Japan's Top 3

After the Three Views were composed in the 17th century, many authors have come up with their own lists of Japanese sites and attractions. While there are countless lists and variations thereof, here is a selection of the best-known ones:

Three Views



 * Amanohashidate, Kyoto
 * Matsushima, Miyagi
 * Miyajima, Hiroshima

New Three Views
日本新三景
 * Onuma, Hokkaido
 * Miho no Matsubara, Shizuoka
 * Yaba Valley, Oita

Three Great Night Views


三大夜景 Sandaiyakei
 * Hakodate seen from Mount Hakodate
 * Kobe and Osaka Bay seen from Mount Rokko
 * Nagasaki seen from Mount Inasa

New Three Great Night Views
新三大夜景 Shin-sandaiyakei


 * Kitakyushu seen from Mount Sarakurayama
 * Nara seen from Mount Wakakusayama
 * Yamanashi seen from Fuefuki River Fruit Park

Three Famous Castles
三名城 Sanmeijō. A list written by Ogyu Sorai in the Edo Period. He chose these three castles as the top among those designed by Kato Kiyomasa and Todo Takatora who he considered to be the best castle designers. All three are modern reconstructions, since Kumamoto Castle burned down during the 1877 Satsuma Rebellion and Nagoya and Osaka Castles were destroyed during World War II. Himeji Castle, widely recognized as Japan's greatest surviving castle, didn't make the cut back in the late 1600s.


 * Nagoya Castle Nagoya, Aichi
 * Osaka Castle Osaka, Osaka
 * Kumamoto Castle Kumamoto, Kumamoto

Three Great Mountain Castles
三大山城 Sandaiyamajiro


 * Bitchu Matsuyama Castle Takahashi
 * Iwamura Castle Iwamura
 * Takatori Castle Takatori

Three Great Flatland Mountain Castles
三大平山城 Sandaihirayamajiro.


 * Himeji Castle in Himeji, Hyogo
 * Matsuyama Castle in Matsuyama, Ehime
 * Tsuyama Castle in Tsuyama, Okayama



Three Famous Gardens


三名園 Sanmeien

It is unclear when these gardens were chosen or by whom. The first recorded list dates back to 1899, but a postcard bought by Shiki Masaoka from his visit to Korakuen Garden in 1891 has "Korakuen Garden, Number 1 of the Top 3 Gardens" written on the back. It is widely believed that the gardens follow the "Snow-Moon-Flower" (雪月花) aesthetic coined by a famous Chinese poem by Bai Juyi. Kenrokuen Garden, famous for its snowy scenery, represents the "Snow" (雪), Korakuen Garden, which to this day has an autumn moon-viewing event, represents the "Moon" (月), and Kairakuen, known for its early spring plum blossoms, represents the "Flower" (花). In addition, each of the gardens are strolling gardens built by famous daimyo (The Tokugawa built Kairakuen, the Ikeda built Korakuen, and the Maeda built Kenrokuen) which is also believed to have played a role in which gardens were given the prestigious designation.


 * Kairakuen, Mito, Ibaraki
 * Kenrokuen, Kanazawa, Ishikawa
 * Kōrakuen, Okayama, Okayama



Three Great Festivals
三大祭り Sandai Matsuri
 * Gion Matsuri, Kyoto
 * Tenjin Matsuri, Osaka
 * Kanda and Sannō Matsuri, Tokyo

Three Beautiful Festivals
日本三大美祭り Nihon Sandai bimatsuri The beauty list is often referenced interchangeably with the Three Great Float Festivals (日本三大曳山祭り Nihonsandai hikiyamamatsuri), which sometimes features Nagahama's Hikiyama Festival in place of the Chichibu Yomatsuri.
 * Gion Festival (Kyoto, Kyoto)
 * Takayama Festival (Takayama, Gifu)
 * Chichibu Yomatsuri (Chichibu, Saitama)

Three Great Obon Festivals
日本三大盆踊り Nihon Sandai Bon-odori
 * Nishimonai Festival (Ugo, Akita)
 * Gujo Odori (Gujo, Gifu)
 * Awa Odori (Tokushima, Tokushima)

Three Great Naked Festivals
日本三大裸祭り Nihon Sandai Hadakamatsuri Some lists replace the Konomiya Naked Festival with the Hadakabo Festival in Hofu, Yamaguchi or the Furukawa Festival in Hida, Gifu.
 * Saidaiji Eyo (Okayama, Okayama)
 * Wakamiya Shrine Autumn Festival (Bungotakada, Oita)
 * Konomiya Naked Festival (Inazawa, Aichi)

Three Great Fireworks
日本三大花火 Nihon Sandai Hanabi 
 * Omagari Fireworks (Daisen, Akita)
 * Tsuchiura All Japan Fireworks (Tsuchiura, Ibaraki)
 * Nagaoka Fireworks (Nagaoka, Niigata)

Hot Springs
Certainly one of the more hotly contested categories. (No pun intended).



Three Great Hot Springs
三大温泉 Sandaionsen


 * Atami Onsen, Shizuoka
 * Beppu Onsen, Oita
 * Shirahama Onsen, Wakayama

Three Famous Springs
三名泉 Sanmeisen. Authored by Hayashi Razan, father of Hayashi Gahō.


 * Arima Onsen, Hyogo
 * Gero Onsen, Gifu
 * Kusatsu Onsen, Gunma

Three Old Springs


三古湯 Sankotō, Three Old Hot Springs.


 * Dogo Onsen, Ehime
 * Arima Onsen, Hyogo
 * Shirahama, Wakayama

Three Baths of Fusō
扶桑三名湯 Fusō-sanmeitō. Fusō is a poetic name for Japan and this one is credited to traveling haiku poet Matsuo Basho.
 * Arima Onsen, Hyogo
 * Yamanaka Onsen, Ishikawa
 * Kusatsu Onsen, Gunma



Three Great Inari Shrines


三大稲荷 Sandai Inari

As the head of all Inari shrines, Fushimi Inari Shrine is naturally one of the top three, but there is little historical or present consensus on the others. After Fushimi Inari, the list varies depending on the source. Takekoma Shrine in Iwanuma and Kasama Inari Shrine in Kasama are also suggested by some. To further confuse things, there is a "Top 5 Inari Shrines" (五大稲荷) list that doesn't contain any shrines in the "Top 3" list


 * Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kyoto
 * Toyokawa Inari Shrine, Aichi
 * Saijō Inari, Okayama or Yūtoku Inari Shrine, Kashima

Three Great Tenjin Shrines
三大天神 Sandai Tenjin

All Tenjin (Tenmangu) shrines are dedicated to the worship of Sugawara Michizane. This top three list actually highlights his exile from Kyoto to Dazaifu. Along the way, he stopped in Hofu and built the first Tenjin shrine. Official dedication of shrines to him began after his death when a series of natural disasters and tragedies in the capital were believed to be caused by his restless soul seeking vengeance for his unjust exile. Kitano Tenmangu was built to pacify him.


 * Kitano Tenman-gū in Kyoto, Kyoto
 * Dazaifu Tenman-gū in Dazaifu, Fukuoka
 * Hōfu Tenman-gū in Hofu, Yamaguchi

Three Great Hachiman Shrines
三八幡 San Hachiman


 * Usa Hachimangu Shrine (Usa, Oita)
 * Iwashimizu Hachimangu Shrine (Yawata, Kyoto)
 * Hakozaki Hachimangu Shrine (Fukuoka, Fukuoka)

Three Great Torii
三大鳥居 Sandai Torii
 * Omiwa Shrine (Sakurai, Nara)
 * Itsukushima Shrine (Miyajima, Hiroshima)
 * Kehi Shrine (Tsuruga, Fukui)

Three Sacred Grounds
三大霊場 sandai-reijo


 * Mount Koya
 * Mount Hiei
 * Mount Osore

Three Famous Big Buddhas
三大大仏 Sandai-daibutsu


 * Todaiji, Nara
 * Kotokuin, Kamakura
 * Daibutsuji, Takaoka

Three Pagodas
三名塔 Sanmeitō
 * Horyuji, Ikaruga, Nara
 * Daigoji, Kyoto, Kyoto
 * Rurikoji, Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi

Three Hase Temples
三長谷 Sanhase
 * Hasedera (Sakurai, Nara)
 * Hasedera (Kamakura, Kanagawa)
 * Hasedera (Nagano, Nagano)

Three Kannon Temples
三大観音 Sandai Kannon
 * Asakusa Kannon (Tokyo, Tokyo)
 * Osu Kannon (Nagoya, Aichi)
 * Tsu Kannon (Tsu, Mie)

Three Famous Mountains
三名山 Sanmeizan (Three Famous Mountains), also 三霊山 Sanreizan (Three Sacred Mountains)


 * Mount Fuji
 * Mount Haku
 * Mount Tate

Three Clear Water Rivers
三大清流 Sandai seiryū
 * Kakita River, Shizuoka
 * Nagara River, Gifu
 * Shimanto River, Kochi

Three Gorges
三大渓谷 Sandai Keikoku
 * Kiyotsu Gorge (Tokamachi, Niigata)
 * Kurobe Gorge (Kurobe, Toyama)
 * Osugi Gorge (Odai, Mie)

Three Rapid Tides
三大急潮 Sandai kyūchō
 * Kurushima Strait off Imabari
 * Naruto Strait between Awaji Island and Naruto (Tokushima)
 * Kanmon Strait between Shimonoseki and Kitakyushu

Three Caves
三大鍾乳洞 Sandai-shōnyūdō
 * Akiyoshi-do (Akiyoshidai, Yamaguchi)
 * Ryuga-do (Kami, Kochi)
 * Ryusen-do Cave (Iwaizumi, Iwate)

Three Waterfalls
日本三名瀑 Nihon San-meibaku
 * Nachi Falls
 * Kegon Falls
 * Fukuroda Falls (Ibaraki Prefecture)

Three Pine Groves
三大松原 Sandai-matsubara
 * Miho no Matsubara (Shizuoka, Shizuoka)
 * Niji no Matsubara (Karatsu, Saga)
 * Kehi no Matsubara (Tsuruga, Fukui)

Three Snow Monsters
三大樹氷 Sandai-juhyo

Certain mountains in northern Japan have the right trees and weather conditions to cover the trees completely in snow to transform them into Juhyo (樹氷) or "Snow Monsters" (also sometimes called "Ice Monsters" in Japanese). These sites were chosen because they feature a good number of snow monsters along with having a ski lift for easy access.
 * Mount Zao (Zaō Onsen, Yamagata)
 * Mount Hakkoda (Aomori, Aomori)
 * Mount Moriyoshi (Kitaakita, Akita)

Cherry Blossom Spots
三大桜名所 Sandai Sakura Meisho


 * Mount Yoshino (Yoshino, Nara)
 * Hirosaki Park (Hirosaki, Aomori)
 * Takato Castle (Ina, Nagano)

Cherry Blossom Trees
三大桜 Sandai-zakura
 * Miharu Takizakura (Miharu, Fukushima)
 * Neodani Usuzumi-zakura (Motosu, Gifu)
 * Yamataka Jindai-zakura (Hokuto, Yamanashi)

Night Cherry Blossoms
三大夜桜 Sandai-yozakura


 * Takada Park (Joetsu, Niigata)
 * Hirosaki Park (Hirosaki, Aomori)
 * Ueno Park (Tokyo)

Three Autumn Colors
三大紅葉の里 Sandai-momiji-no-sato
 * Nikko, Tochigi
 * Arashiyama, Kyoto
 * Yaba Gorge, Oita

Three Hidden Regions
三大秘境 Sandaihikyō
 * Shirakawa-go, Gifu
 * Iya Valley, Tokushima
 * Shiiba, Miyazaki

Three Sake Towns
日本三大酒処 Sandai Sakedokoro
 * Fushimi, Kyoto/South
 * Nada, Kobe
 * Saijō, Higashihiroshima

Three Historical Battlefields
三大古戦場　Sandai-kosenjō


 * Dan-no-ura 1185 (Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi)
 * Okehazama 1560 (Nagoya, Aichi)
 * Sekigahara 1600 (Sekigahara, Gifu)

Three Historic Warehouse Towns
日本三大蔵の町 Sandai Kuranomachi
 * Kitakata, Fukushima
 * Kawagoe, Saitama
 * Kurashiki, Okayama

Three Ceramicware Areas
三大焼き物 Sandai-yakimono
 * Mino-yaki (Tajimi and other eastern Gifu)
 * Seto-yaki (Seto, Aichi)
 * Arita-yaki (or Imari-yaki) (Arita and Imari, Saga)

Three Lacquerware Towns
日本三大漆器 Sandai Shikki
 * Kainan, Wakayama
 * Aizu-Wakamatsu, Fukushima
 * Wajima, Ishikawa

Three Chinatowns
三大中華街　Sandai-chūkagai


 * Yokohama Chūkagai, Yokohama
 * Shinchi-Chūkagai, Nagasaki
 * Nankinmachi, Kobe

Three Beautiful Ports
三大美港 Sandai-bikō
 * Shimizu, Shizuoka, Shizuoka
 * Kobe, Hyogo
 * Nagasaki, Nagasaki

Three Fishery Ports
三大漁港　Sandai-gyokō


 * Kushiro, Hokkaido
 * Choshi, Chiba (prefecture)
 * Yaizu, Shizuoka (prefecture)

Three morning markets
三大朝市　Sandai-asaichi


 * Wajima, Ishikawa - (Unfortunately devastated by a great fire after the earthquake Jan 2024)
 * Katsuura, Chiba
 * Takayama, Gifu

Soba
三大そば Sandai-soba, buckwheat noodles
 * Wanko Soba (Morioka/Hanamaki, Iwate)
 * Izumo Soba (Izumo, Shimane)
 * Togakushi Soba (Nagano, Nagano)

Ramen
三大ラーメン Sandai-raamen
 * Sapporo Ramen (Sapporo, Hokkaido) - miso soup based
 * Kitakata Ramen (Kitakata, Fukushima) - soy sause based
 * Hakata Ramen (Fukuoka, Fukuoka) - pork broth based

Udon
三大うどん Sandai-udon
 * Sanuki Udon (Takamatsu, Kagawa)
 * Inaniwa Udon (Yuzawa, Akita)
 * Mizusawa Udon (Shibukawa, Gunma)

Beef
三大和牛 Sandai-wagyu Some sources also claim Yonezawa Beef (Yonezawa) is one of the top three beefs.
 * Kobe Beef (Kobe, Hyogo)
 * Omi Beef (Shiga)
 * Matsusaka Beef (Matsusaka, Mie)

Green Tea
三大銘茶 Sandai-meicha
 * Shizuoka
 * Uji (Kyoto prefecture)
 * Sayama (Saitama prefecture), or more recently Kagoshima

Others
三大美人県 sandai bijin ken

The three prefectures which produce the most beautiful women: Akita, Kyoto and Fukuoka - sorry, no photos.