A monk-run winery inside a Buddhist temple celebrates Japan's crown grape varietal.

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

Approximately 300 million years ago, a massive coral reef existed in what is now the largest limestone cave in Japan.

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

A train ride to the middle of nowhere gives its passengers some of the most iconic views of Japan's seasons.

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

"The Dance of Fools" is Japan's largest dance festival.

Existing for more than four centuries, the last of Hakone’s historic teahouses serves a sweet, mold-based rice drink.

One of the tallest statues in the world, and the tallest statue of a goddess in Japan.

This historic hydroelectric power plant in Japan has been preserved and is open to the public.

A strange tribute to all the fallen souls of war.

This beautiful Japanese garden is a memorial to the samurai who literally wrote the book on business as martial art.

Nestled in an unassuming residential area, this "forbidden forest" is rumored to spirit away those who dare to enter.

Blowtorches, tuna, and a jolly, chain-smoking proprietor mark this beloved street-food stand.

Sulphuric gases inhabit a beautiful Japanese island.

An abandoned Art Deco hotel nestled on the side of a wooded mountain.

One of Kyoto's oldest food establishments has supplied soba noodles to temple priests and the Imperial Palace.

You can still find treasures on the pebbly beaches of one of the world's oldest jade-producing areas.

The giant figure on the back of this turtle-shaped temple actually hides a memorial pendulum.

This giant bronze Buddha, the third largest in Japan, is the last in an ill-fated series of statues.

The world's shortest escalator doesn't seem to have any reason to exist other than to hold a world record.

A flight of this "ghost staircase" has 40 steps on the way up, but only 39 steps on the way down.

The iconic castle that withstood a magnitude 6.2 earthquake has become a symbol of resilience.

Elaborate series of tunnels where traces of mass suicide are still visible.