Lake Tazawa, Japan's deepest, shimmers in the mountains. Kakunodate's samurai district preserves centuries of warrior culture. In winter, the Yokote Kamakura festival builds snow igloos lit from within. Akita is rural Japan at its most atmospheric.
What Akita is known for
Top-rated in Akita
Mt. Akita-Komagatake
4.8nature
Mt. Akita-Komagatake is Akita Prefecture's tallest mountain, with several peaks including Mt. Onamedake at 1,637 meters, and sits within Towada-Hachimantai National Park.
Shirahama: Lake Tazawa’s White Sand Beach
4.8beach
Shirahama beach stretches along Lake Tazawa’s eastern shore, located in the Haruyama district of Semboku City.
Mt. Kodake Trails
4.7nature
Mt. Kodake (1,042 m) is reached via two trails, both winding through old-growth beech forest before joining 800 meters from the summit.
Mt. Fujisato-Komagatake Summit
4.8nature
At 1,158 meters, this summit looks out over one of the largest old-growth beech forests remaining in Japan.
Yu no Sawa Onsen
4.5onsen
Yu no Sawa Onsen has been well known for its onsen (hot springs) since the 1600s.
Hinokinaigawa-Tsutsumi Park
4.4nature
Hinokinaigawa-Tsutsumi Park can be found along the banks of the Hinokinaigawa River.
Garō Falls
4.5nature
This 12-meter-high waterfall is called Garō Falls, named for the steep and narrow Garō Gorge from which it flows.
Dakedai Education Forest
4.6nature
Dakedai Education Forest displays two seemingly contradictory aspects of Shirakami Sanchi’s environmental history: old-growth beech forests and extensive lumber plantations.