Yokohama

Yokohama is the capital of Kanagawa Prefecture, with 3.7 million people in 2023, which makes it Japan's second largest city by population and area and the country's most populous municipality. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kanto region, and it is the economic and commercial hub of Greater Tokyo along the Keihin industrial belt. The Port of Yokohama opened on 2 June 1859, one of the harbours that ended Japan's seclusion, and the city grew fast around it. Spread over 437 square kilometres at 5 metres above sea level, it holds about 8,500 people per square kilometre, one of the highest densities in Japan.

Yokohama Chinatown is the largest in Japan, bigger than those of Kobe and Nagasaki, with roughly 250 Chinese-owned or themed shops and restaurants and a resident population of about 3,000 to 4,000. It formed after Chinese immigrants arrived when the port opened in 1859, and the Mazu Miao temple was built in 2006 for the district's 150th anniversary. The other half of a Yokohama day is the water: Minato Mirai 21 with the Cosmo Clock 21, which was the tallest Ferris wheel in the world when it opened in 1989, Yamashita Park, laid out on rubble from the 1923 earthquake and opened in 1930, Osanbashi Pier and the Yokohama Marine Tower.

Yokohama sits south of Tokyo on the same side of the capital as Haneda, so it works either as a half day out of Tokyo or as a quieter base if your flights use Haneda. We do not list lines or fares: check the route in a transit app before you set off, and check the last train home as well, because that is the part people misjudge. The Minatomirai line, opened on 1 February 2004, put Motomachi-Chukagai station at the door of Chinatown. A Suica or Pasmo IC card pays for trains, subways and buses nationwide, and Suica works on iPhone through Apple Wallet, so you can set it up before you fly.

Yokohama shares the Kanto calendar. The rainy season runs roughly 7 June to 20 July in the Kanto and Kansai regions, August is the hottest month, and the UK Foreign Office puts typhoons between June and December, peaking from July to September. Cherry blossom and autumn colour both move with the weather from year to year, so check the season's forecast before you fix your dates. Golden Week from 29 April to 5 May, Obon in mid-August and New Year fill trains and hotels everywhere.

Goodbars sells a Japan eSIM you install at home and switch on when you land; it runs on NTT docomo, Japan's largest mobile network by mobile contracts, and our Japan coverage page shows where it reaches and what independent speed tests measure. Renting a pocket Wi-Fi is a long-standing habit for visitors to Japan too, and it suits a group that moves together all day.