Chiba (prefecture)

Chiba Prefecture (千葉県 Chiba-Ken) is located directly east of Tokyo, and bordered by Ibaraki Prefecture to the north. A large part of the prefecture is made up of the Bōsō Peninsula (房総半島 Bōsō-hantō), which shields Tokyo bay from the Pacific Ocean.

Much of the western/northwestern part of Chiba is relatively uninspired urbanity and bedtowns for Tokyo, but once you get past the city and watch the sharp descent into rural countryside of sprawling rice fields, rolling hills, and striking coastlines, you will realize why Chiba has been variously called "Edo's Breadbasket" and "Tokyo's Secret Backyard".

The area is relatively poorly known, even among Japanese people, but is nonetheless a great place to get away from Tokyo and explore a Japan a bit off the beaten track.

Many parts of Chiba can be visited on a day trip from Tokyo. The Pacific coast is dotted with many traditional fishing villages, and young surfers from Tokyo are attracted by the waves. The inner coast is less picturesque, but the cliffs of Nokogiriyama are a popular tourist attraction.

Visit Chiba is the prefecture's official multilingual guide site.

• 35.607278140.1063611 Chiba — eponymous capital of the prefecture, which doesn't bear much resemblance to William Gibson's depictions but has a few points of interest.
• 35.864162140.0282252 Abiko - This city is a bedroom community. Transportation to Tokyo is convenient.
• 35.734639140.8267783 Choshi — noted for its dramatic sea coast on the Pacific Ocean,and its lighthouse.
• 35.694556139.9825564 Funabashi — a regional commercial center and a bedroom community for nearby Chiba and Tokyo.
• 35.721917139.9310565 Ichikawa — a residential city that is home to a wild bird observatory and a zoological & botanical garden.
• 35.867583139.975756 Kashiwa — a suburban shopping haven.
• 35.897722140.4991947 Katori — home of famous Katori-Jingu Shrine, the historic streets of Sawara, and the bi-annual Sawara Matsuri festival.
• 35.152194140.3208338 Katsuura — an old fishing town on the southwestern pacific Boso ("Sotobo") coast. Famous for its Katsuura Hinamatsuri Doll Festival and katsuo tuna catch.
• 35.375972139.9168339 Kisarazu — connected by the Tokyo Bay Aqualine bridge-tunnel to Kawasaki, it hosts a number of factory outlet shopping malls.
• 35.787639139.90316710 Matsudo — a city in northwestern Chiba, bordering Edo River and Tokyo. Residence of the Tokugawa Akitake, the beloved brother of Japan's last shogun.
• 35.681278140.02663911 Narashino — hometo the Yatsu-higata tidal flat, a protected wetlands for migratory birds.
• 35.776667140.31833312 Narita — a small city rich in historical treasures that is often overshadowed by its huge airport. Home to Narita-san Shinshouji Temple and Boso-no-Mura.
• 35.955083139.87480613 Noda — a bedroom city for Tokyo and Chiba, home to the Kikkoman soy sauce empire.
• 35.1915140.34880614 Onjuku — a small town that is a popular spot with surfers and holiday beachgoers.
• 35.602917140.41352815 Sanmu — a small town on the Pacific coast famous for strawberries and surfing.
• 35.723472140.22394416 Sakura — a small city with important museums, historical houses and a famous tulip festival
• 35.653139139.90217 Urayasu — home to Tokyo Disney Resort.
• 35.665889140.31794418 Yachimata — a small city next to Chiba City that is famous for its production of peanuts.

• 35.693028140.4142781 Shibayama — town with a museum of Aeronautical Science.
• 35.338611140.1472222 Boso Peninsula — the tip at the south of Chiba, a great area to relax and enjoy the beach.
• 35.629722139.8827783 Tokyo Disney Resort — the first "Magic Kingdom" park built outside the U.S., and Tokyo DisneySea, an ocean-themed park exclusive to Japan.

While JR trains run the entire coast of Chiba, the inner coast is just a 30-minute ferry ride from Kurihama, south of Yokohama. 1997 saw the completion of the Tokyo Wan Aqua Line bridge and tunnel, which burrows under and rises across Tokyo Bay between Kisarazu (Chiba prefecture) and Kawasaki (on the Tokyo side). The tunnel is not economical at ¥4000 for a passenger car, unless you have an ETC card which brings the price down to ¥1500. You can take highway buses through the tunnel and over the bridge from Tokyo Station, Shinagawa, Haneda Airport, Kawasaki and Yokohama stations for up to ¥1500 one way to Kisarazu.

The center of the JR network in Chiba is, unsurprisingly, JR Chiba Station. But be careful when taking trains to the Boso Peninsula, as there are two different ways trains can get to Awa-Kamogawa, the final stop. The Uchibō Line (内房線), or "Inner Boso Line", follows the western coast (Tokyo Bay side) through Kisarazu, while the Sotobō or "Outer Boso" Line (外房線) cuts across the peninsula and then goes down the east coast (Pacific Ocean side) via Katsuura. Additionally, trains to Choshi can turn north at Sakura to go via Narita (the Narita Line), or go south via Naruto along the Sobu Main Line.

To summarize all that, here are the platforms to take at Chiba station:

• Nokogiriyama on the Boso Peninsula is a group of Buddhist temples cut into sheer cliffs. A rope-way gondola will take you up to the top, and on a clear day you'll have a spectacular 180-degree panorama spanning Chiba, Tokyo, and Yokohama to the north, Mount Fuji to the west, and Izu Oshima and Niijima to the south. From the peak, paths descend inland through the woods down to Nihonji (日本寺). The temple, built in 725 CE, has a stone Buddha statue that, at a total height of 31.05 meters, is in fact one of the largest Buddha statues in Japan.

• Kujukuri Beach near Sanmu, is, for many travelers, their first glimpse of Japan: it's the long coastline you see from the plane coming in over the Pacific into Narita. The coast is in fact around 60 km in length. There are numerous small towns along the coast, from Iioka on the north to Ichinomiya on the south.

The lower Boso peninsula has several artificial attractions that are popular for family excursions but probably of limited appeal to other travelers:

• Kamogawa Sea World is a marine park on the Boso Peninsula.
• Mother Farm on the Boso Peninsula is a farm where kids can pet cows, alpacas and other animals.
• Tokyo German Village east of Kisarazu has reconstructed half-timbered houses and bratwurst meals. Because why not?

Also, don't miss:

• Narita Shinshouji Temple and surrounding traditional shopping streets
• National Museum of Japanese History in Sakura
• Tokyo Disney Resort

• Surfing, Pacific coast of Chiba (Uchibo and Sotobo Lines/Car). Chiba is known as one of the more consistent areas for surfing in Japan. World Tour contests have been held at Katsuura and other areas of Kujyukuri coast. If traveling by train, one of the more convenient stops is Kamogawa. The beach is just minutes from the station, with surf shops, and plenty of hotels. If by car, explore the coast. Typhoon season is best. 

• Fresh fish, e.g. at Banya (fisherman's resthouse on the beach), or in the local specialties Namerou (raw blue-back fish minced with miso) and Oraga-don (seafood on rice).
• Peanuts
• Two cities in Chiba prefecture are called City of Soy sauce: Noda (Kikkoman, Kinoene, etc.), and Choshi (Yamasa, Higeta, etc.)

• Ibaraki Prefecture
• Saitama Prefecture
• Tokyo
• Kanagawa Prefecture