See Fascinating Kobe, Japan, In 1 Day

See fascinating Kobe, Japan, in 1 day

By Anna Purpurpurpur

Have you ever considered visiting Kobe? You might know it because of its famous rare meat, but there is more to see, from fantastic natural sights to historical landmarks no other city can offer you.

More over, this would make a perfect day trip from Osaka! Let’s see what are the best activities you can do in Kobe in just 1 day.

1. Ride Kobe Nunobiki Ropeway and visit the Herb Garden

Kobe is famous for its natural sights such as Mt Rokko, so it might be good idea to start exploring the city from Kobe Nunobiki Ropeway and the Herb Garden on its top platform. You can also choose other ropeway to get to other mountain slopes.

First, we arrived at Shin-Kobe station and in 5-7 minutes, we reached Kobe Nunobiki Ropeway. The theme of the ropeway is herbs because there is a herb garden at the second stop of your journey up! Don’t miss the beautiful Nunobiki Waterfall from the mountain lake on your way, too.

The top platform is all covered with flower beds and strongly gives old European vibes and was designed after Wartburg Castle, Germany. You can even have there some Western street food like sausages, croquettes or French fries! You can choose between walking down the upper section to explore the garden, hammock area and a glasshouse or taking a ropeway.

On the upper platform, there is a restaurant (apart from a few street food kiosks), and a shop that sells seeds, flower bath salts, and mini bonsai. In addition, there’s even a fragrance museum covering the history of perfume industry and different scents: you might have seen something similar in Grasse, the capital of fragrance, in France!

The view over Kobe is very picturesque, and you can also glimpse Osaka in the background!

2. Explore Ikuta Shrine

Ikuta Shrine is a beautiful spot you must not miss in Kobe. Not only is it one of the oldest shrines in Japan, but also it’s absolutely stunning in spring, surrounded by blooming cherry trees.

The shrine is said to have been established in the 3rd century AD by Empress Jingu. On her way back from the Three Han mission, or Korean conquest, her ship almost crashed, but eventually, she managed to get home safely after praying to Watarsumi, and she founded a shrine here along with two other shrines.

Ikuta forest nearby has also been a site of the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani in 1184, one of the battles of the Genpei War, a civil war between Minamoto and Taira clans in the 12th century that resulted basically in establishing the feudal system in Japan: the shogun from Minamoto clan ruled from Kamakura while the capital was officially still in Kyoto.

3. Visit an Animal cafe

Kobe has plenty of animal cafes, including those for cats, dogs, and exotic animals. If you’re a fan, you will easily find one in central Kobe.

However, as always, I must note that not all Japanese animal cafes provide good care for animals, and our animal well-being is at the centre of their business. Please make sure you visit the one where animals are loved!

4. Stroll around Chinatown

Chinatown in Japan? Yes, please! You might’ve heard about Chinatown in Yokohama, but there is another one in Kobe, too (there are three in total).

It’s a vibrant and colourful city district where you can see a large entrance gate, a temple dedicated to Guan Yu and a lovely square with stone animals (zodiac signs and some others, like a panda).

And, of course, there are dozens of Chinese restaurants where you can eat street food for takeaway and a more elevated sit-in experience! We went for a few buns and absolutely loved them.

5. See the Meriken Park

Meriken Park – actually, it was initially known as A-Merican because of the American settlement nearby, but then A got dropped – is a lovely seaside area you mustn’t miss on your trip to Kobe.

There are quite a few sights there, like a giant mesh sculpture, ‘Fish Dance’ by Frank Owen Gehry, the Kobe Maritime museum, where you can learn about the history of Japanese fleet and the role of Kobe in it, Be Kobe, a memorial to victims of Great Hanshin earthquake (you can also visit The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Memorial Disaster Reduction & Human Renovation Institution), a very nice Starbucks and a few hotels.

You can watch some ships, cruise liners and yachts sailing nearby, and the cherry blossoms there would frame that really nicely. It is probably the most well-known landmark of Meriken and of Kobe as a whole.

6. Admire the Kobe Port Tower

The tall red Kobe Port Tower is a sightseeing tower from 1963. It stays 108 metres tall, and its brightly red outlay is definitely the most recognizable sight of the city!

It was closed for a few years for some renovations, but probably at the time of this blog’s publishing, you can already visit the observation desk there on the top sections of it.

7. Don’t miss the Foreigner district

The foreigner district is a very special area in Kobe. As you probably know, Japan was isolated from the world for over two hundred years from the 17th to the 19th—this period’s policies are called Sakoku—until, alongside the Meiji restoration, it opened up to Western culture and merchandise under pressure from other countries. This was recorded in the Ansei Treaties.

Japan was forced to sign with other countries: the USA, Great Britain, Russia, France, and the Netherlands. Kobe was among the first ports opened to foreigners, alongside Yokohama, Nagasaki, Edo and Niigata. Starting in 1868, Kobe saw an influx of foreigners linked to trade, and they were allowed to settle very close to the Kobe port.

This area became known as the Foreigners district, and you can still see beautiful buildings from the late 19th-early 20th centuries here, including the US Consulate building, the former Kobe customs house (now a museum) and Weathercock House (The Former Thomas House).

8. Shop Kobe Sannomiya Shopping Street

If you travel a lot around Japan, you know that covered shopping arcades are a thing here. It’s true for Kobe, too!

Come to Kobe Sannomiya Center Gai Shopping Street to do some souvenir shopping or to eat delicious sweet delicacies.

9. and of course try Kobe meat

Kobe meat has made this city world famous. Everyone knows that Kobe meat is the best meat on Earth! And it won’t be hard for you to find a place to try it, as there are lots of touristy restaurants in central Kobe that promote their meat menu visibly. We went to a restaurant called 5 Stars, which has 5 types of meat, with A5 being the cheapest and the least posh on the menu (just to compare, A4 is presumed to be a super good and expensive meat in the UK).

We went for Kobe meat nigiri and two steaks, the second option – a bit better than A5 – and the most expensive one, the phantom meat – it was about 250$ for 120g of meat. I’m not sure you can really spot the difference on the photos as meat is served similarly but believe me you feel it when you eat it!

Pictures of the floating world