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7 Popular Things To Do In Kobe, Japan
Kobe, located in the Kansai region, is Japan’s 7th largest city with a population around 1.5 million. It’s about a 20-30 minute train ride from Osaka and makes for a perfect day trip if you’re using Osaka as a hub for the surrounding area. There’s plenty to see and do in this lovely port city!
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7 Popular Things To Do In Kobe, Japan:
Eat Kobe Beef
As the saying goes “When In Rome..” or perhaps the more suitable, “When in Kobe..” in this instance. Kobe beef is a worldwide delicacy renowned for its flavor, tenderness, and fatty, well-marbled texture. As the name implies, Kobe beef is cultivated from Japanese Black cattle which is raised in the Hyogo Prefecture region of Japan, near Kobe. It’s considered the highest quality beef that Japanese cattle can produce and is must try! There’s various cuts of this and obviously the higher the price the better the cut and quality. So the experience can certainly vary upon how much you’re willing to spend.
I went the “cheap” route at a Kobe beef restaurant ($36.14 USD) for six pieces of Kobe beef and the meat was just alright. Some pieces melted in my mouth, while others were pretty chewy. You get what you pay for. On the other hand, I got a Kobe beef bowl in Himeji and the Kobe beef was AMAZING.
Regardless, Kobe beef is an EXPERIENCE. It’s one of the most popular things to do in Kobe and is something you’ll definitely want to try (just do some better research than myself to find a proper Kobe beef restaurant!).
Visit Kobe’s Chinatown
One of the most popular things to do in Kobe is taking a visit to its Chinatown. This is one of the largest Chinatown’s in all of Japan. This is a small area – 270 meters east to west and 110 meters north to south – but is jam packed with over 100 shops, food stalls, and restaurants.
A lot of the food stalls, as you’ll notice, sell a lot of the same types of food items. There are some unique food items though. Some restaurants are quite popular with massive lines.
Needless to say, you don’t need to walk to far to find some tasty, cheap food or drinks. Be sure to come with a big appetite, you’ll certainly need it here!
Explore The Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens
One of the biggest attractions and things to do in Kobe is taking a visit to the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens. Located on Mt. Rokko above Kobe, the best way to access Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens is via the Kobe Nunobiki Ropeway. The ropeway ride takes about 10 minutes and provide a great view of Kobe on the way up.
A round trip on the ropeway which also provides access to the garden, will set you back 2000 yen ($12.43 USD), a one-way ticket is 1400 yen, ($8.70 USD).
Once you get to the actual garden area, it opens up with a large, open view plaza that includes the German castle themed rest house. This building has some souvenir shops and a shop selling food and drinks. The open concourse area can house vendor tents selling seasonal boutique items while provide an abundance of bench seating.
There’s also a frangrance museum next to the rest house. This museum has a huge array of unique, natural smelling perfumes and oils that can be purchased and is well worth a walk through.
It’s a nice walk down the mountain with a paved, windy pathway that takes you through multiple types of herb and flower gardens.
This pathway also leads you to the glasshouse which you can walkthrough and holds a cafe / lounge on the second floor, a herbal area where you can create your own household friendly scents and the “statue of love”
You can easily spend a few hours in total, at The Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens which is why it’s one of hte most popular things to do in Kobe. It’s a nice change of pace from the regular tourist attractions and is a great way to walk off all that food from the Kobe Chinatown!
Visit The Many Attractions At Meriken Park
Meriken Park is one of the most popular things to do in Kobe due to the abundance of attractions within it. A large, wide open park, home to some impressive contemporary architecture, and a spacious lawn, Meriken Park is great place to enjoy some outdoor sights all within walking distance to one another.
It’s also located right on the waters of the port and is a short walk from Harborland, which is major shopping area in Kobe.
Kobe Port Tower
Kobe Port Tower is one of the attractions located within Meriken Park. Standing at 354 ft tall, the tower has multiple observations decks as well as an open air rooftop deck and cafe.
Port of Kobe Earthquake Memorial Park
The Port Of Kobe Earthquake Memorial Park is a small memorial for the victims who lost their lives in the port during the 1995 Kobe earthquake. Located in Meriken Park, there’s a small section of the waterfront area that was left unrepaired as a part of the memorial. It’s an opportunity for visitors to catch a small glimpse of the destructive power of the earthquake. It’s a somber area, but interesting nonetheless.
BE KOBE Sign
One of the most popular things to do in Kobe is taking a photo with the BE KOBE sign. The sign was built to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1995 earthquake. City Hall had this sign created to instill a sense of civic pride in the citizens of Kobe. If visiting the area at night, the sign is illuminated by colored lights on the base of the sign.
Unrelated, if you’re a big Kobe Bryant fan like myself, the sign has a different type of significance and is pretty special to see.
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Exploring Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens: A Hidden Gem in Japan
One of the biggest attractions in Kobe is the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens. With over 75,000 herbs and flowers spread across 12 gardens, the premises contains a fragrance museum, gift shops, a restaurant and cafe, and other exhibits. A ropeway takes you up to the garden and then a long winding trail takes you through the gardens until you reach a ropeway station that takes you back down the mountain, if you choose.
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The Kobe Nunobiki Ropeway
Located on Mt. Rokko above Kobe, the best way to access Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens is via the Kobe Nunobiki Ropeway. A round trip which also provides access to the garden, will set you back 2000 yen ($12.43 USD), a one-way ticket is 1400 yen, ($8.70 USD).
The ride up takes about 10 minutes and provides some great views of the city, ending at the top station. I’m sure even better if it wasn’t a little drizzly on the day I went!
Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden View Plaza
Once you exit the station it opens up to what is called the rest house. This building is designed after an old German castle and includes souvenir shops and snacks and refreshments. The Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens view plaza is also here which offers seating where you can enjoy your snacks amongst the beauty of the rest house and garden.
I’m not sure if they alway have little boutique tents up throughout the year, but during Christmas time they had tables set up selling ornaments and other Christmas decorations / trinkets.
Honey Dew is a part of the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens view plaza and you can pick up some food and drinks here. I had just come from Kobe’s Chinatown so wasn’t very hungry but still got a little snack. I got a honey chai (600 yen, $3.73 USD) and honey comb soft ice cream (800 yen, $4.98 USD). They give you some extra honey you can drizzle over the soft serve which was great!
Also, at the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens view plaza is the rose garden which is home to over 60 different types of roses and the fragrance museum / concert hall. The fragrance museum has a huge array of unique, natural smelling perfumes and oils that can be purchased. It’s fun to peruse and smell the various fragrances they have concocted in this little museum!
The concert hall is located upstairs. It’s basically a medium-sized room that looked like it could seat 100+ people with a small stage. When I was there there was a pianist that was performing. There’s an admission fee to see the performers here. I had wandered upstairs exploring and didn’t actually attend the show but you could still hear the music which was nice.
The view plaza also offers a great panoramic view of the city, floating above the tree top strewn horizon, pretty cool.
The Walk Through Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden
Something that is really cool about this experience is the way the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden is designed. The paved, winding paths take you through multiple types of herb and flower gardens. This path and how it interweaves throughout these numerous gardens is aesthetically pleasing. I went in the winter time and it found it to be quite peaceful and pleasing but can only imagine what this little journey would like when everything is in full bloom.
Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden Glasshouse
This pathway eventually takes you down towards the glasshouse.
The glasshouse is quite large. It’s full of lush plant life within, complete with a little stream running through it. There’s also a cafe / lounge on the second floor, a herbal area where you can create your own household friendly scents, the “statue of love”, and even an herbal footbath located outside on the back of the glasshouse.
The End Of The Journey
Towards the end of walk back down the mountain there’s a great little recreation area. This wide open lawn area includes a slew of hammocks where you can literally kick your feet up and relax a bit while enjoying a nice view of Kobe while watching ropeway carts zooming up the mountain.
Overall, Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens is a really nice, peaceful place to come and visit if you’re in Kobe. The unique architecture of its rest house and the fantastic walk through the gardens is a nice change of pace from other touristy types of attractions. I highly recommend visiting if in Kobe!
