Japan

Aomori - Nebuta Museum WA RASSE

Vibrant museum dedicated to the Aomori Nebuta Festival, showcasing monumental illuminated floats and the craft behind this iconic summer celebration (map)

Bizen - Bizen City Museum of Art

Regional contemporary museum dedicated to Bizen ware, one of Japan’s oldest ceramic traditions (map)

Dazaifu - Kyushu National Museum

National museum exploring Japan’s cultural history through its exchanges with Asia, from antiquity to the early modern period (map)

Fujikawaguchiko - Kubota Itchiku Art Museum

Display of intricate landscape kimonos created using the revived Tsujigahana silk-dyeing technique, housed in a Gaudí-inspired architectural complex overlooking Mount Fuji (map)

Hakone - Hakone Open-Air Museum

Outdoor sculpture museum set in a mountain landscape, combining modern and contemporary art with immersive natural surroundings (map)

Hiroshima - Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum

Personal artifacts, structural remains, and survivor testimonies documenting the atomic bombing’s human toll and advocating for global nuclear disarmament (map)

Inujima - Inujima Seirensho Art Museum

Repurposed copper refinery ruins integrating industrial heritage with contemporary art and sustainable architectural systems designed by Hiroshi Sambuichi (map)

Ise - Sengukan Museum

Exhibits detailing the Shikinen Sengu ritual of periodical shrine renewal through full-scale architectural models and displays of sacred traditional craftsmanship (map)

Kanazawa - Kanazawa 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art

Circular, glass-walled structure featuring interactive installations and site-specific works like Leandro Erlich’s "Swimming Pool" designed to blur the boundary between public space and art (map)

Katsuyama - Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum

Massive silver egg-shaped structure designed by Kisho Kurokawa housing 50 complete dinosaur skeletons and type specimens discovered in the surrounding Kitadani Quarry (map)

Kitakyushu - TOTO Museum

Corporate museum chronicling the evolution of Japanese sanitation culture and bathroom technology through a vast collection of plumbing fixtures and historical Washlet models (map)

Kōchi - Kochi Castle Museum of History

History museum presenting the heritage of Kochi and the Tosa domain through archives, artifacts, and rotating exhibitions, adjacent to Kochi Castle (map)

Kōka - Miho Museum

Private collection of Shiga and Silk Road antiquities integrated into a mountain forest via a tunnel and suspension bridge designed by I.M. Pei (map)

Kure - Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Kure Museum (JMSDF)

Naval museum presenting the history and missions of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, featuring a full-scale submarine and maritime defense exhibits (map)

Kure - Yamato Museum

Maritime museum exploring Japan’s naval history and shipbuilding heritage, centered on the battleship Yamato and postwar maritime technology (map)

Kyoto - Kyoto International Manga Museum

Museum and research center dedicated to Japanese manga, combining exhibitions with a vast open-access collection in a former school building (map)

Kyoto - Kyoto Railway Museum

Comprehensive facility exhibiting 54 retired locomotives and Shinkansen cars, featuring a historic 1914 roundhouse and interactive driving simulators (map)

Minamata - Minamata Disease Museum

Educational archive documenting the local industrial mercury poisoning crisis through victim testimonies and records of environmental recovery efforts (map)

Minamikyushu - Chiran Peace Museum

Memorial museum dedicated to World War II kamikaze pilots, presenting personal stories and artifacts with a focus on peace and remembrance (map)

Minamisanriku - Minamisanriku 311 Memorial

Community-focused learning center featuring firsthand survivor testimonies and interactive programs centered on the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami disaster (map)

Mitaka - Ghibli Museum

Whimsical museum dedicated to the world of Studio Ghibli, offering immersive exhibitions on animation, storytelling, and imagination (map)

Nagakute - Toyota Automobile Museum

Automobile museum tracing the global history of the car, from early models to modern design, beyond Toyota’s own production (map)

Nagasaki - Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum

Memorial museum documenting the atomic bombing of Nagasaki and promoting peace through historical testimony and reflection (map)

Nagoya - SCMaglev and Railway Park

Railway museum showcasing the evolution of high-speed rail in Japan, from steam locomotives to Shinkansen and maglev technology (map)

Naoshima - Chichu Art Museum

Subterranean concrete structure designed by Tadao Ando to house light-dependent installations by Monet, James Turrell, and Walter De Maria using only natural illumination (map)

Nara - Kofukuji National Treasure Museum

Extensive collection of Buddhist statuary and ritual objects from the Nara and Heian periods housed on the site of a former temple refectory (map)

Nara - Nara National Museum

Premier repository of Japanese Buddhist art featuring significant collections of sculpture, paintings, and calligraphy housed within a 19th-century French Renaissance-style building (map)

Narita - Museum of Aeronautical Science

Aviation museum near Narita Airport presenting the history and technology of flight through aircraft, engines, and interactive displays (map)

Naruto - Otsuka Museum of Art

Massive repository of over 1,000 full-scale ceramic tile reproductions of Western masterpieces, including an immersive recreation of the Sistine Chapel ceiling (map)

Okinawa - Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum

Comprehensive displays of photographs and artifacts documenting the Battle of Okinawa and the island's subsequent recovery through the lens of local civilian experiences (map)

Osaka - Nakanoshima Museum of Art

Contemporary art museum presenting modern and contemporary Japanese and international art in a striking black cubic building (map)

Saitama - Omiya Bonsai Art Museum

World's first public bonsai museum featuring a collection of over 120 living masterpieces, historical woodblock prints, and traditional interior display rooms (map)

Saitama - Railway Museum

Major railway museum tracing the history of Japanese rail transport through historic trains, technology, and immersive displays (map)

Sapporo - Sapporo Beer Museum

Brewery museum dedicated to the history of Sapporo Beer and Japan’s brewing heritage, housed in a historic red-brick building (map)

Shimabara - Mount Unzen Disaster Memorial Hall

Multimedia archives and immersive exhibits documenting the 1990–1995 volcanic eruptions and the subsequent recovery efforts of the local community (map)

Shiraoi - National Ainu Museum and Park (Upopoy)

Japan's first national museum dedicated to the history and culture of the indigenous Ainu people, featuring ancestral exhibits and linguistic preservation programs (map)

Teshima - Teshima Art Museum

Minimalist concrete shell housing a water-based installation that integrates architecture with natural light and environmental elements (map)

Tokyo - Edo-Tokyo Museum

History museum tracing Tokyo’s transformation from Edo to modern metropolis through large-scale reconstructions and immersive displays (map)

Tokyo - Mori Art Museum

Contemporary art museum presenting international exhibitions and site-specific projects, located atop Roppongi Hills with panoramic views over Tokyo (map)

Tokyo - National Art Center

Large-scale exhibition center with no permanent collection, dedicated to major temporary art exhibitions in a landmark contemporary building (map)

Tokyo - National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation Japan (Miraikan)

Forward-looking science museum exploring robotics, space, AI, and future technologies through interactive and immersive exhibitions (map)

Tokyo - National Museum of Nature and Science

Japan’s leading science museum exploring natural history, technology, and scientific discovery through extensive collections and interactive exhibitions (map)

Tokyo - National Museum of Western Art

National art museum dedicated to Western art, housed in a landmark building by Le Corbusier and presenting major works from the Renaissance to the modern era (map)

Tokyo - Nezu Museum

Art museum housing a refined collection of Japanese and East Asian art, renowned for its serene garden and minimalist architecture by Kengo Kuma (map)

Tokyo - Snoopy Museum Tokyo

Playful museum dedicated to Peanuts, exploring the world of Snoopy and Charles M. Schulz through rotating exhibitions and original artwork (map)

Tokyo - teamLab Planets TOKYO DMM

Immersive digital art museum featuring large-scale interactive installations where light, water, and space dissolve the boundary between artwork and visitor (map)

Tokyo - Tokyo National Museum

Japanese art and archaeology from ancient times to the modern era, including samurai armor, Buddhist sculpture, and historic textiles (map)

Tottori - Tottori Sand Museum

Unique museum presenting monumental sand sculptures, with changing themed exhibitions crafted by international artists (map)

Yasugi - Adachi Museum of Art

Extensive collection of modern Japanese Nihonga paintings and Rosanjin ceramics integrated into a landscape where meticulously maintained gardens serve as living artworks (map)

Yokohama - Cup Noodles Museum

Playful museum dedicated to the history and invention of instant noodles, combining food culture, design, and hands-on exhibits (map)

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