terraces will be light up for 3 hours after sun-down using small solar-powered lights placed on the edges of the terraces. Some events will be held on the terrace throughout the year, include indigo dyeing, mochi (rice cake) pounding and paper-making.
From Kamogawa Seaworld, go back to Awa-Kamogawa Station. Walk to the east exit of the station and board the bus bound for Hiratsuka Hongo. Get off at Kamanuma after a 25 minutes ride. From there it's about a 20-minute walk through the countryside.
By car (road trip in Japan): drive 25 minutes
Tokyo Bay Aqualine, Umihotaru
Admission Fee: Free
Recommend to spend: 2 Hours
Umihotaru literally means sea firefly. Just as its name suggests, the island illuminates Tokyo bay at night. Built-in 1997, Umihotaru is an artificial island created as a transitional point of the underground tunnel from Tokyo to the highway bridge from Chiba. The tunnel section of this marvelous journey has been receiving compliments for its advanced engineering and ranked fourth place in CNN Travel’s “10 of the world's greatest tunnels” in 2016.
During your visit, don’t miss this photo opportunity at the 5th-floor observation deck. From there, we saw cars driving through the bridge of the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line, and the Kisarazu City just beyond the 5km long steel bridge. If you walk to the other end of the open-air observation deck, you will get to see Kanagawa prefecture instead. Try to spot Tokyo Disney land and the Haneda airport!
Transportation guide:
Umihotaru can be easily accessible by public bus from either side of the Tokyo Bay (Kawasaki station or Kisarazu station). By car (Road trip in Japan!)
From Chiba or Kisarazu area, run on the Aqua Renraku Expressway and National Route 409 at the kisarazu Kaneda interchange.
From Tokyo, Yokohama or Kawasaki, connect to the Aquiline by Bayshore Route or National Route 409 at both Kawasaki Ukishima junction and the Ukishima interchange.
Mitsui Outlet Park Kisarazu
Admission Fee: Free
Recommend to spend: 3 Hours
Located just behind the Tokyo Bay Aquiline, The Mitsui Outlet Park Kisarazu in Chiba, the largest outlet mall in Japan is easily accessible to visitors from Tokyo. There are even direct shuttle buses from Shinjuku and train from Tokyo Haneda Airport, perfect for a last-minute shopping spree!
What makes Mitsui Outlet Park Kisarazu stands out from any other outlet mall in the whole of Japan? This one features 17 shops that don’t exist in any other places including Balmain, Belstaff, Mister Gentleman, and Mulberry.
Yakiniku Restaurant GyuSho Shiraishi
Address: 1-10-18, Sotominowa, Kimitsu 299-1173, ChibaBudget: 2000 Yen
A beefy dinner in Yukiniku Gyusho Shiraishi concludes Day 3 nicely. Wagyu are graded in alphabets and numbers to show how premium is the beef. Here, we have tasted the meat of the Japanese Black of grade A5, the highest grade given only to the finest beef.
Stay: Hotel Route-Inn Kisarazu
Booking.com link
Hotel Route-Inn is a newly opened hotel since March 2018! It is conveniently located just 7-minutes away JR Kisarazu Station and 30 minutes from Haneda Airport.
Hotel Route-Inn is a newly opened hotel since March 2018! It is conveniently located just 7-minutes away JR Kisarazu Station and 30 minutes from Haneda Airport.
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Day 4: Nature, Temple and Shopping
Mother farm
Admission Fee: 1500 Yen (Prebook Mother Farm Tokyo tickets here! )
Recommend to spend: 4 Hours
I call it Little Switzerland near to Tokyo because of all the mist we got during our visit. Actually Mother farm is a popular holidays destination among the locals. Too bad it is not recognize by foreign visitors yet.
We get to see hairy coos here! It's so cool because I always thought them only live in Scotland highlands. Yea so I am very excited.
I feel that the mother farm is a very suitable day trip out from Tokyo especially with kids because you get to do feeding, petting alpacas, milking cows and even watch a farm animal show! After the visit, don't forget to drop by their souvenir shop to grab a bag of biscuits made of pure milk!
To see more cute animals I'd encountered in the farm, check out my instagram:
Transportation guide:
From Tokyo Station, you can ride on the JR Sobu line or the JR Uchibo line to Kimitsu station (takes around 1 hour and 35 minutes). Then from there, you will bee a free shuttle bus (prior reservation required) that takes you straight to Mother farm!
You can also continue from Kimitsu station on train to Snukimachi station (on Uchibo line), and from there, a bus ride will be slightly shorter (25 minutes).
By car (Road trip in Japan): Drive 27 minutes.
To see more cute animals I'd encountered in the farm, check out my instagram:
Transportation guide:
From Tokyo Station, you can ride on the JR Sobu line or the JR Uchibo line to Kimitsu station (takes around 1 hour and 35 minutes). Then from there, you will bee a free shuttle bus (prior reservation required) that takes you straight to Mother farm!
You can also continue from Kimitsu station on train to Snukimachi station (on Uchibo line), and from there, a bus ride will be slightly shorter (25 minutes).
By car (Road trip in Japan): Drive 27 minutes.
Sakura Furusato Square
Admission Fee: Free
Recommend to spend: 3 Hours
Just next to the famous lake Inba, in the Sakura open space, we found a Dutch-style windmill surrounded by delicate yet cheerful cosmos flowers. The windmill 'De Liefde' (donated by the Netherlands) is apparently one of the important landmarks of Sakura City. We were told that the flowers weren’t at their best condition due to a recent typhoon. You can also pluck and bring back the flowers after paying 300 Yen!
The best time to visit is Spring during the Sakura Tulip Festa, featuring over 70 types of tulips. In summer, sunflowers and fireworks on lake Inba attract many Japanese and occasionally foreign tourists.
Transportation guide:
30-minute walk from Keisei Usui Station or 40-minute walk from Keisei Sakura Station
By car (Road trip in Japan): drive 1 hour 11 minutes
30-minute walk from Keisei Usui Station or 40-minute walk from Keisei Sakura Station
By car (Road trip in Japan): drive 1 hour 11 minutes
Naritasan Shinshoji Temple and Omotesando
Admission fee: Free
Recommend to spend: 2 hours
Naritasan Shinshoji Temple is located not far from Narita Airport. So, naturally, it is a top choice for a day trip to catch a glimpse of historical Japan, especially for transiting passengers. Naritasan Shinshoji is a large and highly popular Buddhist temple complex.
Honestly, I feel that it looks quite similar to Sensoji in Tokyo, just a lot less congested. Next to the temple complex is Omotesando, a shopping street stretching over 1km from the temple to the railway stations: JR Narita or Keisei Narita Stations, which have direct trains back to central Tokyo and Narita Airport!
Last-minute Shopping near Narita Airport
Admission Fee: Free
Recommend to spend: as long as you need!
It’s your last evening in Japan and you suddenly realize that you haven’t do your souvenir shopping? Freed not, there are plenty of choices in the proximity and they do not kill your wallet.
Aeon Mall Narita
The Aeon Mall made it into my list due to its proximity to Narita Airport and its convenient to access via public bus. The most popular souvenir to get home is multi-flavor KitKats … ah, the classic. Pocky makes a good alternative for those who are not a fan of KitKat. Rare flavors include Sake, Wasabi, Double Uji Matcha, Sakura, Yam, giant grape and so on. Some flavors are only available in Japan.
I love Aeon Mall in the sense that it entertains people of different interests. I’ll take myself for an example. I am not someone who loves shopping so I wouldn’t spend much time walking in the mall, but my friends would. So, in my case, I can hang around the food court serving both Japanese and international cuisine, shop for some kitkats and go for toilet breaks… ah, and don’t get me started on the public toilets in Aeon Mall Narita. It will make shed some light on the Japanese toilet and you will not look at public toilets the same, ever. again. For example, this is the Hello Kitty Theme pink toilet here in Aeon Mall Narita. Dreamy, isn’t it?
Don Quijote
Don Quijote is the largest tax-free discount megastore in Japan, a one-stop shopping destination for just about anything and everything. Best of all, it is open 24 hours, with multi-lingual staff available. So no matter how late you are to do your last minute shopping, Don Quijote is ever ready to rush to your rescue!
Uniqlo
I guess Uniqlo will never pass as a quick stop. Be sure to put aside at least 3 hours if you wanna fully “explore” the huge store. Don’t repeat our mistake: be aware that Uniqlo closes the earlier out of the 3 shopping heavens mentioned above. At 8 pm sharp, Uniqlo will need its goodnight sleep!
Public Transportation guide
Take an Airport shuttle bus from Concourse No. 30 at Terminal 1 or Concourse No. 3 at Terminal 2. It is a 20 minutes ride to the mall. (7 trips per day)
Alternatively, you can take the Keisei Dentetsu train from the Narita Airport Station to the Narita Station and then get on a bus that goes directly to the mall from the Concourse No. 6. This bus leaves very frequently (every 15 minutes) and only takes 10 minutes.
By car (Road trip in Japan): drives 7 minutes
By car (Road trip in Japan): drives 7 minutes
Stay: Marroad International Hotel Narita
We spend the last night in Chiba at Marroad International Hotel Narita, to ensure a smooth journey to the Narita Airport first thing in the morning. If you’re looking for something to do, Sakura no Yama Park, Narita International Airport Terminal 1 5F Observation Deck, and Observation Deck at Narita Airport Terminal 2 are all within walking distance. Also, it provides a free shuttle bus to Aeon Mall and Don Quijote. You can also join a Narita transit program while staying in this Hotel, waiting for your next flight!
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I am honored to bring to you this post, made possible by
Chiba Tourismn Bureau and Japan National Tourism Organization.
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Thank You for Reading! This post is based solely on my honest opinion or personal experience. If you have a different opinion, feel free to share your thoughts with me by commenting below!
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