Campervan at Cape Ose with Mount Fuji at sunset

Discovering Japan by Campervan

Vanlife and Roadtrips in Japan

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Three ways to discover Japan

Bicycle with Mount Fuji in the background

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From ancient temples to hidden mountain villages

 Japanese castle at night

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 Campervan with Mount Fuji

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Everything you need to know for traveling Japan

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The stunning visuals of Japan

Gassho-zukuri thatched houses in green rice fields at Shirakawa-go

Shirakawa-go

Gifu Prefecture

 Sunflowers beside a gassho-zukuri house with dramatic backlight in Ainokura village

Gokayama

Toyama Prefecture

 Fishing boats in Heda harbour with Mount Fuji in the distance

Heda Harbour

Izu Peninsula

 Traditional wooden houses along the Nakasendo trail in Magome

Nakasendo

Kiso Valley

 Brilliant green moss carpet stretching under ancient cedars at Hakusan Heisenji shrine

Hakusan Moss Shrine

Fukui
Gion Matsuri festival parade with elaborate floats in Kyoto

Gion Matsuri

Kyoto

Wild deer standing between ancient stone lanterns in Nara

Nara Deer Park

Nara Prefecture

 Gujo Hachiman Castle surrounded by clouds with warm dawn light at sunrise

Gujo Hachiman

Gifu Prefecture

 Tea house across the pond with pagoda lantern at Kenrokuen Garden

Kenrokuen Garden

Ishikawa Prefecture
Campervan parked at the base of Mount Fuji with golden autumn larch trees and snow-capped peak

Vanlife Japan

Mount Fuji, 5th Station

Fushimi Inari torii gates at night with dramatic light and shadow patterns

Fushimi Inari

Kyoto

Two drift cars sliding sideways with tire smoke at Ebisu Circuit in Fukushima

Ebisu Circuit

Fukushima
Red and white cat prowling across a foggy Michi no Eki parking lot with Nissan NV350 campervan in the mist

The Red Cat

Michi no Eki, Kyushu

Campervan parked beside the illuminated gate of a temple on Mount Koya at night

Mount Koya

Wakayama

Sakurajima volcano with dramatic volcanic clouds seen from the Kagoshima ferry

Sakurajima

Kagoshima

Campervan with open trunk facing Pacific sunrise at Kujukuri Beach, golden light and surfers

Chiba Surf Beaches

Chiba Prefecture

 Campervan driving past traditional funaya boathouses on the water at Ine fishing village

Ine Funaya

Kyoto Prefecture

 Golden hour at Cape Sata lighthouse, Japan's southernmost mainland point, warm light over dramatic Pacific cliffs

Cape Sata

Kagoshima

 Massive steam cloud rising from Mount Aso's crater, tiny bunkers on the ridgeline showing the enormous scale of Japan's largest active volcano

Mount Aso

Kumamoto

 Drift car trailing a dramatic cloud of tire smoke at Ebisu Circuit

Ebisu Circuit

Fukushima
Mount Fuji with autumn foliage

Mount Fuji

Shizuoka

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From the Blog

Ebisu Circuit main straight with sports cars and mountains

September 2025

Ebisu Circuit

Grassroots motorsport in the Fukushima highlands. Classic Mini racing, open drift sessions, and the raw JDM paddock culture that makes this place the soul of Japanese car culture.
Gujo Hachiman Castle above a sea of clouds at dawn

Summer 2018

Gujo Hachiman: The Castle Above the Clouds

Pre-dawn at Horikoshi Pass. A 4am wake-up, fog filling the valley, and one of Japan's most spectacular unkai moments as the castle emerges from a sea of clouds.
Tea house across the pond at Kenrokuen Garden

Summer 2018 / Summer 2019

Kenrokuen: The Garden of Six Attributes

One of Japan's Three Great Gardens. Workers sweeping streams at dawn, Basho's haiku in stone, golden koi, and 25 acres of perfection maintained by invisible hands.
Campervan and surfer at sunrise, Kujukuri Beach

August 2023 / November 2024

Chiba Pacific Beaches

Sleeping in the van at Kujukuri Beach. Waking up to sunrise, surfers paddling out at dawn, and the kind of relaxed coastal atmosphere that makes you forget you just stepped off a plane.
Tsumago post town on the Nakasendo trail

July 2019

Nakasendo

Walking the ancient post road between Edo and Kyoto through the Kiso Valley. Beware of the bears.
Shirakawa-go in winter

December 2022

Shirakawa-go in Winter

Meters of snow, warm window lights at night, and the workers who keep centuries-old houses alive.
Sunflowers and gassho house in Ainokura village

2018 / December 2022 / July 2023

Gokayama: Ainokura Village

A Ghibli film that became real. Twenty thatched gassho houses in a valley where you walk like through a temple. Three visits, and the magic hasn't worn off.
Hakusan Moss Shrine

January 2020

Japan off the beaten track: Hakusan Moss Shrine

Dive into the world of Ghibli movies at Japan's enchanting moss temples hidden deep in ancient forests.
Cape Sata lighthouse at golden hour

November 2024

Cape Sata

Japan's southernmost mainland point. Jungle shrine, vine-covered torii, and a Scottish lighthouse keeper's ruins at the edge of the Pacific.
A small figure walking alone on a wooden boardwalk across Mount Aso's volcanic desert

November 2024

Mount Aso

Walking on another planet. Crater steam, moonscape hikes, an evacuation, and a sea of golden grass inside the caldera.
The floating torii of Itsukushima Shrine silhouetted against a golden sunset

November 2024

Miyajima

Between tides. The floating torii at high water and low, sacred deer, stone buddhas with knitted caps, and a sunset that made the crowds disappear.
Two bucks in close-up with Todai-ji visible through the trees behind them

July 2018 / Summer 2019 / August 2023

Nara

Three visits to Japan's ancient capital. Sacred deer with attitude, the largest wooden building on earth, and a zen garden where the crowds disappear.
Panoramic view from Nariaiji Temple across Miyazu Bay

August 2023 / October 2025

Amanohashidate

Walking the full length of Japan's Bridge to Heaven. Pine forest, sword legends, and a mountain temple with views across the bay.

About Katagi

Exploring Japan, one road at a time

Katagi is a personal travel journal documenting Japan from behind the wheel of a campervan. From the snow-capped peaks of the Japanese Alps to the subtropical beaches of Shikoku, this site captures the beauty of a country that never stops surprising. All photography is original, shot on the road between 2017 and today.

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