How to travel Japan without the crowds: stay in Nagoya and avoid the busiest places and times

To avoid crowds in Japan, the shortcut is to know where foreign visitors concentrate and base yourself a little outside it. In the Japan Tourism Agency's 2025 survey, 50.8% of foreign visitors went to Tokyo, 41.3% to Osaka and 29.7% to Kyoto. By contrast, 6.9% went to Aichi, 3.3% to Gifu, 3.0% to Nagano and 0.7% to Mie. Nagoya lies between Tokyo and Kyoto/Osaka, about 40 minutes from Kyoto by Shinkansen. Staying several nights in Nagoya lets you make day trips to less-visited regions and travel outside the busy times.

Where in Japan do foreign visitors concentrate?

Most foreign visitors gather in these three: Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. Visiting them on a first trip is natural, but if you want to see an uncrowded Japan on your second trip or later, look at regions with single-digit visit rates and the feel of the trip changes. Aichi ranks 10th among prefectures by visit rate, and Gifu, Nagano and Mie are lower still.

Why does a Nagoya base help you avoid crowds?

From Nagoya Station, direct trains and buses run to less-visited regions. Staying several nights in Nagoya and going out on day trips means you don't have to change hotels each time. Not changing hotels lets you decide where to go each day by the weather and the crowds: spend a rainy day at indoor sights in Nagoya, and go to the mountain towns on a sunny weekday. In the City of Nagoya survey, 21.2% of foreign visitors to Nagoya also stopped in Takayama, Gifu. Leaving your luggage at your stay and travelling light is another benefit of staying several nights.

• Ise (Mie, visit rate 0.7%): about 1 hour 20 minutes from Nagoya to Ise-shi Station by Kintetsu limited express or JR Rapid Mie. Ise Jingu has three stars in the Michelin Green Guide
• Takayama (Gifu, visit rate 3.3%): about 2 hours 20 minutes from Nagoya on the Limited Express Hida. Takayama has three Michelin Green Guide stars
• Shirakawa-go (Gifu): about 2 hours 30 minutes by highway bus from the Meitetsu Bus Center. Its thatched villages are a World Heritage Site with three Michelin Green Guide stars
• Inuyama (Aichi): about 25 minutes by Meitetsu. Inuyama Castle, a National Treasure, has two Michelin Green Guide stars
• Kiso Valley (Nagano, visit rate 3.0%): two Michelin Green Guide stars, with the old post towns of Narai, Tsumago and Magome

We have not listed travel times to the Kiso Valley post towns because we could not confirm them in official information. Check each place's official site for directions before you go.

Is everywhere in a low-visit region quiet?

Not necessarily. Even if a prefecture's overall visit rate is low, popular towns draw travellers. According to Takayama City, Takayama had 978,312 overnight stays by foreign guests in 2025, and its old town is well known among foreign visitors. In towns like this, avoid the middle of the day when day-trippers arrive: walk early in the morning, or spend a night in Takayama and walk in the quiet of the evening or morning. You can keep your Nagoya room and spend just one night in Takayama.

Do destinations differ by country?

In the same Japan Tourism Agency survey, the prefectures visited vary a lot by country or region. Aichi's visit rate is 6.9% overall, but 20.2% for visitors from Vietnam, 9.4% from China, 9.3% from the Philippines, 8.5% from Thailand, 8.3% from France, 7.8% from Taiwan and 7.5% from Spain. Gifu is 3.3% overall but 24.5% for visitors from Spain, 14.4% from Italy and 8.7% from France. Nagano is 3.0% overall and 15.9% for visitors from Australia. Some countries have small sample sizes, so treat these as a guide. It also means a place well known to travellers from your country may still be undiscovered by others.

How can you avoid the busiest times?

Many sights do not publish crowd figures, so we cannot tell you a set time when they are quiet. With that in mind, here are general things travellers can do themselves.

• Go on weekdays rather than weekends: with several nights in one place, it is easier to put popular sights on weekdays
• Arrive early: leave so that you reach day-trip destinations in the morning
• Avoid Japan's major holidays: Golden Week, Obon and New Year bring more domestic travellers too
• Book reservation-only sights early: some, like Ghibli Park, sell tickets only by reservation and not at the entrance
• Get takeout from popular restaurants: ESCA, the underground mall at Nagoya Station, offers hitsumabushi, miso katsu bento and more to take away

Is Nagoya itself crowded?

Nagoya is one of Japan's largest cities, so the areas around Nagoya Station and Sakae are busy. But by foreign visitor rate, Aichi's 6.9% is far below Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto. In a City of Nagoya survey of 463 foreign visitors in November 2024, 80.3% said it was their first time in Nagoya — still a new destination for many. 95.0% had visited Nagoya Castle and 40.8% Osu (many answered at the castle). Nagoya Castle costs 1,000 yen for adults and is free for junior high school students and younger.

Where in Nagoya can you stay somewhere quiet?

Staying in the residential area west of Nagoya Station, rather than the busy streets in front of it, means quiet evenings. Central Nagoya has private stays in Nakamura Ward, west of Nagoya Station. House and Residence are 7 and 2 minutes' walk from Nakamura Koen Station, 4 stops (about 7 minutes, 240 yen) from Nagoya Station on the Higashiyama Line. Stays is 4 minutes' walk from Taiko-dori Station, 1 stop from Nagoya Station on the Sakura-dori Line. As they are in residential areas, quiet hours apply: 20:00 to 8:00 at House and after 20:00 at Residence. All three have a kitchen and a washing machine (or washer-dryer), so you can skip crowded restaurants and eat in. There is also a 10% long-stay discount.

• Small towns to visit from Nagoya →
• Second trip to Japan? Base yourself in Nagoya →
• Eating Nagoya food in your room →

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