Nikko is a small town 135km north of Tokyo, and one of Japan's best touristic destination. It is renowned for its lavishly decorated Tosho-gu Shrine, where Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1603-1868) reposes.
The Nikko National Park also includes attractions such as Lake Chuzenji, the Kegon Waterfall, Mount Nantai, the marshlands around Lake Ozenuma, and various hotspring resorts like Chuzenji Onsen, Yumoto Onsen and Kinugawa Onsen.
Tosho-gu Shrine 東照宮
Tokugawa Ieyasu was laid to rest in the Tosho-gu at his death in 1617. However, the present buildings were entirely reconstructed by his grandson, Tokugawa Iemitsu. The work started in 1634 and took 2 years and 15,000 artisans to complete. The result is one of Japan's most lavish and profusely decorated shrine is all Japan, now listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The Tosho-gu is famous for its detailed and colourfully painted wooden sculptures. Among them, the three monkeys hiding each respectively their ears, eyes and mouth, representing the Buddhist doctrine "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" , have become a symbol of Nikko. Souvenir shops have plenty of goods displaying the monkeys.
The overall appearance of the shrine looks more Chinese than Japanese, and this feeling is reinforced by paintings of Chinese sages, dragons and other mythical creatures. Also note the relief carvings of elephants, sculpted by an artist who had never seen a real one.
Rinno-ji Temple 輪王寺
This Buddhist temple of the Tendai sect has impressive gold-lacquered statues of Amida Buddha, Senju-Kannon (1000-armed Kannon) and Bato-Kanno (horse-headed Kannon).
Taiyuin-byo 大猷院廟
This is the mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu's grandson, Iemitsu (1604-1651). Taiyuin-byo is a smaller replica of the Toshogu and also combines extravagantly Shinto, Buddhist and Chinese elements. It is said to exceed the Toshogu aesthetically.
Futarasan-jinja Shrine 二荒山神社
It was established in 782 by the Buddhist priest Shodo Shonin (735-817) and is dedicated to Nikko's three sacred mounts : Nantai, Nyotai and Taro.
There are three Futara-jinja shrines. One is near Nikko's Toshogu, another one shrine sits on the shore of lake Chuzenji and the innermost shrine is at the top of Mount Nantai-san. See Chuzenji area for access to the two other shrines.
The main hall has an interesting collection of animal paintings and the attached garden has a teahouse serving matchaa green tea and traditional sweets for ￥350.
Nikko Edo Village 日光江戸村
This recreation of an Edo era village is mostly destined for children. It has a samurai quarters, ninja displays and a "temple of hell".
It is open from 9am to 4pm (Dec-Mar 3pm) and admission is ￥3200.
How to get there
Nikko is easily accessible from Tokyo. Take the Tobu-Nikko line from Tobu Asakusa Station, under the Matsuya Department Store. The journey takes about 2h and cost ￥1320 one-way.
Kinugawa Onsen (鬼怒川温泉) and Nikko Edo Village are accessible from Tobu Kinugawa Onsen station. Get off at Shimoimaichi (下今市), 7min from Nikko on the way back to Tokyo, then change to the Tobu Kinugawa line for another 13min to Kinugawa Onsen station.
