Best Road Trips in Japan: 10 Scenic Drives Ranked

The best road trip in Japan is the Shimanami Kaido, a 70 km ribbon of bridges that hops across six islands of the Seto Inland Sea between Onomichi and Imabari. It is the country's most celebrated drive, and it is only the beginning. Below are ten of the best road trips in Japan, ranked, from Mount Fuji's mirror lakes and Hokkaido's summer lavender to Kyushu's smoking volcanoes and Shikoku's ancient pilgrimage.

Japan is quietly one of the world's great driving countries. The roads are immaculate, major-route signage is bilingual, rental cars are affordable and often electric, and even a remote cape usually has a convenience store and a hot spring within reach. We ranked these routes on scenery, ease of driving, and the density of stops worth stopping for, and pulled every distance and season straight from our catalogue. Several are coastal classics, so if the sea is your thing start with our scenic coastal drives, and you can see all ten together on the Japan road trips hub.

The best road trips in Japan at a glance

If you only do one

Drive the Shimanami Kaido. No other route distils Japan's genius for landscape into so few kilometres. In one or two easy days you cross six islands on six soaring bridges, each one delivering you to a lemon grove, a hilltop castle, or a temple hung above the sea. It is fully paved, gentle to drive, and close to Hiroshima, so it slots neatly onto almost any first trip. Just note that the famous blue cycling line is not a driving route, so watch for the correct expressway exits at Kosanji Temple, Oyamazumi Shrine, and the Kirosan Observatory.

1. Shimanami Kaido, Seto Inland Sea

The Shimanami Kaido is Japan's signature drive, 70 km of the Nishiseto Expressway leaping from Onomichi in Hiroshima to Imabari in Ehime across six islands of the Seto Inland Sea. The water is dotted with green islets and slow ferries, the hills are terraced with lemon and mikan groves, and every bridge is a photograph. Break the crossing at Setoda for Kosanji Temple, on Omishima for the ancient Oyamazumi Shrine, and on Oshima for the panorama from the Kirosan Observatory. One day covers the highlights, but two lets you actually meet the islands.

2. Fuji Five Lakes to Hakone, Mount Fuji

If Mount Fuji is why you came, the Fuji Kawaguchi to Hakone traverse is the drive to make: about 125 km one-way over three days from Lake Kawaguchi down to Odawara. Day one chases the strongest northern Fuji viewpoints, from Oishi Park on the lakeshore to the Chureito Pagoda and the spring-fed ponds of Oshino Hakkai. Day two makes a light transfer into Hakone, and day three follows the classic Hakone circuit to the Open-Air Museum, the sulphur vents of Owakudani, a Lake Ashi cruise, and the lakeside torii of Hakone Shrine. Reserve the one-way rental return in Odawara before you set out.

3. Izu Peninsula Loop, near Tokyo

Japan's great onsen drive, the Izu Peninsula Loop runs 320 km around a volcanic thumb of land just south of Tokyo, easily done in two to four days. The Pacific crashes against black-sand beaches and the road threads cliff-top curves past hot springs that steam up out of the forest. Walk the suspension bridge on the Jogasaki Coast, dip into the resort towns of Atami and Ito, ride a boat through the Dogashima sea caves, and finish inland at the bamboo-lined temple town of Shuzenji. The coastal lanes are narrow and slow, so plan short days and let the onsen set the pace.

4. Hokkaido Flower Route, central Hokkaido

For a few weeks each summer, the Hokkaido Flower Route is the most colourful drive in Japan: roughly 130 km of Route 237 and Biei back lanes stitching together the patchwork hills of Asahikawa, Biei, and Furano. Farm Tomita blazes with lavender, Shikisai no Oka rolls out striped flower fields, and the Shirogane Blue Pond glows an unreal turquoise. It is gentle, paved driving with a big payoff, but the bloom is tightly seasonal, so aim for late June to August. Three days is enough to enjoy the loops without rushing.

5. Kyushu Volcano Route, Kyushu

The Kyushu Volcano Route is Japan at its most geologically alive, about 620 km and three ferry crossings over seven days from Fukuoka down to Kagoshima. It links the hot-spring resort of Yufuin, the vast caldera and grasslands of Mount Aso at Kusasenri, the steaming hells of Unzen Onsen, and finally Sakurajima, the volcano that puffs ash across the bay at Kagoshima. It is rated moderate rather than easy for a reason: check the Japan Meteorological Agency volcano warnings and each ropeway, road, and ferry operator every morning, because Aso crater access can close on short notice.

6. Japan's Golden Route by car, Tokyo to Osaka

Most first-timers ride the Golden Route by train, but doing it by car unlocks the countryside in between. Our shortened Golden Route is a deliberately unhurried ten-day, 620 km run from Tokyo through Hakone, Fujinomiya, and Nagoya to three balanced days in Kyoto, a full day in Nara, and two in Osaka. You trade the bullet train's speed for the freedom to reach quieter temples, gardens, and viewpoints on your own schedule. It is the least scenic drive on this list and the most cultural, which is exactly the point for a comprehensive first visit.

7. Noto Peninsula Loop, Ishikawa

The Noto Peninsula Loop is a quiet, deeply traditional 460 km circuit north from Kanazawa, taking about five days at a considerate pace. Its high points are among Japan's most photogenic: the sea-facing rice terraces of Shiroyone Senmaida, the wild headland at Cape Rokkosaki, and the morning market town of Wajima. Please travel this one with care and recent information. The January 2024 earthquake and later floods still affect some roads, lodgings, and attractions, so this route is planned around businesses and cultural sites that have reopened, and your visit directly supports the region's recovery.

8. Shikoku 88-Temple Pilgrimage, Shikoku

For a road trip with genuine depth, drive the Shikoku Pilgrimage, the 1,200 km, 88-temple Henro that loops clockwise around Japan's fourth island over twelve days. From Temple 1 at Ryozenji to Temple 88 at Okuboji, you thread all four of Shikoku's old provinces, Tokushima, Kochi, Ehime, and Kagawa, along coastal roads and mountain approaches between the temples. This is a pilgrimage rather than a sightseeing loop, so the rhythm of worship, the stamp books, and the long capes at Muroto and Ashizuri are the experience. Stamp offices generally run 07:00 to 17:00 year round.

9. Sanriku Coast, Tohoku

The Sanriku Coast is a dramatic, underrated 510 km drive down Japan's rugged northeast, from Hachinohe to the World Heritage temples of Hiraizumi over five to six days. The scenery is raw and cinematic: the sheer wall of the Kitayamazaki Cliffs, the white pebbles and pines of Jodogahama Beach, and the deep-cut rias that make this coast unique. It also passes through towns rebuilt after the 2011 tsunami, including Rikuzentakata and its Miracle Pine, so it is a moving as well as a beautiful drive. May to October gives the kindest weather along this exposed shore.

10. Sanriku and Akita Tohoku Sampler, Tohoku

Rounding out the list, the Tohoku Sampler is a broad 900 km, six-day introduction to the north, joining the Sanriku coast to the mountainous interior. It runs from Sendai past the pine-clad islands of Matsushima Bay, up through the Sanriku shore, then inland to pastoral Koiwai Farm, the caldera lake of Tazawa, and the preserved samurai district of Kakunodate, before finishing among the golden halls of Chuson-ji at Hiraizumi and the cliff temple of Yamadera. It is a one-way sampler rather than a tidy loop, best driven May to October when the mountain roads are clear.

Frequently asked questions

Is it easy to drive in Japan as a foreigner?

Yes, provided you carry the right paperwork. Japan drives on the left, the roads and signage are excellent, and major routes are bilingual. You will need an International Driving Permit based on the 1949 Geneva Convention, or an official Japanese translation of your licence for a few countries such as France and Germany, so arrange that before you arrive. Gentle, well-marked drives like the Shimanami Kaido and the Fuji Five Lakes traverse are ideal first outings.

When is the best time for a road trip in Japan?

Spring, from late March to May, and autumn, from October to November, are the sweet spots for most of the country, with mild weather, cherry blossom or fall colour, and clear mountain views. The big exception is the Hokkaido Flower Route, which peaks from late June to August when the lavender is in bloom. Coastal Tohoku drives like the Sanriku Coast are best from May to October.

Which Japan road trip is best for first-timers?

Start with the Shimanami Kaido for a short, spectacular, low-stress introduction, or the Fuji Five Lakes to Hakone traverse if Mount Fuji is the priority. For a comprehensive first visit that covers the classic cities, the Golden Route by car links Tokyo, Kyoto, Nara, and Osaka at a manageable pace.

Are Japan's roads good for electric cars?

Increasingly, yes. Every route on this list is drivable in an EV, and rental fleets now include plenty of electric models. Charging is densest around cities and expressway service areas and thinner on remote coasts and mountain passes, so on longer drives like the Kyushu Volcano Route or the Noto Peninsula Loop, plan your top-ups around towns rather than assuming a charger at the next cape.

Plan your Japan road trip

Ready to map it out? Compare all of these on the interactive map, begin with the country's finest crossing on the Shimanami Kaido route guide, and browse the full collection on the Japan road trips hub. Pick your season, keep the daily legs short, and let Japan's flawless roads carry you from island bridges to volcano rims.