Kanagawa: Kamakura's Great Buddha and Hakone's Onsen

Kamakura, about an hour from Tokyo, has a large bronze Great Buddha (Kotoku-in) you can view up close and, for a small fee, enter the hollow interior of — plus dozens of temples and shrines scattered through the surrounding hills, and a genuine beach town feel near the coast. It's a popular weekend trip for Tokyoites too, so weekends and holidays mean real crowds around the main sights and the Enoshima Electric Railway.

Hakone is a mountain onsen resort area built around Lake Ashi, with a scenic cable car and ropeway route, sulfur vents at Owakudani, and — on clear days only — views of Mount Fuji from the lake or ropeway. A Hakone Free Pass covers most of the local transport loop, but Fuji visibility depends entirely on weather, so don't build a trip around guaranteed views.

Yokohama, Japan's second-largest city, has the country's largest Chinatown along with a modern waterfront area (Minato Mirai) — an easy add-on if you're already routing through Kamakura or want a change of pace from more traditional sightseeing.