These unconventional "tub boats" let locals row around the island's turbulent coast.

Huts like this were once a hub for the female divers who collected pearls and seafood off Japan's coasts.

Fans line up at the crack of dawn for a slurpy bowl of deliciousness at this noodle counter inside a factory.

This incredible mountainside temple is home to intriguing statues of demon-like creatures.

Japan's hottest hot spring has a memorable name.

A mysterious set of tunnels carved in the hills of rural northern Kyushu.

What's believed to be the country's first shrine is, in Shintō mythology, the annual meeting place of the gods.

Stone slabs along the coast warn of Japan's tsunami-ravaged past, often marking the highest point of a wave's reach.

These seven moai figures are the world's only sanctioned replicas of the Easter Island originals.

Ruins and statues dot the landscape of this tiny island rich with royal history.

Colloquially known as “piss alley,” this narrow street filled with tiny bars and barbecue stands looks like it was pulled straight out of “Blade Runner.”

This exacting restaurant will charge a fine for every grain of rice you've left behind.

The Yonaguni Monument, a natural formation or the Japanese Atlantis?

Devoted Buddhists can earn enlightenment in the next life by crawling through this symbolic nostril.

This mountain's identity is stuck somewhere between a nightmare and a scenic tourist attraction.

Founded over a thousand years ago, this shrine is said to be built on the site of a warlord's harem prison.

Burial mound for the ears and noses of thousands of mutilated Korean soldiers.

The Buddhist temples of Yamadera, built into a mountain side, feature a viewing deck with sweeping views.

This active volcano's siren song to suicide jumpers forced authorities to build a fence.

The largest volcanic caldera in Japan holds an entire city in its maw.

A steaming, boiling hellscape sources Hokkaido's thermal baths.

Unusual hexagonal rocks formed by cooling lava named for their resemblance to traditional Japanese tatami mats.

This sawtooth mountain range still bears the strangely lovely marks of its history as a medieval quarry.

This isolated Japanese mountain village untouched by time showcases unique and stunning traditional architecture.