Tsukuba

Tsukuba (つくば) is in Ibaraki, to the north of Tokyo, Japan.

Culture and History

Tsukuba is a modern city built around the University of Tsukuba — one of the most respected public universities in Japan and home to two Nobel Prize winners and a cyclotron. The city is also located at the foot of Mount Tsukuba which offers scenic views, hiking, and lifts. The surrounding area is mostly agricultural.

Travel to Tsukuba - Visa Requirements

The Tsukuba Express Line connect Tsukuba to Akihabara in downtown Tokyo in about 45 minutes. Tsukuba Center in downtown is a bus hub which provides transporation to Tokyo and other areas.

Tours and Getting around Tsukuba

Tsukuba is extremely accessible and well laid-out. The infrastructure consists of the Higashi-Ōdori on the east and the Nishi-Ōdori on the west, both major roadways running on either side of the university. The campus itself is connected to downtown via a system of bicycle paths and bridges, offering easy transit for university students.

Tsukuba tourist attractions and sightseeing

• Tsukuba International Forum Your source of Information about Tsukuba
• Tsukuba Space Center, ☎ +81-29-868-2023, [1]. 10am-5pm. JAXA research center with free exhibits and guided tours five times daily. Facility includes exhibits on rockets, satellites, and Japan's involvement with the International Space Station.Free.  

Tsukuba city tours

Tsukuba's main attraction for tourists is Mount Tsukuba, a double-peaked mountain with a lot of history. A well-marked "tour bus" drives from the Tsukuba Express Train Station to Tsukuba Shrine for 700 yen each way.

• Tsukuba Shrine- Notable for a huge bell and Nikko-style carvings, this shrine lies at the foot of the hiking path/cable car.
• Ascend Mount Tsukuba- There are several hiking paths up the mountain, the most direct of which will get you to the top in about an hour. However, the longest trail offers the most cultural sights, such as a large stone Buddha. The not so fit can take the cable car to the top for 500 yen.
• Tsukuba Summit- The terminus of the cable car features several restaurants, souvenir stores, and snack shops. The true summit of Nantai-san is a short additional hike. The twin summit of Nyotai-san boasts a dramatic granite formation, a small shrine, and the famous toad-shaped rock, Gama-ishi.

Tsukuba souvenirs and shopping

Tsukuba has many places for shopping such as LALA GARDEN, Q't, SEIBU, and so on. Lots of families or couples go there every weekend. Moreover, these shopping centers are large comparatively, so you can kill time when you don't have things to do.

Tsukuba Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

Ton-Q is a great place to enjoy amazing tonkatsu and a bottle of beer. It is near the city center and the layout will remind you of a Denny's in the U.S.A.

Tsukuba nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs

Tsukuba cheap and luxurious hotels, youth hostels and lodging

Get out

This page was last edited by Jesse Miers. Based on work by D. Guillaume, Jose Ramos and Jani Patokallio, Wikitravel user(s) W66LinkBot and Mnd and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. - Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license