The sights
Minato Mirai waterfront
The city’s modern face: the 296-metre Landmark Tower with its Sky Garden observatory on the 69th floor, the sail-shaped InterContinental hotel, the Cosmo Clock 21 Ferris wheel and a preserved sailing ship in a stone dock. A cable gondola, the Yokohama Air Cabin, glides across the water from Sakuragicho Station.
ℹ️ Free to walk; the observatory, Ferris wheel and gondola each cost roughly ¥1,000. Best at dusk. Minatomirai or Sakuragicho stations. Allow 1.5–2 hours.
Yokohama Chinatown
The largest Chinatown in Japan and one of the largest in the world: some 500 restaurants and shops in a tight grid entered through ten ornate gates, with the colourful Kanteibyo and Masobyo temples at its heart.
ℹ️ Always open; most restaurants trade from about 11:00 to 21:00 or later. Free. Motomachi-Chukagai or Ishikawacho stations. Allow 1.5 hours, longer with a meal.
Red Brick Warehouse
Two customs warehouses of 1911 and 1913, converted into shops, restaurants and event halls on a pier with open views of the harbour. The plaza between them hosts seasonal events, including a Christmas market and an ice rink.
ℹ️ Open about 10:00 or 11:00 to 20:00 or later; free entry. 15 minutes’ walk from Minatomirai or Bashamichi stations. Allow 1 hour.
Yamashita Park & Hikawa Maru
A seafront park opened in 1930 on rubble from the Great Kanto Earthquake, with rose gardens and benches facing the port. Moored alongside is the Hikawa Maru, a 1930 ocean liner that sailed to Seattle and is now a museum ship with Art Deco cabins.
ℹ️ Park free and always open. Ship usually open 10:00–17:00, closed Mondays; admission a few hundred yen. Five minutes from Motomachi-Chukagai Station. Allow 1 hour.
Sankeien Garden
A 17.5-hectare garden laid out by a silk merchant and opened in 1906, with ponds, streams and seventeen historic buildings brought from Kyoto, Kamakura and elsewhere — among them a three-storey pagoda more than 500 years old.
ℹ️ Usually open 9:00–17:00; admission around ¥900. About 35 minutes by bus from Yokohama Station or 10 minutes by bus from Negishi Station. Allow 1.5–2 hours.
Cup Noodles Museum
A playful museum devoted to Momofuku Ando, inventor of instant ramen. The highlight is the My Cup Noodles Factory, where you decorate a cup and choose the soup and toppings; there is also a hands-on chicken-ramen kitchen and a noodle food court.
ℹ️ Usually open 10:00–18:00, closed Tuesdays. Admission around ¥500; workshops cost extra and use timed tickets. Eight minutes’ walk from Minatomirai Station. Allow 1.5–2 hours.
