Location: Utsunomiya
Top Things to do in Utsunomiya
Top Restaurants in Utsunomiya
- 1. Utsunomiya Minmin Honten
- 2. Koraku
- 3. Masashi Miyajimacho Honten
- 4. Utsunomiyagyozakan
- 5. Ishidayayakisobaten
- 6. Aogen Paseo
- 7. Utsunomiya Minmin, Hotel R-Mets
- 8. Bakery Cafe Penny Lane Tsuruta
- 9. Utsunomiya Minmin Station Higashiguch (East Exit Utsunomiya Sta.)
- 10. Gyoza Specialty restaurant Masashi Tsuruta
5 Things to do Good for a Rainy Day in Utsunomiya That You Shouldn't Miss
Utsunomiya (宇都宮市, Utsunomiya-shi, Japanese: [ɯᵝt͡sɯ̃ᵝno̞mija̠]) is the capital and largest city of Tochigi Prefecture, in the northern Kantō region of Japan. As of May 2015, the city had an estimated population of 518,200, and a population density of 1,240 persons per square kilometre (3,200/sq mi). Its total area is 416.85 km (160.95 sq mi). Utsunomiya is famous for its gyoza (pan fried dumplings). There are more than two hundred gyoza restaurants in Utsunomiya.
Restaurants in Utsunomiya
1. Oya History Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 587 reviews
Reviewed By Shigeabbott - Abbottstown, United States
We had no idea how jaw dropping this place was! You are able to talk through a part of a stone mine. It makes you feel you are on another planet or something. Don’t forget to take a sweater or light jacket because it’s chilly all year around. I didn’t see any handicap accommodations and you will have to climb down and up many steps-just like when you visit a good size caves or caverns. Very limited information in English, which didn’t make much sense. But you can get what they’re trying to tell you. There is a small information area but again all in Japanese. My non-Japanese speaking teens were able to get main information by reading English signs posted here and there. They were very amused by huge tour buses driving through small areas between carved boulders in the mountain.
2. Utsunomiya Museum of Art
3. Oya temple
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 188 reviews
Reviewed By hfot2 - Vermont, United States
We have followed Kobo Daishi around Japan, so no wonder that we came here. The temple was founded by him and the thousand-armed Kannon is said to have been his work. In addition to this figure, there are other Buddha carvings on the cliff face, some of the best in Japan and designated as National Important Cultural Properties. The temple is an interesting one - the relief statues are carved into the volcanic oya stone and the temple structure is built over them to protect them. The carvings reminded us of Buddha reliefs seen in China, in addition to carvings we have seen throughout Japan. We entered the temple and were alone with the statues. The ticket seller knew we did not speak Japanese so she did not offer to take us around, but let us wander on the walkway looking at the figures for as long as we wanted. No photography is allowed and we covered our cameras so she would understand that we knew that to be the case. When we arrived, the entrance gate was covered in scaffolding for renovation, but as luck would have it, the workmen were taking the scaffolding down while we visited the lovely garden on the temple grounds. By the time we left, we could get a photo from the parking lot across the street, of the gate, unencumbered by scaffolding. Travel tip: Take bus #45 bound for Tateiwa to Oya Kannon-mae about 30 minutes, ¥450 each way. The bus goes through very rural scenery, keep an eye out for the kura along the way. The bus back is bus #1. Take a photo of the time schedule at the bus stop before you head out - there are not that many buses each day. Temple entrance fee: ¥400 is well worth it. Toilets are available at the entrance to the garden to the left of the ticket booth.
