Kanagawa, Japan: Towns to Explore on Foot

Kanagawa is a prefecture where historic capitals, international ports, mountain landscapes and coastal cities meet. The best towns to visit in Kanagawa include Kamakura, Hakone and Yokohama, each offering a different view of the region. Neywo has free audio guides for three cities in Kanagawa, covering 175 narrated places across 13 walking tours.

A Kanagawa travel guide: what to see and do

Kanagawa lies between Tokyo, Mount Fuji’s foothills, Sagami Bay and Tokyo Bay. The Miura Peninsula divides the two bays, while the Tanzawa Mountain Range and Mount Hakone rise in the west. The landscape changes from dense urban districts to volcanic terrain, peninsula shores, hills and mountain country.

Explore Kamakura, the medieval political centre

Kamakura was the effective capital of Japan during the medieval Kamakura period and the seat of the Kamakura shogunate. Its historic importance remains central to the prefecture’s identity.

Today, Kamakura is known for places such as Kōtoku-in Temple, Meigetsu-in, Tatsumi Shrine and Amanawa Shinmei Shrine. Neywo’s Kamakura guide includes 44 narrated places, making it one of the richest ways to discover the city’s religious sites and historical atmosphere.

For another perspective on Japan, Kamakura is a particularly useful stop: its story connects the country’s medieval political power with the coastal setting of present-day Kanagawa.

Discover Yokohama and its international port

Yokohama is Kanagawa’s capital and largest city. Its deep-water port on Tokyo Bay opened to foreign traders in 1859 and grew into Japan’s largest trading port. The city’s history is closely tied to the moment when Kanagawa became one of Japan’s main points of contact with the wider world.

That transformation followed Commodore Matthew Perry’s landing in the 1850s and the Convention of Kanagawa, which forced Japanese ports open to the United States. The port helped turn Yokohama into a major commercial centre, a role it still holds today as an international container hub.

Yokohama’s narrated places include Chōshūkaku, カトリック山手教会 聖堂, Sōji-ji Temple and Yokohama Cosmo World. With 111 places in the Neywo guide, the city offers the broadest selection of narrated stops in Kanagawa.

Visit Hakone and Lake Ashi

In western Kanagawa, the land rises towards Mount Hakone and the Tanzawa Mountain Range. Around 3,000 years ago, a volcanic explosion at Mount Hakone created Lake Ashi, adding volcanic landscapes and mountain scenery to the prefecture’s varied geography.

Hakone’s places on Neywo include the Hakone Ekiden Museum, Hakone Open-Air Museum, Hakone Museum of Art and Pola Museum of Art. The guide covers 20 narrated places, linking the area’s natural setting with its museums and cultural attractions.

See the maritime character of Yokosuka

Yokosuka developed as a naval port after Yokohama became an international trading centre. Today, it serves as the headquarters for the United States Seventh Fleet and the fleet operations of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Its history adds another layer to Kanagawa’s relationship with the sea. The prefecture is not only a destination for historic towns and mountain scenery: its bays and ports have also shaped Japan’s international and military connections.

Look beyond the largest cities

Kanagawa is closely connected to Tokyo through railways, roads and other transport links, but it is not simply a suburban extension of the capital. Kawasaki, Sagamihara and Fujisawa are among its other major cities, while the Tama Hills and the Miura Peninsula create quieter, rolling landscapes beyond the main urban centres.

The prefecture’s position on the southeastern edge of the Kantō Plain explains much of its variety. The urban edge of Greater Tokyo sits alongside Sagami Bay, Tokyo Bay, peninsula coastlines, volcanic country and mountain ranges.

Experience local festivals

Festivals show how different communities across Kanagawa have developed their own traditions and annual rhythms. Spring includes the Kamakura Festival and the Odawara Hōjō Godai Festival. Yokohama celebrates its port anniversary in June.

July brings several major events: the Chigasaki Hamaori Festival, the Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival and the Yugawara Kifune Festival. Kanagawa also hosts a firework event along the Tama River. Together, these celebrations connect cities and communities including Yokohama, Kamakura, Odawara, Hiratsuka, Chigasaki and Yugawara.

Explore Kanagawa with Neywo’s free audio guide

Neywo covers three cities in Kanagawa: Hakone, Kamakura and Yokohama. Across them, the app offers 13 walking tours and 175 narrated places. Narration is available in 11 languages.

The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Download Neywo and explore Kanagawa while the city, coast, temples, museums and mountain landscapes unfold around you.