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Kobe One Day Tour | Itinerary & Transportation
Kobe is one of the best places in Kansai to organize a day trip. When you come to Kansai, if you have visited Kyoto and Osaka, you should not forget Kobe. For a one-day trip to Kobe from Osaka, you can choose to take JR, Hanshin or Hankyu trains to Kobe Sannomiya Station, with Hanshin being the cheaper option. This time, I walked all the way from Kobe Sannomiya Station, firstly, I visited Motomachi shopping district and Nankinmachi, then I went to the old settlement, Sannomiya Shrine, Ikuta Shrine, and in the afternoon, I walked through Toumon-kai Street to Kitano Jinkenkan, and then I ate dinner at Kitanozaka!Kobe Steak DinnerThe last stop is at Kobe Harbor to see the night view.
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Kobe Day Trip | Attractions
Kobe Attractions | Motomachi Shopping District
Motomachi and Center Street is a popular shopping district in the center of the city that you can see right after exiting Sannomiya Station, and is about 1.2 kilometers long from east to west. This shopping street has a history of more than 130 years, and many of the old stores have been in business since the Meiji era, when Kobe's port was first opened, and it is also a good place to buy souvenirs.
Moriya Shoten, not far from the shopping district, is a well-known and long-established Kobe meat store, famous for its live-frying coleslaw.
Sannomiya Ichikanro, the legendary must-try restaurant in Kobe, has a line of people lining up to buy buns even though it's closed.
Kobe Attractions | Nankinmachi
Nankinmachi is the only Chinese street in the Kansai region and is one of the three largest Chinese streets in Japan, along with Yokohama and Nagasaki, with one gate each in the east and southwest, namely Chang'anmen, Xi'anmen, and Nanromen. It has a history of 120 years, with Chinese people settling here as early as the opening of the port of Kobe. Chunghwa Street is basically connected to Motomachi and is not a large area, but it is not a problem to spend an hour or two eating and drinking along the way.
Every time I visit Chinatown, I feel like I've traveled back in time, and this is no exception. The stores on the street are all decorated in the same big red color. The Lunar New Year has just passed and there is still some festive atmosphere around. Of course, there are also dragon and lion dances during the Lunar New Year.
Walking in Nanjing Town, Chinese cuisine is fragrant, and the streets are full of snack stores selling Xiao Long Bao and Roast Duck.
Kobe Attractions | Old Residences
The Old Residency refers to the area that was first developed after the opening of the port of Kobe, and is famous for the many European-style buildings left behind by the foreigners who lived there during the early days of opening up the city to the outside world. The area is now a financial district, and most of the large European-style buildings are banks. The Daimaru Department Store is one of the landmarks of the old settlement, and there are many other famous buildings in the neighborhood. Next door is the famous 38 Banguk, where you can enjoy European-style afternoon tea.
Kobe Attractions | Sannomiya Shrine
Sannomiya Shrine is located right next to the old settlement. The shrine itself is small, but it is famous for the historical incident called the "Kobe Incident". This incident was the beginning of the Meiji government's diplomacy, as the conflict between the Bizen clan and the French in front of Sannomiya Shrine turned into a conflict with Britain, France, and the United States, and the Meiji government finally adopted international law and apologized to all the countries for their sins.
Kobe Attractions | Ikuta Shrine
Ikuta Shrine has a special significance for Kobe. It is said that the person who managed Ikuta Shrine in ancient times was named Kobe, and his name became the name of the city. Ikuta Shrine has a history of 1,800 years and was once the battlefield of the Genpei War. It is now also known as a shrine for love affairs and is popular among young people.
Ikuta Shrine is located on the busy streets of Kobe, and the entrance to Ikuta Shrine is a large brown torii that appears in front of you as you walk down the street. Beyond the brown torii, the inside of the shrine is very beautiful with a bright green roof and vermillion walls. The main hall of Ikuta Shrine is dedicated to Wakka-no-Mikoto, a goddess of health, longevity and love. Ikuta Shrine is a larger shrine and takes about half an hour to walk around.
Ikuta-no-mori behind the shrine is a green space, like a small oasis in the city.
A whole row of torii in the back leads to Inari Shrine, which is very beautiful.
Kobe Attractions | Kitano Kinko Museum
Kitano Kinkinkan StreetIt refers to the area where many foreigners lived from the end of the Shogunate to the Meiji era, thus leaving behind many houses and residences built during the Meiji Taisho period, and nowadays, because of its exotic atmosphere, it has become one of the most important hotspots in Kobe. From the Sannomiya station can walk all the way to the Kitano Museum, in fact, you can also take the city loop sightseeing buses less road, we are because of the front of the place to stroll around, simply walk directly to the. Alien Museum at the foot of Rokko Mountain, all the way is uphill, walking up more or less a little hard, it is recommended or according to their own physical arrangements.
There are some snacks on the street of the Inhabitant House, and the Kazami Chicken Shop is a famous store, where you can buy ice cream from the Chirukka Ranch.
There are about 60 houses left in Kitano Ekibenkan Street, and about 20 of them are open to the public, so you can choose which ones you want to visit according to your own preferences.
Kazami Chicken Museum
You pass through Kitanomachi Plaza and arrive at the Kazami Chicken House. Built in 1904 by a German trader, the red brick exterior and the Kazami Chicken logo on the roof are the most prominent features.
Kitano Tenmangu Shrine
Kitano Tenmangu Shrine is a must-see if you want to go up to the top. The view from the front of Kitano-Tenmangu Shrine is very nice, but the stairs up are challenging, so not many visitors actually walk up. The Tenmangu Shrine itself is not very big, but you can see the scenery when you turn around.
Kitano Tenmangu Shrine is dedicated to Lord Michizane Coffin Hara, the god of knowledge, and those who have been to Kyoto will probably think that there is also a Kitano Tenmangu Shrine in Kyoto. In fact, the Kitano Tenmangu Shrine in Kobe was constructed in 1180 when Taira Kiyomori, the god of onimono (the god of protection), was invited to Kobe when he moved the capital from Kyoto to Kobe.
The bull statue in front of Cheon Man Kung Temple is famous, and it is said that touching the face will make you smart, while touching the horns will bring you wealth. Looking at the colors, it seems that people here are more interested in wisdom than wealth?
French Pavilion
The Pavillon de France used to be apartments rented out to French people. It is now a museum of French art.
British Pavilion
The British Pavilion was of course left by the British, and upstairs there's a Fulmers' room.
The Incredible Consulate
The Incredible Consulate is also an interesting museum with a lot of interesting mise-en-scène designs.
Kitano Museum
Before descending the mountain, you will surely pass by the Kitano Storyteller's House, which is now a Starbucks. The Kitano Museum was originally an American house, but after the Great Hanshin Earthquake, it was restored and rented by Starbucks, and is now home to a large number of coffee drinkers.
Kobe Attractions | Kobe Harbor | Night View
After dinner, you can enjoy the night view of Kobe Port. Kobe Port is one of the five largest ports in Japan, and has been a very prosperous port since ancient times, and is still a major international trading town. Although it looks colorful at night, it is still surrounded by heavy industry shipyards, and you can take a sightseeing boat tour during the day. It takes about 15 minutes to walk from Kobe Station. The 108-meter tall Kobe Port Tower is a landmark of Kobe, and is even more eye-catching at night when it is lit up, so just walk towards it.
The Kobe Port Tower itself is a modern tower made of red steel tubes, and is actually the first lighted building in Japan. At night, the lights change color constantly, and there are said to be more than 40 different forms, which are different every time you take a picture of them. If you go up to the upper four or five floors, you can also see Mt.
From this end of the Kobe Port Tower, you can see Mosaic Square on the other side of the river. Mosaic Square is a large shopping district with department stores and shopping malls.
Walking towards Mosaic Square, you will pass the Palace Dancing Fountain, which is not very big, but the show was unexpectedly good and attracted a lot of people to stop.
Walk to the Mosaic Square end and then back to take a night view of the Kobe Tower. To the right of the Kobe Tower is the so-called Merikan Park. The magnificent building above it is the Kobe Maritime Museum, built in 1987 to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the opening of the port of Kobe. The design concept is based on the theme of the sea, ships, and harbor of the port of Kobe, and the exterior is modeled after the shape of a sailboat, which is even more special to see at night.
Kobe Attractions | Arima Hot Spring
If you still have time in the evening, you can also go to the Rokko Mountain Arima Hot Springs to have a bath. For more information about the Arima Hot Springs, you can read the following article!
More articles about Kobe
- Kobe Day Trip | Kobe Attractions Tips
- Kansai Japan] Arima Hot Spring Day Trip | Pilgrimage to the Three Famous Hot Springs in Kansai Japan
- What to eat in Kobe: 7 classic Kobe restaurants to recommend!
- Kansai, Japan] Nadagogo Village Sake Factory | Japan's No.1 Sake Village Day Trip
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