8 of Best Things to Do in the San’in Region, Japan

View of rocks and a pond a the Garden at Adachi Musem of Art — A garden at the Adachi Museum of Art

Shimane and Tottori form the heart of Japan’s San’in region, or “shady side of the [Chugoku] mountains.” The pair of prefectures offers some of the country’s most fulfilling sightseeing attractions—and fewer crowds. Diverse topography means you can readily explore mountainside temples and mines, onsen, and even sand dunes, all while taking advantage of the bountiful seafood caught in the neighboring Sea of Japan.

If you’re coming from the capital, flights take around 1.5 hours, making Shimane and Tottori incredibly accessible. You can pick between ANA’s daily flights from Tokyo Haneda (HND) to either Tottori (TTJ) or Hagi-Iwami (IWJ). Plus, densha otaku (mega railroad fans) can hop aboard the Sunrise Izumo, currently the only remaining overnight train in the country, which connects the capital with Izumo, Shimane.

Sandboarding the Tottori Sand Dunes

View of the Tottori Sand Dunes and ocean. — Tottori Sand Dunes

You might be surprised to learn that even Japan’s famously mountainous terrain occasionally yields to dunes. Just outside of the eponymous capital of Tottori Prefecture lies the country’s largest expanse of sand dunes.

Hugging the Sea of Japan, the Tottori Sand Dunes, a part of the San’in UNESCO Global Geopark, span nearly 10 miles east to west and 1.5 miles north to south. Weathering granite from the Chugoku Mountains, carried by the Sendai River, created the dunes on the outskirts of Tottori city, where they form a curious juxtaposition with the neighboring seaside. Visitors can view a sand sculpture museum, sandboard down the dunes, ride camels when the weather permits, and take in a small but informative geology museum at the official visitor center.

The Japanese government officially recognized the area as a national park in 1963. In 2010, the San’in Kaigan Geopark became part of the Global Geoparks Network (GGN), an international network established in 2004 with UNESCO’s support. It was revalidated in 2014 following an expansion of its area. UNESCO formally launched the UNESCO Global Geoparks program in 2015, further strengthening the site’s international recognition.

View of a floating hat installation by a shallow pool at the Shoji Ueda Museum of Photography. — The surrealist setting of the Shoji Ueda Museum of Photography

The dunes, almost synonymous with Tottori, also inspire art. Local photographer Shoji Ueda used the unusual landscape to frame many of his prized surrealist works, which you can enjoy at the Shoji Ueda Museum of Photography in the town of Houki.

See the storehouses of Kurayoshi

View of a canal and traditional buildings in the Storehouse District of Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture. — The Storehouse District of Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture

For an alternative to the warehouse district of Kawagoe city (which attracts endless tour groups north of Tokyo), shirakabe dozō-gun, white-walled earthen storehouses, are the signature of Kurayoshi city. Located just north of Kurayoshi’s symbolic Mount Utsubuki, the shirakabe dozō-gun have been around for more than 200 years. With warehouses for everything from rice and wine to cotton, metal, and silkworm cocoons, the district played a pivotal role in the flow of those commodities throughout the Edo period (1603-1867) and the Meiji era (1868-1912).

The structures, composed of wooden frames, fireproof earthen walls, and plaster, adjoin townhouses with a type of tile called sekishu gawara that’s unique to the San’in region. Made of Kimachi stone, the tiles, which are heated to about 2,200°F, are frost-resistant and waterproof, two key qualities on the shady side of the mountains.

Hike Mount Daisen’s beech forest

View of the stairway leading to Ogamiyama Shrine, Mount Daisen. — The approach to Ogamiyama Shrine, Mount Daisen

One of Japan’s most sacred mountains, Mount Daisen in Tottori Prefecture is central to one of the country’s creation myths. In that story, a Shinto god wanting to expand regional territory used a rope that became western Japan’s Yumigahama Peninsula and a stake that formed Mount Daisen. Consequently, the mountain, at 5,673 feet, has been a pilgrimage site for Shinto and Buddhist devotees for centuries.

Mount Daisen is also a popular destination for hikers and nature fans, with trails open year-round. Among its more popular offerings is a beech tree walk, one of the largest in western Japan; indigenous wildlife, including the lacquer tree (yes, that lacquer) and the Japanese giant salamander; and a host of trails for beginners and experts alike.

Visit the garden at the Adachi Museum of Art

Japanese gardens are world-renowned for their immaculate landscaping, meticulous layouts, and masterfully pruned flora. For an off-the-beaten-path garden with few crowds, go to the Adachi Museum of Art in Yasugi, Shimane Prefecture.

You can admire the serene natural settings in the museum’s extensive collection of nihonga (modern and contemporary Japanese painting), including works by Yokoyama Taikan, as well as in the surrounding garden. Visitors can only view the rarefied garden—considered the best in Japan by the Sukiya Living Magazine, Journal of Japanese Gardening, since 2003—from within the museum. (Pro tip: Check out the hall that provides the “frame” to the outside.)

YUUSHIEN Garden in Matsue city during the fall. — Fall colors at YUUSHIEN Garden in Matsue city

If you want to wander through a Japanese garden, the San’in region also has you covered. YUUSHIEN Garden, located on Radish Island (Daikonshima) between Tottori and Shimane prefectures, is celebrated for its peonies, carefully cultivated for year-round display, as well as for its Unshu ginseng. Although peonies typically bloom in early summer, Japan has even cultivated winter peonies with red, purple, and pink flowers that bloom around New Year’s Day.

Go to the Izumo Oyashiro shrine

The Kaguraden (sacred dance hall) of the Izumo Oyashiro shrine

No one is quite sure when Izumo Oyashiro (Izumo Grand Shrine) was built. It was mentioned in Japan’s oldest extant compendium of history and folklore, the Kojiki, created in 712 C.E., making it perhaps Japan’s oldest shrine.

It’s also well-known as the site of the Kamuhakari, an annual meeting of Shinto gods. Said to take place in the 10th month of the lunar calendar (around November in the solar calendar), the crux of the meeting is for the deities to discuss topics regarding agriculture and marriage.

The most important Shinto deity worshipped here is Okuninushi no Kami (the “Great Lord of the Land”). Okuninushi no Kami represents nation-building and enmusubi (building connections). Often reduced to match-making for marriage, enmusubi has a much broader meaning, aspiring to engender bonds between all living creatures.

Spelunk in the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mines

Entryway to the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine

This bucolic part of rural Shimane Prefecture was once home to the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mines, said to have produced the majority of Japan’s silver at a time when Japanese silver accounted for nearly one-third of the world’s total supply. The mines closed in 1923 after operating for almost 400 years. Given the importance of the silver mines and the desire to protect and preserve the regional flora, the site joined the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2007.

In its heyday during the late 1500s and early 1600s, the region boasted hundreds of mabu, or mining shafts. Today, only two are open to the public, Ryugenji and Okubo. At Okubo, weaving through the tunnels with a hard hat lends perspective on the arduous work miners face daily.

Check out the samurai town of Tsuwano

Koi swimming in Tsuwano’s samurai district

Well-preserved samurai districts are common in Japan, but the one in Tsuwano, Shimane Prefecture has a distinguishing feature—carp. Along the main street that once housed high-ranking samurai and schools, multicolored koi fill streams that run parallel to the road. Ironically, their tranquil presence has darker origins as a contingency plan in the event of famine.

From here, you’ll want to head up to Taikodani Inari Shrine, founded in 1773 and visited by worshippers from all corners of Japan, particularly those hoping for general prosperity, good harvests, and business success. A much quieter cousin of Kyoto’s Fushimi Inari Shrine, Taikodani Inari Shrine also has a chain of vermilion torii (archways).

Taikodani Inari Shrine’s torii-lined path

Tsuwano is also a destination for Japanese Christian history. With Christianity outlawed between the early Edo period and 1873, following this faith was a risky endeavor. In 1867, some Hidden Christians of Nagasaki were banished to present-day Tsuwano, where they were tortured for their beliefs. After their release from prison in 1873, the Tsuwano Catholic Church was built in 1890 to commemorate the event. (The current structure dates to 1931.)

See Tokyo’s Hama-Rikyu Gardens and Shibuya

View of the Hama-Rikyu Gardens. — Hama-Rikyu Gardens, where the Edo Period and the current Reiwa era collide

Tokyo is a convenient and fascinating jumping-off point for the San’in region, and you can use these suggestions for a day in the world’s third-most-populous metropolitan area. Avoid the crowds of Tokyo’s urban districts by getting an early-morning start at Hama-Rikyu Gardens. Constructed as a feudal lord’s residence and duck hunting grounds during the Edo period, the estate then became a smaller imperial villa. (Rikyu translates as “detached palace/villa.”) It’s a good spot to enjoy maple and ginkgo leaves in mid- to late fall. A smattering of wooden buildings in the center of the gardens is a striking contrast to the modern skyline of the Shiodome neighborhood.

Then, head to the Shinjuku district for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, Tokyo’s City Hall and home to a pair of observation decks with complimentary admission. With views from around 663 feet above the city, the North and South observation decks offer visitors a sense of the breadth of the Tokyo metropolitan area. Try to find some of the city’s most recognizable landmarks, including NTT Docomo Yoyogi Building, Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, and Japan’s tallest human-made structure, TOKYO SKYTREE.

View of the skyline from the north observation deck in the Tokyo Metropolitan Building. — A view from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building Observatories’ North Observation Deck

Later on in the day, check out Shibuya Crossing, the world’s busiest pedestrian crosswalk—from a lesser-known perspective. Take one of the Magnet by Shibuya109 shopping and entertainment complex’s elevators to reach Crossing View & Rooftop Lounge Mag8. For 1,800 yen (about $12), you’ll get a drink and stunning aerial views of the quintessential Tokyo intersection. Plus, if you scan the QR code at Crossing View & Rooftop Lounge Mag8, you can even see Shibuya Crossing from the point of view of a drone. (Please note that the venue is scheduled to reopen in early March 2026 after temporarily closing for renovations.)

Cap off your Tokyo visit with dinner on a yakatabune, a traditional Japanese houseboat. The idea for these dinner cruises dates back centuries, when Japanese aristocrats would entertain guests aboard their ships. Today, companies such as Yakatabune Harumiya offer multicourse dinners aboard yakatabune that sail up and down one of Tokyo’s main waterways, the Sumida River.

Jonathan DeLise

Jonathan DeLise is a multilingual freelance food, travel, and history writer, and speaker. He has also lived throughout the United States, Tokyo, Jakarta, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Jeddah, and Orizaba, Mexico. You can find him online at his portfolio, adding chilies to just about anything savory and/or trying to improve his jianzi skills.