Nikko travel guide

Ornate shrines in cedar forest. Most people stay Day trip or 1 night. Best months: Apr, May, Oct, Nov.

Highlights

• Nikko Toshogu
• Shinkyo Bridge
• Kegon Falls

Things to do in Nikko

• Nikko shrines day trip (Toshogu & Rinno-ji) · 9 h · about ₹1,200 per person. Take an early Tobu train from Asakusa; the shrine area closes around 4–5pm.
• Kegon Falls & Lake Chuzenji · 3 h · about ₹500 per person. 50 min by bus up the Irohazaka road; autumn colour peaks mid–late October.
• Shinkyo Bridge · 0.5 h · about ₹300 per person

What to eat

• Nikko yuba (tofu skin): Shrine approach eateries

Getting there

• Tobu Limited Express from Asakusa ~2h
• JR Shinkansen to Utsunomiya + JR Nikko line ~2h

Good to know

• Autumn-leaf weekends in October bring long traffic jams up to Lake Chuzenji.

Japan itineraries with Nikko

• Tokyo with Nikko & Hakone · 5 nights · 6 days, Tokyo → Hakone · from ₹57,150 per person, base estimate before flights. A short trip based in Tokyo, with Nikko's shrines as a day trip and an onsen night in Hakone.
• Autumn leaves · 10 nights · 11 days, Tokyo → Kanazawa → Kyoto → Osaka · from ₹1,13,500 per person, base estimate before flights. Follow the autumn colour from Nikko's mountains to Kenroku-en and Kyoto's temple gardens.
• Grand tour of Japan · 14 nights · 15 days, Tokyo → Kanazawa → Takayama → Kyoto → Hiroshima → Osaka · from ₹1,53,500 per person, base estimate before flights. Two weeks from Tokyo to Hiroshima via Nikko, the Japan Alps, Kyoto and Nara. Point-to-point tickets usually beat the JR Pass.