Sérsniðin ferðaáætlun

It started with Japanese game shows.

My husband and I had been watching them for years before we ever set foot in Japan — and when we finally booked that first trip, we were already in love with the culture before the plane landed. One trip turned into five. (Currently planning our sixth) Five trips turned into this guide.

I’ve travelled to over 20 countries but Japan is my favourite. Not because it’s perfect — but because it rewards the people who look past the obvious. The hidden izakaya two streets from the tourist crowds. The shrine nobody is visiting. The market that hasn’t changed since the 1940s. I live for finding those spots, and I live for sharing them. I hate lines. I hate crowds. I have no patience for overrated places that only exist because they show up on a listicle.

What I care about is finding the places worth actually going — and making sure the people who travel to Japan the way I do can find them too.

Every single spot in this guide I’ve personally visited, felt completely comfortable in as a foreigner, and would recommend to anyone I care about.

This is five trips of research, distilled into one place, so you can spend less time planning and more time experiencing the Japan I fell in love with.