Fourteen breathtaking pictures of Japan that will make you want to book a trip – from castaway islands to a shrine that ‘appears to float on water’

Japan is a country at the top of many travellers’ bucket lists – and these incredible pictures show why.

They reveal a land peppered with castaway islands, majestic volcanoes, epic bridges, spellbinding waterfalls and trees that in winter look like ‘snow monsters’.

There’s even a shrine that appears to ‘float on water’.

Our picture tour of Japan will take you to lesser-known corners of the country that are sometimes overlooked by tourists drawn to towering Tokyo and Mount Fuji.

But scroll down and you’ll see that they’re fully deserving of the limelight.

Which spot would you most like to visit?

Behold Nachi-no-taki, which at 133m (436ft) is Japan’s tallest waterfall. It’s one of the most popular sights on the Kii Peninsula and is part of a Unesco World Heritage site. Opposite the falls is a beautiful shrine, with Lonely Planet explaining that the deity worshipped here ‘is the waterfall itself’

The Buddhist Yamadera Mountain Temple atop a peak in Northern Honshū is over 1,000 years old, with tourists tackling 1,000 steps to reach its lofty heights. Lonely Planet says: ‘It’s a steep ascent – a sort of walking meditation – but one that makes the views from the top, of the surrounding mountains, that much more spectacular’

Pictured here is the spellbinding Takachico Gorge, a canyon cutting between sheer basalt cliffs with the 17-metre- (55ft) high Minainotaki waterfall completing the magical scene. Many visitors enjoy the location from the water by boat. The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) says: ‘Imagine lazily cruising through a deep volcanic gorge in a rowboat while a waterfall forms rainbows in the mist around you’

Hitachi Seaside Park near the city of Mito in Ibaraki Prefecture is ‘a tapestry of flowers’ that’s ‘a sight to behold’ says JNTO. This coastal spot comes alive with different flowers depending on the season. Pictured above are nemophila flowers, which bloom during spring, but roses, lilies and tulips also make appearances

Shirakawa-go (above), a village in the Ryōhaku Mountains, is a Unesco heritage site with gassho-zukuri style houses that are 250 years old. JNTO says: ‘Gassho-zukuri means “constructed like hands in prayer”, as the farmhouses’ steep thatched roofs resemble the hands of Buddhist monks pressed together in prayer.’ Tourists can stay in the abodes overnight

In the market for ‘immaculate white beaches and beautiful sunsets’? That’s what’s on offer at Zamami Island, part of the Kerama Islands archipelago in Okinawa, according to the Visit Okinawa Japan website, which adds that the ocean around the island is an ‘enchanting shade of blue’. Within are shoals of subtropical fish and tourists can see migratory humpback whales playing in the water. Pictured above is a castaway islet just off the island’s coast

In winter, skiers in Japan’s Zao mountains will see the trees become glazed with snow, earning the nickname ‘snow monsters’ (pictured above). The best time of year to see the phenomenon is between February and March

Said to be one of the most spectacular cycling journeys in the world, the Shimanami Kaido route stretches for 70km (43 miles) across islands in Japan’s Seto Inland Sea – with the immense 2.5-mile- (4km) long Kurushima Bridge (above) forming one of the legs

A Unesco World Heritage site, Miyajima Island has one of Japan’s most impressive shrine gates (above). It dates back to the late 6th century, with Lonely Planet revealing that at high tide it ‘appears to float on the water’. JNTO recommends staying on the island overnight when it becomes a ‘magical place’ after the ‘crowds of day trippers disappear on the last ferry’

Eye-catching Yakushima National Park sits on an island off the southern coast of Japan and is famed for its ‘yakisugi’ [ancient cedar trees] and the 60m- (196ft) tall Senpiro-no-taki waterfall (pictured). A Unesco World Heritage site, Yakushima was the inspiration for ‘Princess Mononoke’ – a famous Studio Ghibli film

Stretching for nine miles, but less than 1.5 miles wide, Tottori Sand Dunes is the largest landform of its kind in Japan. JNTO describes the dunes as a ‘giant, sandy playground’ with camels, paragliding and sandboarding on offer

In the captivating port city of Shimoda, above, on the Izu Peninsula, visitors can surf and enjoy the beach. Lonely Planet says: ‘Izu has a cool surfer vibe, lush greenery, rugged coastlines and abundant onsen [hot springs used for bathing].’ Famously, the city is where some of Commodore Perry’s ‘black ships’ landed in 1854 – an event that led to the end of Japan’s era of isolation

Beautiful Lake Chuzenji, pictured above, is Japan’s highest-elevation natural lake and is sometimes known as the ‘Sea of Happiness’. Restaurants, museums and onsen can be found around the edge. JNTO says: ‘The area’s altitude and stunning scenery draw visitors looking to escape the humid Japanese summers. It’s also popular in the autumn for its incredible autumn leaves’

This mesmerising picture, taken from above the city of Kagoshima, captures Sakurajima volcano, which once sat on an island but became attached to the Osumi Peninsula as the result of an eruption in 1914. Sakurajima is an active volcano and fine ash regularly ‘coats the landscape like snow and obscures the sun like fog’, Lonely Planet notes