A prefectural park combining Japanese and Western garden design with nature, culture, and disaster-prevention functionsTochigi Prefectural Central Park is located in the center of Utsunomiya City and was created under the theme of “water, greenery, and culture.” Within the park are Western-style sunken gardens, Japanese-style ponds, and multipurpose plazas, which also interact with the neighboring Tochigi Prefectural Museum. Visitors can enjoy a wide variety of landscapes, including waterfalls, stone gardens, and the expansive Noh Stage Plaza with its modern fountain pool. Seasonal flowers and meticulously maintained lawns add to the park’s charm. The park also features the “Midori no Shōkansho” (Green Consultation Office), which regularly holds exhibitions and workshops, providing advice on gardening and tree care for citizens. This space serves as a multipurpose area for relaxation, recreation, and environmental education. As a disaster-prevention park, it also has emergency response functions, making it an important part of daily life for local residents.

Koedo Tochigi, where Edo atmosphere still lingersDuring the Edo period, Tochigi City flourished as a lodging town along the Nikko Kaido highway and as a hub of river transport. Preserving much of its Edo-period charm, it is often referred to as “Koedo” (Little Edo), alongside Kawagoe and Sawara. A fusion of tradition and innovation – Tochigi Edo CuisineTo let visitors enjoy the unique taste of Edo-style dishes, experts have been researching recipes from the Edo period since 2015, adapting them by blending with local ingredients and techniques. The result is “Tochigi Edo Cuisine,” a modern yet traditional dining experience. On your next visit to Tochigi’s Kurano-machi (Warehouse District), in addition to sightseeing and enjoying a boat ride that recalls the Edo atmosphere, you can also savor Tochigi Edo Cuisine, offering a refined taste of history. For a list of restaurants serving Tochigi Edo Cuisine: https://tochigi-edo.jp/shop

Held in early October each year, the Utamaro Festival celebrates the legacy of Kitagawa Utamaro, a renowned ukiyo-e artist of the mid-Edo period who had close ties to Tochigi City. Many of his works were created here, and the city, with its well-preserved Edo-period architecture, is often called “Little Edo.” The festival’s highlight is the Utamaro Dōchū parade, where performers dressed in gorgeous kimono proceed slowly along Kuranomachi Ōdōri Street, recreating the elegance of the Edo era. The festivities also feature music performances, fireworks, street illuminations, and a handmade market, immersing the entire town in a joyful celebration of culture and tradition. Notably, Kitagawa Utamaro will also be featured in the 2025 NHK Taiga drama Unbound, bringing renewed attention and respect to this ukiyo-e master. Visiting the Utamaro Festival offers a rare opportunity to experience the fusion of historical culture and modern creativity. Strolling through the lantern-lit streets of Kuranomachi, you can enjoy the vibrant atmosphere of the parade and illuminations while discovering the timeless charm of Japanese traditional arts—an unforgettable highlight of any autumn trip.

Farm Stay Iri (Hachinosu) is a quiet, two-story Western style accommodation built 20 years ago in a farm village with an extensive view of the countryside. The owner has renovated a 55-year-old storage shed into a fermentation research laboratory “Fer-Lab.” Only one reservation is accepted at a time and guests will not see any other guests during their stay. Guests and the owner cook meals together using home-grown rice and seasonal vegetables with no commercial spices. If requested, vegan meals and gluten-free meals can be made. You can also experience vegetable harvesting. The accommodation offers a long-stay plan in which you can experience a program featuring the full process of making fermented foods such as shio koji (fermented seasoning).

Located in a satoyama (woodland village) near the Naka River, Tsuki noco is a country guesthouse that runs a bakery selling wild yeast bread. The accommodation is a Japanese style house built over 120 years ago. For dinner, they serve original food menu prepared mainly with grains and seasonal vegetables. For breakfast, you will enjoy their wild yeast bread. They can modify meals into curry over rice or vegetable croquettes for children and also can prepare vegan meals. Aside from the bakery and farm stay, they also run Satoyama Gohan no Gakko, a school for learning about nature, with the ambition to acquire, with all participants, the knowledge and techniques to grow food and preserve the satoyama environment for future generations. (※Farm stay is offered from April to November and the bakery is open from December to March)

Having a cool average temperature from summer to fall, Oku-nikko and Senjogahara have the perfect environment for growing sweet and tasty strawberries. Mt. Berry Oku-Nikko grows special strawberries using the blessing of grand nature, taking advantage of the climate, water, and soil, and carefully selected fertilizers. From July to October, they open their field for ‘Tenku no Kogen Ichigo’ picking. It’s an all-you-can-eat (although depending on the harvest situation) strawberry picking program featuring three breeds of strawberries: Natsuotome, the breed cultivated only in Tochigi Prefecture, Yotsuboshi, and Pechika Honoka, which made its debut in 2024. Taste the difference among Natsuotome having a good balance of sweetness and acidity, Yotsuboshi with strong sweetness and aroma, and Pechika Honoka boasting its top-class sweetness among all summer-fall strawberries. Since you need a reservation and they accept only a small number of people at a time, you can enjoy picking strawberries in a relaxed atmosphere.

Nishinasuno Country Club is an 18-hole golf course designed by the globally renowned golf course architect, Robert Von Hagge, which effectively incorporates the beautiful landscape of Nishinasuno as its background. The course is like a piece of art created as if drawing a picture or writing a smooth melody on the 1.78 million square meters of land that spreads at the foot of the Nasu Mountain Range. If you always wanted to hit an iron shot on a bentgrass fairway and scrape off of a chunk of turf, this is the right course for you. With bentgrass, which is the highest-end grass, holes here are as beautiful as green carpets. Beginners can play comfortably here, but for championship-level players, the course requires higher-level golf techniques.

Onsen Ryokan Yamaki is a Japanese style inn built to help guests escape from the daily hustle and bustle and fully relax and heal the body and soul. The ryokan experience here is designed based on the principles of the tea ceremony: harmony, respect, purity, and calmness. These principles, as the ryokan’s philosophy, are also incorporated into its guest rooms, hot springs, meals, and staff hospitality. Calm guest rooms feature the warmth of wood and diatomaceous earth on walls. All guest rooms are designed differently, and some have a scenic cypress bath filled with hot spring water flowing endlessly from its original source. The hot spring here was discovered in 1059. It is called Itamuro hot spring and is famous as the “medicine water of Shimotsuke (old name of the area).” It is said to warm people’s bodies from the core and alleviate fatigue and joint pain. The inn also offers esthetic treatment using essential oil (reservation needed). Please enjoy the hot spring and the treatment to relax and slowly unwind from the long day of your trip. For dinner, the inn serves a Japanese multi-course meal designed based on one of its guiding principles of “respect” for local production and consumption. The dinner menu is developed to serve you a healthy meal prepared with wild plants, vegetables harvested from nearby areas, and seasonal ingredients. Please savor the out-of-the-ordinary time of healing and relaxation produced by Onsen Ryokan Yamaki. 【About the hot spring】 Water color: clear Spring water type: simple alkaline spring water Efficacy: alleviates sensitivity to cold, fatigue, nerve pain, and sore muscles, improves health, and so on

Murasakizuka Golf Club, designed by John Benzel and Bob Wolf (USA), features technically challenging authentic courses on a vast hilly area of 1.16 million square meters. The contrast in landscape produced by ponds and waterfalls allocated in various parts on the courses is quite popular. The golf club has three courses – Ujiie, Katsuragi, and Saotome – totaling 27 holes (par 108) and 10,396 yards in yardage. The courses are on gentle slopes with an elevation of 10 meters. There are also accommodation sites on the premises, and you can choose your favorite stay style from a hotel, villa, and glamping. The villa comes with a private hot spring bath for you to spend a relaxed time alone with your family and friends.

At Nasu Farm Village, you can spend some relaxing time with horses. It offers programs such as the Horse Trekking Program that even beginners can enjoy and the Horse Therapy Program to befriend a horse. Children and people who are still not quite ready to ride a horse can join this program with peace of mind. The restaurant offers the chef’s special lunch boxes featuring seasonal vegetables harvested on the farm. *Guidance for horseback riding is provided in Japanese. For safety reasons, you may only ride a horse if you understand Japanese or if you have an interpreter to explain the instructions for you.

Shiobara Coffee is a shop with a café operated by Cheese Garden, a Western confectionery brand that sells products using cheese. The shop interior is designed with Japanese décor to create a serene and tranquil atmosphere. The café menu features Cheese Garden’s standard products and apple pie available only at our café. You have to be there to taste our famous apple pie made with a generous amount of large cuts of apple compote. The café has a rich lineup on the food menu too including Shiobara Onion Curry Rice and seasonal pasta dishes. There is also coffee-flavored soft ice cream and a range of drinks. Please drop by and enjoy.

The globally renowned golf course architect, Robert Von Hagge, had a dream of creating the most beautiful and exciting golf course in Japan and his dream was realized with the Hourai Country Club. This 18-hole course features a beautiful contrast of light and shadow produced by the surrounding grand natural forest. Its 360-degree panoramic view makes the course a perfect resort course. On vast land with plenty of space, the holes are spaced so that they are away from each other. Hourai Country Club is one of the most prestigious courses in Japan, hosting the men’s Japan Golf Tour Championship from 2000 to 2002. At the clubhouse, you can enjoy meals prepared with locally sourced ingredients and dairy products from a nearby ranch.

Rengetsu stands at the base of the untouched Shiobara Valley with its 30-meter drop. The sound of the stream, comfortable breeze, and panoramic views of the beautiful valley that changes with the season surround Rengetsu to create the finest, out-of-the-ordinary experience. All guest rooms come with a tub filled with natural hot spring water and a view of the beautiful valley. Take your time to fully relax and enjoy our famous “skin beautifying hot spring,” which has a wide variety of health benefits. Rengetsu also features an open-air hot spring bath surrounded by nature, a spacious large indoor bath, and three elaborate private open-air hot spring baths. For dinner, you will be served a kaiseki multi-course meal featuring various local foods and tastes. All these dishes are carefully prepared for your fullest satisfaction using seasonal ingredients that entertain both your eyes and taste buds. Rengetsu also offers the Golf Plan where you can enjoy your stay and golfing at a nearby golf course. 【About the hot spring】 Water color: clear Spring water type: chloride spring water Efficacy: alleviates nerve pains, rheumatism, sensitivity to cold, and fatigue Note: there are private open-air hot spring baths (first-come-first-served basis and no reservation needed)

Pete-Dye Golf Club is a masterpiece 18-hole course designed on the land of Nikko by the genius Pete Dye. It is named after the golf course architect Pete Dye. The course is flat but long and tough, and is one of the best championship courses in Tochigi Prefecture. The course will make you play seriously and let you find your true skill level. The course also features an authentic and classy clubhouse.

Nagaoka Hyakuana Tomb Group was built at first half of the 7th centry, and it was designated as a prefectual histric site.   It is said to be mass tomb like a family  tomb, hollowed out like a beehive on a hillside made of tuff. It is said that Hyakuana (one hundred hole ), but actually it has 52 holes. The various kinds of Kannon statues that were later carved into each horizontal tomb are said to have been created by the famous monk Kobo Daishi.

Isoyama Shrine in Kanuma City is a historic shrine that received a Goshuin (red seal) from the Tokugawa Shogunate, and is now known as one of the best known hydrangea viewing spots in the northern Kanto region.   The shrine is also known as one of the best places for viewing hydrangeas in the northern Kanto region. The 2,500 hydrangeas of 28 varieties planted along the approach to the shrine and around the shrine pavilions are in full bloom, creating a wonderful contrast with the green of the cedar trees. During the festival, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., lanterns are lit, and the hydrangeas reflected in the pale light create an ethereal atmosphere.   A "Chinoawa" or "ring of thatch," which is said to bring good health to those who pass through it, will also be set up.

The “Autumn Mashiko Pottery Fair” is held on early November every year. This fair started from 1966, there are about 50 shops and as many as 550 tents set up selling pottery. The Pottery Fairs provide a great chance to enjoy talking with young artists and local potters in the shops and tents. Every year about 600,000 people come to enjoy the fair.

It was the first roadside station to be built in Tochigi prefecture. Local specialities and agricultural products are available to purchase and there are various seasonal performances and experience events throughout the year. Yuzu Salt Ramen from Michinoeki Motegi's Jyukkokuya won the national roadside station gourmet competition, the Michi-1 Grand Prix for three consecutive years in 2016, 2017, and 2018, and was inducted into their Hall of Fame. On Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, visitors can see the steam locomotives running on the Moka Railway up close from Michinoeki Motegi.