Classic Film & TV Locations: 12 Days in Japan

🗓 Day by day

1. Shinjuku & Shibuya – Lost in Translation

   Start in Shinjuku, home to the Park Hyatt Tokyo. The actual hotel where Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson's characters meet in Lost in Translation. Ride the elevator to the New York Bar on the 52nd floor for the same skyline view from the film, then walk the neon-lit stretch of Yasukuni Dori toward Kabukicho, where Bob Harris first gazes out at Tokyo from his taxi window. In the afternoon, head south to Shibuya Crossing, the "scramble" intersection that appears throughout the movie, still just as chaotic today. Round out the evening with karaoke in one of the Shibuya branches of Karaoke-Kan, the same chain where Bob and Charlotte sing their hearts out.

2. Minato – The Wolverine & Kill Bill

   Begin at Zojoji Temple in Minato, where Hugh Jackman's Wolverine fights off attackers with Tokyo Tower looming in the background. One of the most striking real-location shots in the film. From there, make your way to Nishi-Azabu for lunch or dinner at Gonpachi, the restaurant whose two-story wooden interior directly inspired the House of Blue Leaves set built for Kill Bill Vol. 1; look for the memorabilia case near the entrance. Spend the rest of the day wandering Roppongi and the Rainbow Bridge waterfront, another Kill Bill-adjacent backdrop.

3. Free day

   A slower day to catch your breath before heading out of Tokyo. Options include a half-day trip to Kamakura (seaside setting of Ozu's Tokyo Story) or simply revisiting a favorite Tokyo neighborhood at a relaxed pace

4. Atami – Seven Samurai & Tokyo Story

   Take the shinkansen from Tokyo to Atami, the hot-spring coastal town that doubles as the destination Ozu's elderly couple visits in Tokyo Story, and the closest access point to Kurosawa's Seven Samurai filming grounds in the nearby Tagata district of the Izu Peninsula. Check into a ryokan and spend the afternoon soaking in an onsen — a fitting, unhurried counterpoint to the film's battle scenes shot in these hills.

5. Izu Peninsula – Seven Samurai countryside

   Spend the day exploring the Izu Peninsula's coastline and countryside at an easy pace. This is the landscape Kurosawa returned to again and again; while the farming village itself was a built set, the surrounding hills, rivers, and coastal scenery are unchanged and worth a slow half-day drive or local bus loop.

6. Arrival in Kyoto

   Travel from Atami to Kyoto by shinkansen, retracing part of Charlotte's solo trip in Lost in Translation (the film has her pass Mt. Fuji and Atami along this same line, if in the opposite direction). Use the rest of the day to settle in and take a relaxed evening walk through Gion.

7. Eastern Kyoto – Lost in Translation & Memoirs of a Geisha

   Visit Nanzenji Temple and the Heian Shrine, the quiet stop Charlotte makes in Lost in Translation. You can follow her exact route from Higashiyama Station. Then head to Kiyomizu-dera, where the wooden veranda overlooking the city appears in Memoirs of a Geisha as Sayuri reflects on her path as a geisha.

8. Fushimi & Arashiyama – Memoirs of a Geisha & The Last Samurai

   Spend the morning at Fushimi Inari Taisha, walking the thousands of red torii gates featured in Sayuri's famous run through the tunnel in Memoirs of a Geisha, the same gates also mark a turning point for Tom Cruise's character in The Last Samurai. In the afternoon, take a slower walk through the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, another quiet backdrop from Memoirs of a Geisha.

9. Nijo Castle & central Kyoto

   Visit Nijo Castle, the real 17th-century fortress that inspired the dream-within-a-dream castle glimpsed in Inception's opening sequence. Spend the rest of the day at your own pace in central Kyoto. This is a good day to leave open for shopping, a tea ceremony, or simply revisiting a favorite temple.

10. Himeji Castle & Engyoji Temple – Kagemusha, Ran, The Last Samurai

    Day-trip to Himeji Castle, the "White Heron Castle" that appears in Kurosawa's Kagemusha and Ran, as well as in the Bond film You Only Live Twice and The Last Samurai. In the afternoon, take the ropeway up Mt. Shosha to Engyoji Temple, where Tom Cruise and Ken Watanabe's characters meet in The Last Samurai. The three halls of Mitsu-no-Do are instantly recognizable from the film. Note: This is possible as a day trip from either Kyoto or Osaka. But an overnight stay is recommended for those who want a more slower paced day in Himeji.