The Travel Archives

Nagoya isn't a very popular tourist destination in Japan and is voted the most boring city according to some surveys, yet it is the "biggest money-making region" in the country. They say that Nagoya does not have the cultural appeal of Kyoto and the sophistication of Tokyo, and they only have Nagoya Castle to look forward to. We met a Taiwanese traveler in our hostel and he also said that you only need to stay overnight to enjoy Nagoya; otherwise, it'll bore you out.

Such negative light has been put into this city, but for a traveler like me, it wasn't that big of a deal. Due to our cancelled flight back home, I had the chance to stay another night in Japan and tour Nagoya for a day - a sweet bonus to a 12-day trip.

Here's how it went:

Day 12, Tuesday: Hello Nagoya

• Arrived 9:30 PM at Nagoya from Kyoto via the JR Bus. The trip took us 2 hours and 30 minutes.
• Walked and checked in to our pod at Guest House Wasabi. It's conveniently located near the bus station, as well as the train station that'll lead us to the airport the next day.
• Late dinner
• Chilled at the outdoor area of the hostel. They have free, unlimited tea and juice you can enjoy.

Day 13, Wednesday: Nagoya Castle, Goodbye Japan

• Checked out from our pod before visiting Nagoya Castle. We left our luggages there for a minimal storage fee.
• Breakfast at Little Mermaid Cafe. I noticed that the food was cheaper here as compared to Osaka and Kyoto. I'm not sure if it's generally more affordable in Nagoya, or was it just Little Mermaid Cafe?
• Nagoya Castle. The main tourist destination in Nagoya. We traversed this via their subway lines. You may also reach the castle via bus. Just open Google Maps from your smartphones and it'll easily give you the proper directions.
• Soba for lunch, since we haven't tried legit Japanese soba yet.
• Nagoya is famous for tebasaki, or fried chicken wings! You may also try it out at the recommended restaurants in this link.
• Visited Don Quijote to see what the hype is all about (and shop for stuff to take back home). It's where Filipinos or tourists usually buy "pasalubongs."
• Went back to our pod to get our luggages, walked a few meters to the station, and boarded the train to Nagoya airport.
• We then returned our very reliable and affordable pocket WiFi from KKDAY upon arrival at the airport. (DON'T FORGET THIS!)
• Our last Japanese treat was in this restaurant called Tonkatsu Wako. We thought we were done with the culinary goodness of this country, but Japan showed us this last meal that gave us a harder time saying goodbye.

To see the first part of our itinerary (Osaka for 2 days), click on this link.
For the second part (Himeji, Kobe, Nara for 2 days), click here.
To learn more about the third and longest leg of our travelogue (Kyoto), click here.
To see our introduction which states our general tips, click here.