Nikko National Park - World Heritage Site. Japan - Nikko - TravBuddy

Nikko is a small city at the entrance to Nikko National Park which is a World Heritage site.

One of the most famous attractions is the Toshogu Shrine, Japan's most lavishly decorated shrine.

Nikko National Park is very scenic, with lots of mountainous landscapes, lakes, waterfalls, hot springs, wild monkeys and hiking trails.

Lake Chuzenji, Kegon Falls and Yumoto Onsen are also some famous sights to see while in Nikko.

Nikko and the area around Lake Chuzenji, in particular, are well known for their beautiful autumn foliage (koyo). Usually mid October to mid November is the best time to see the autumn foliage at its best.

The best way to get around Nikko is to take the bus its very easy and runs regularly.

To get there from Tokyo it is best to get a pass called "ALL NIKKO PASS" Cost is 4,400 Yen and its valid for two consecutive days and includes the round trip from Tokyo and unlimited travel on buses from central Nikko to Okunikko (Lake Chuzenji and Yumoto Onsen). Its only available to foreigners visting Japan and the Nikko area. The passes for exclusive use by foreigners are available at the Tobu Sightseeing Service Center and the "Tobu Travel" travel agency in Asakusa Station.

There are hourly rapid trains between Asakusa and Nikko, which take about two hours and cost. If you don't get a pass as mentioned above the cost for a ticket is 1320 Yen one way. In the morning and he afternoon, there are also a few limited express trains (all seats reserved), called "Kegon", which only take 105 minutes, but are twice as expensive as the rapid trains.

Also a nice idea is to stay in one of the many ryokans (japanese style inn) or hotels in Nikko city so you can experience the town.

I stayed in a very reasonable one called Turtle inn Nikko.
http://www.turtle-nikko.com/turtle/index_en.html

Also many of the shops close quiet early so finding dinner can be hard. One option is to eat early, buy food from the convience store for later or have one of the meals provided by the ryokan.

I would recommend spending two or three days in the area exploring the Nikko National Park area with its shrines, temples, lakes, onsens and nature.