Last Updated: Sep 17, 2024

Seeing it ALL in Nikko

Getting the Most Out of Your Visit

This story was originally published on donnykimball.com and has been syndicated here on Medium.

Ah, Nikko…

Few popular locations are simultaneously both well-known by many tourists and at the same time so egregiously misunderstood. On that note, I’d like to welcome you back to another installment of my area guides. I’ll be diving into the weeds to ensure that readers can get the most out of their visit to Nikko. As with all other articles in this series, this will be a long post, so I suggest you grab yourself a cup of joe before reading further.

First, let’s start by taking a look at what makes Nikko so special. Located high in the mountains of Tochigi Prefecture, this region is home to a spiritual enclave with roots dating back over one thousand years. As I’ve written before, Nikko’s collection of shrines and temples was originally founded in the late 700s by the monk Shodo Shonin. Since then, it has continued to exist as a place where Buddhism and Shinto could flourish alongside one another.

A thousand years later, Nikko’s roots are still tangible. Despite its protracted legacy, though, today Nikko is perhaps more famous for its connection to the Tokugawa clan. The region is home to the ornate Toshogu Shrine, which enshrines none other than Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa…