Maru Travels

Day 3 was all about Kyushu pottery towns. From a porcelain torii gate to pottery gacha and choosing a coffee cup from thousands of options, I was in heaven. 📍 Sueyama Shrine · Arita 📍 Café LIER · Arita 📍 Okawachiyama · Imari 📍 Gallery Arita · Arita 📍 Izumiyama Quarry · Arita 📍 OYANE & Nishinohara · Hasami The itinerary is free for my followers! 🔗 Free itinerary: Link in Bio #aritayaki #hasamiware #japanpottery #kyushutravel #japantravel

Day 2 took us from Fukuoka into Saga. We found a huge Pikachu meet-and-greet queue, a very crowded seaside torii, and a waterfall stop we hadn’t planned at all. 📍 Pokémon Center Fukuoka · Hakata Station 📍 Sakurai Futamigaura · Itoshima 📍 Yoshinogari Historical Park · Saga 📍 Guest House Zoku Ijinkan · Saga 📍 Wakatakemaru Imariten · Imari, Saga The itinerary is free for my followers! 🔗 Free itinerary: Link in Bio #fukuoka #sagajapan #kyushutravel #japanroadtrip #japantravel

Day 1 of our nine-day Nagasaki road trip! We drove from Kyoto to Fukuoka, collected highway-station stamps, crossed into Kyushu, and found one of our favourite dinner of the trip. 📍 Dannoura PA · Shimonoseki 📍 Nakatsukasa Magotaro Inari Shrine · Fukuoka 📍 TocToc Minato Honten · Fukuoka 📍 Nishitetsu Grand Hotel · Fukuoka The itinerary is free for my followers! 🔗 Free itinerary: Link in Bio #fukuoka #kyushutravel #japanroadtrip #japantravel #nagasaki

Collecting stamps in Japan? Add this one to your Tokyo list! You’ll find it at the information center near JR Ueno Station’s Park Exit. Save this for your next visit! 📍 Ueno Park Gate Information Center 7-47 Uenokoen, Taito City, Tokyo #UenoPark #TokyoTravel #JapanTravel #StampCollecting #LayeredStamp

Sakura Jingu is a peaceful shrine in Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward, only a 2-minute walk from Sakura-shimmachi Station. The shrine is especially known for its Kawazu cherry blossoms and pink ribbons, which visitors tie to the trees while praying for good relationships 🌸 Even outside cherry blossom season, it’s worth visiting for the beautiful omamori and beautiful goshuin. Some goshuin designs change monthly or seasonally, so you may discover a different one each time you visit! 📍 Sakura Jingu, Setagaya, Tokyo #SakuraJingu #TokyoShrine #TokyoTravel #Setagaya #JapanTravel

Itoya in Ginza is one of those stores where you can easily spend much longer than planned. Across 12 floors, you’ll find pens, notebooks, stickers, stamps, washi tape, letter paper, art supplies and craft materials. You can also test many of the pens and pencils, and there are customizable notebook options if you want something more personal. It's heaven for stationery lovers, but also a great place to look for small and practical souvenirs from Japan. Save this for your Tokyo shopping list! 📍 G.Itoya, Ginza, Tokyo #tokyostationery #japanesestationery #ginzatokyo #tokyoshopping #japantravel

If you’re exploring Arita, save this café for breakfast or lunch ☕️🥐 LIER is a bakery, café and small art space serving handmade bread, sweets, meals and self-roasted coffee. Food and drinks are served on beautiful Arita porcelain, and the artwork displayed inside changes regularly. We stopped here before exploring Arita, and it was such a lovely start to the day! 📍 bakery and art cafe LIER, Arita, Saga 🚗 About 5 minutes from Arita Station; parking available 🕐 8:00–17:00 🚫 Closed Tuesday and Wednesday #aritajapan #sagajapan #japancafe #japantravel #kyushutravel

This is one of the most underrated things to look for when shopping in Japan 🇯🇵 They’re called furoku-tsuki zasshi (付録付き雑誌): Japanese magazines that come with bonus gifts. These gifts have been part of Japanese magazine culture for many years, and they can be surprisingly elaborate. Depending on the edition, you can find bags, makeup, skincare, character merchandise, planners and more. Some come with a regular magazine, while the larger boxes are often “brand books” that focus mainly on the included item. The ones I found included bags, skincare, makeup, adorable gyaru Hello Kitty items, a Miffy bag, an organizer/planner and a RAAK kit for making your own wallet. You can usually find them in the magazine section of Japanese bookstores, while selected editions are also sold at convenience stores. New designs are released regularly, so there’s always something different to find! #japanshopping #furoku #japaneseculture #hellokitty #thingstobuyinjapan

You might not expect it, but Japan has some amazing Italian restaurants 🇮🇹 MIZO is a small hidden gem near Nijo Station in Kyoto, with only 12 seats. They also serve natural wines and specialty coffee. Japanese chefs have been travelling to Italy to learn traditional Italian cooking for decades, which helps explain why the Italian food scene here is so good. 📍 MIZO, Nijo, Kyoto 🚉 About 2 minutes from Nijo Station #kyotofood #kyotorestaurant #italianfood #kyoto #japantravel

Save this Osaka itinerary for your trip 🇯🇵 Osaka is much more than just Dotonbori! This route combines famous places, quieter temples and good food. All places are easy to reach by public transport. What place in Osaka would you recommend? #OsakaJapan #OsakaItinerary #JapanTravel #VisitOsaka #japantips

These might be Japan’s cutest bus stops 🍓🍉 Along Route 207 in Konagai, Nagasaki, you’ll find 16 bus stops as five different fruits. They were created for the 1990 Nagasaki Travel Expo and they’re still real, working bus stops! 🍊 #nagasaki #japantravel #hiddenjapan #kyushutravel #fruitbusstop

Things to do in Nagasaki, Japan 🇯🇵 📍 Meganebashi Bridge 📍 Glover Garden 📍 Nagasaki Omagari Neko Shrine 📍 Nagasaki Minamiyamate Pudding 📍 Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum 📍 Nagasaki Peace Park 📍 Ōura Cathedral 📍 Sōfukuji Temple 📍 Dejima 📍 Huis Ten Bosch Save this for your Nagasaki itinerary! @Klook USA #nagasaki #japantravel #japantiktok #visitjapan #traveltiktok

Look for gosen-in at the onboard information desk or shop. Some are exclusive to a specific ship, and you can also find special books made for collecting them. Availability varies, so remember to check while you’re onboard! #gosenin #japantravel #japantraveltips #御船印

Japan’s smallest indoor cat shrine! 🐈⛩️ Around 80% of Nagasaki’s cats are said to have bent or hooked tails. Known as “omagari neko,” they’re believed to hook good fortune with their curved tails. Visit to pray for cats’ health and longevity and collect a cute cat goshuin. All offerings are donated to rescue cats throughout Japan. 🐾 📍 Nagasaki Omagari Neko Shrine Nagasaki City, Japan #nagasaki #japantravel #catshrine #goshuin #visitjapan

One of my favorite things to spot while traveling around Japan: Pokémon manhole covers ✨ They’re called Poké Lids, and every design is connected to the area where you find it. These are some of my favorites so far but I’m always looking for more! Save this for your next trip to Japan. #pokelids #pokemonjapan #japantravel #japaninspiration #ポケふた

🏯 Shimabara Overlapping Stamp Rally Looking for a fun way to explore Shimabara? Try the Shimabara Overlapping Stamp Rally! Get your stamp card at Shimabara Castle, where you can collect the first two stamps: 📍 Shimabara Castle Keep — entrance 📍 Shimabara Castle Keep — 5F observation deck Then go to the City of Swimming Carp for the other three: 📍 Seiryutei Tourist Information Center 📍 Shimeisō Spring Garden 📍 Shimabara Yūsui-kan You can collect the stamps in any order. Layer all five on the same card they reveal one complete picture of Shimabara Castle! ✨ Save this for your trip to Shimabara! #Shimabara #ShimabaraCastle #Nagasaki #NagasakiTravel #JapanTravel

Planning a visit to Yūtoku Inari Shrine? ⛩️ The shrine is open year-round and can be visited at any time. From Hizen-Kashima Station, take the bus for around 20 minutes or a taxi for around 10 minutes. There is an elevator to the main hall, but the route to the inner shrine continues uphill, so wear comfortable shoes. Allow 1–2 hours to explore, and check out the shops and local food along the approach. 📍 Yūtoku Inari Shrine (祐徳稲荷神社), Kashima, Saga, Japan #YutokuInariShrine #SagaJapan #JapanTravel #KyushuTravel #visitjapan

Have you ever seen a torii gate made of porcelain? ⛩️✨ Tozan Shrine in Arita has a beautiful porcelain torii gate and porcelain statues. You can also get a unique goshuin, goshuin book and omamori here 🤍 📍Tozan Shrine, Arita, Saga, Japan Tōzan Shrine (Sueyama Shrine) 陶山神社 #TozanShrine #Arita #SagaJapan #Goshuin #JapanTravel

This shrine looks completely different after dark 🌙 Nakatsukasa Magotaro Inari Shrine in Fukuoka’s Nishi Park is known for its illuminated torii gates and futuristic vibe earning it the nickname “Cyber Shrine.” Save this unique Fukuoka spot for your next trip to Japan. 📍 Nakatsukasa Magotaro Inari Shrine Nishi Park, Fukuoka #fukuoka #fukuokatravel #japantravel #japaneseshrine #visitjapan

The Tanabata Sky Lantern Festival is to Kyoto, filling the summer night with thousands of glowing lanterns, each carrying a wish into the sky. ✨ ✨ Up to 3,500 lanterns each night 📍 Kyoto Prefectural Kizugawa Sports Park, Jōyō 📅 August 7–16, 2026 🕔 5:00–9:00 PM 🏮 Lantern release around 8:30 PM 🎟️ Tickets need to be booked in advance - link in bio! Save this for your summer trip to Kyoto 🏮✨ @tanabatafes2026 #Kyoto #KyotoJapan #Tanabata #SkyLanternFestival #京都