While Japan is attractive to tourists due to its rich culture, history, and tradition, did you know the country boasts several theme parks?  Aichi prefecture is host to a few of these amazing attractions. One theme park that recently opened in 2017, is LEGOLAND® Japan Resort. LEGOLAND®, which is aimed at families with children between 2 to 12 years old, has more than 70 didactic games, live shows, workshops, and...

Lovers of Studio Ghibli listen up! You might have heard that a gigantic theme park dedicated only to Studio Ghibli will open here in Aichi in autumn 2022. (If this is news to you, you can find out more here) We can’t wait for it to open and so can’t the rest of the world it seems. To give a taste of what’s to come, Studio Ghibli created an exciting...

Kiyosu with its castle is just minutes from Nagoya Station, and yet it is one of those places generally never mentioned in guidebooks or travel magazines. In fact, I know many people in Nagoya who have never heard of Kiyosu Castle, and even I (Elly) heard about it for the first time after living in Nagoya for more than 10 years and researching castles in the Aichi area!  So I...

If you know anything about cars, you are probably aware that Toyota is one of the biggest car manufacturers worldwide.  But did you know that Toyota is originally from Nagoya? Logically, Nagoya and other parts of Aichi Prefecture are the perfect places to geek out about cars in general and Toyota in particular. In fact, there are 3 Toyota museums in Aichi:  Toyota Kaikan Museum in Toyota (yes, they named...

The Buddha’s ashes, an old villa, and modern delicacies. All of these can be found in Kakuozan, a contemporary and artistic district of Nagoya city. This area extends half a kilometer from Kakuozan Station all the way to Nittaiji temple, which enshrines some ashes of the Buddha (yes, the actual Buddha!) bestowed by the king of Thailand. The popular area features historic architecture from the Showa era (1926-1989), alongside more...