A week in Chiba, Japan – A countryside alternative to a Tokyo itinerary

We spent a relaxing week in Japan with our young children, exploring the Chiba prefecture (where Narita Airport is!) and without even heading into Tokyo. This article is for you if you are:

• Keen to add a rural leg to your Tokyo / Japan trip
• Looking for an alternative Japan destination that’s still accessible without long drives or train rides
• Adventurous and desire to explore slow, local tourism in Japan

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Cheap flights from Singapore to Tokyo Narita

When Zipair released their tickets for Singapore to Narita at the end of 2023, we quickly snapped up a great deal for return flights for the whole family (2 adults, a 4 year old and a 2 year old) at USD $1.1k. All that was left to do was to plan a Japan itinerary.

If you’re not flying into Narita Airport, consider a road trip in Kyushu!

The Zipair flying experience

Zipair is a low cost carrier that is a subsidiary of Japan Airlines, which flies Boeing 787 Dreamliners from Narita International Airport to select destinations around the world, including Singapore. Being a low cost carrier, we did not expect many frills on the flight. The timings were also in the night time, so we did not order any meals for in-flight service. Baggage was separately chargeable, and we added 30kg for the outbound leg, and 60kg for the return. Spoiler alert: we returned with only 28kg of check in luggage.

There are several unique features of Zipair versus other low cost carriers, particularly in relation to travel with kids. Usually for international travel in economy class, infants 0-2 years travel for 10% of the full adult fare, and kids under 12 years travel for some portion (usually 75%) of full adult fare. Infants are not provided a seat and must usually be carried in arms by an adult, or put in a bassinet where one is made available. On Zipair, children under 6 travel for cheaper fares, and all children, even babies, get their own seat. For babies under 1, they even provide a baby seat installed onto the airplane seat. Accompanying adult passengers also get free seat selection to sit next to the child. We managed to get front row seats next to our kids because of this! Read more on Zipair’s website here.

Tokyo with kids?

Having visited Tokyo a number of times, we weren’t keen to go back with young kids in tow. Tokyo is an amazing city, but it’s a typical city — hectic, stressful, overstimulating — and not our idea of a relaxing family holiday. We had the idea to rent a car from Narita Airport and explore a more rural side of Japan.

But where to?

Planning an alternative to Tokyo itinerary

One of our friends suggested we explore the Chiba prefecture, which is where Narita Airport (and Tokyo Disneyland) are located. A quick Google search for “Chiba things to do” came up with… well, not much. Many hours of research later, and with much help from Google translate, we started to put together a rough plan for exploring this prefecture which sees a large number of foreigners pass through Narita, but not really anywhere else.

Our priorities were to spend time together, go slow, have lots of time in nature and participate in local activities. This is also how we travel on a budget, so we can travel often without busting the bank!

This trip was one of the most “adventurous” ones we’ve done so far, in that most things we booked were only available in Japanese, and most people we interacted with had limited to no English language ability (we used plenty of Google translate). It was humbling to be impaired by our lack of Japanese language ability, and to have to rely on the goodwill of locals and non-verbal communication to find our way around.

Car rental woes – please read if you intend to drive!

On a previous trip to Jeju, we had run into some car rental woes and thought we had checked and double-checked that everything was in place before this trip. But, after presenting Ben’s passport and International Driving Permit (IDP) at the counter of the car rental company, the lady took the IDP and said “We cannot accept this one.” What?!

We had just used this exact IDP to rent a car on our self-drive trip in Taiwan, and had used the previous year’s IDP (of the same size) in Kyushu, Japan the year before.

Nippon Rent-A-Car had just implemented new rules in November 2023, stipulating specific measurements that the IDP must be of before they can accept it. Even though the lady at the counter recognised that the IDP we had was what they used to previously accept, and it was issued by the right authorities in Singapore, they refused to rent us the car we had reserved. It was lunchtime, the kids were hungry; it was frustrating to say the least.

We quickly started to call other car rental companies located at the airport to see if anyone could rent us a car on the spot. A few calls and rejections later, Nissan Rent-A-Car said they had a vehicle available that we could rent for our dates. A shuttle ride back to the airport, and another to the new rental company, and we finally got into a car. We ended up with a Nissan Kicks, a rather compact crossover that fit our single large suitcase and would not have fit another. In the end, this worked out fine as the rural roads were narrow and the compact car was easier to manoeuvre on those tricky roads.

The Automobile Association of Singapore is aware of the issue, and has started to issue 1 for 1 replacements for those with the “wrong” IDP size travelling to Japan. We contacted them via their WhatsApp hotline, and they did offer to courier the new IDP to us in Japan, but this would have taken 2 days and derailed our plans.

In terms of navigation, Google maps works well in Japan, but we chose to use the in-car GPS system as it provided lots of detail of the roads (like which lane to stay on to get to the right exit) and was in English. The only downside was that it was hard to search for places and we had to input the addresses manually or look for nearby places of interest as landmarks, and scroll around the map to find our destination.

If you’re planning a road trip, do check out our ultimate road trip essentials!

Glamping at The Farm; Exploring Mother Farm

Our first stop was to Mother Farm, a 1.5 hour drive from Narita Airport. A few days earlier, we had received an email letting us know that the glamping experience might be cancelled because of forecasted high winds on our check-in date. Thankfully, the weather changed and the winds were still within a safe level for the glamping to continue. Otherwise, we’d have been left without accommodation for our first night in Japan! If you’re intending to booking a glamping experience as well, do take note of this possibility of last minute cancellation.

Mother Farm is one of the largest attractions in Chiba (apart from Tokyo Disneyland), and most visitors spend a day there without staying over. We were attracted to the idea of glamping had looked into several options around Chiba. This one stood out as it included admission to Mother Farm, as well as some special activities for guests. The website is not available in English, and we did everything via Google translate. It’s super popular amongst locals, so book early if you’re keen! They were definitely not used to having foreign guests, and we had to wait for them to find a staff member who could speak some English to walk us through the check-in process.

The experience at Mother Farm and glamping at The Farm (on the same grounds) deserves a post of its own, which will come shortly!

A brief stay in Isumi with mochi making

The Chiba Prefecture is located on the Boso Peninsula, east of Tokyo Bay. Mother Farm is on the Western side of the peninsula, nearer to Tokyo Bay. From there, we drove to the Eastern side, which faces the open Pacific Ocean. This area is one of Japan’s top surfing destinations. We saw so many surfers even though the weather was chilly!

One of the main attractions of Isumi is taking the Isumi railway through the countryside, with views of cherry blossoms or flower fields, depending on the season. Unfortunately, the weather was too cold and rainy during our stay in Isumi and we were unable to visit the railway.

We stayed at a local’s home in a guest house located on the same property as the host’s. The place was decorated in a traditional style, and we felt right at home there. As it was a very cold day, our host had started the wood fire for us, and we later learnt that this was the only source of heating in the home, apart from a small radiator we could turn on temporarily when stepping out of the shower. The bedrooms were not heated and we had thick blankets to keep us warm as we slept on futons on the tatami floor. Coming from a country that is never cold, this was a bit of a surprise to us and it reflected on our ignorance of how inconvenient and uncomfortable a cold temperate climate could be.

Our host and his family offered a range of local activities they could help organise – we chose to do mochi making. They had soaked the rice overnight before our arrival, and when we arrived, we got to work making the mochi the traditional way. This was certainly a fun experience!

In the traditional way of mashing and pounding the mochi in the large wood mortar, making of small portions is not possible. Thus, we had to make a large portion and ate only a small amount of it on the spot (with a whole range of accompaniments!) and the rest we left to harden over the next few days. After it is hardened, we could cut up the mochi and bake it in the toaster oven. This we did later on in our trip!

Kamogawa Sea World

On a wet, windy and cold morning, we decided to visit Kamogawa Sea World, the other large attraction of the Boso Peninsula (other than Mother Farm). The shows and signage are all in Japanese language, with the exception of main signs and titles being in English. Thankfully, we didn’t need much language to observe and enjoy the animals!

While the orca show was certainly impressive, if animal tourism makes you uncomfortable, this place can be skipped. We didn’t see any signs of ill treatment (but then again, how would we know). There were many creatures in each tank, which made it spectacular for viewing but also very crowded.

If not for the bad weather, we’d have spent the time somewhere outdoors instead, like at the scenic walks at Ubara Utopia.

Slow travel in Katsuura – morning market, underwater observatory, beach

For a few nights, we stayed in a lovely traditional home in Katsuura, enjoying sleeping on futons on tatami mats, cooking in the well-equipped kitchen, and playing in the kids’ playroom. The home was a perfect base from which to explore the coastal area.

One of the mornings, we visited the local morning market, which was a very small but quaint stretch of road where the locals came to peddle their wares. Don’t expect anything too much, the offerings were really modest but it was still fun to spend some time walking around and looking at all that was on offer. We tried the warabi mochi, which was slippery and yummy.

Another local attraction in the area is the Katsuura Undersea Observatory. It is a marine observatory 60 metres offshore, and 8 meters underground. Pricing varies depending on the visibility of the day (higher price for higher visibility). Do note that there are many steps and no elevator, so the place is not wheelchair or stroller accessible. We spent quite a lot of time watching the fish and corals sway with the current, and had fun spotting different fish we could recognise.

Being a coastal area, there are many natural wonders in the area to enjoy. We were looking forward to taking a long walk along the Ubara Utopia, but the sun sets so early (it was getting dark at 4pm!) we settled for some time at the Ubara Beach instead. It’s a sleepy little town, devoid of tourists, and we had the whole beach to ourselves for some time, enjoying the waves and watching surfers in the distance. If you’re driving, be mindful that the roads here are extremely narrow, and a compact car is best for getting around.

We also had a quintessential Japanese experience in the middle of the night — being awoken by the building shaking because of an earthquake! Thankfully it was a mild one that passed quickly, but it was a stark reminder of how this country is susceptible to natural disasters due to its location, and how locals have adapted their buildings and lives to prepare for such situations.

Ohara fishing port morning market

This was a real highlight of the trip for us — a very local experience that we’d never had in Japan before despite multiple visits to this country. The fishing port was overflowing with locals out early on a Sunday morning to enjoy the market.

The morning market is held on select Sunday mornings each month. One of our Airbnb hosts had recommended this, and we are so glad to have been in the area on a Sunday morning when it was held! The scheduled dates are updated on their website, available in Japanese only.

The market was full of life, and most stalls sold seafood and related snacks and drinks. There’s also a BBQ area where you can rent a BBQ grill and cook the ingredients you buy from the market to enjoy on the spot. On the morning we visited, the weather was cool and clear, and it was a great way to spend our time. We tried the octopus yakisoba, octopus rice, lobster soup, grilled cuttlefish, amongst the other foods we sampled. All were very fresh and yummy!

Ponpoko Farm – vegetable harvesting experience

After our amazing farmstay experience at Yufu Child Farm the year before, we were keen to experience more of Japan’s farm culture during a different season (it was summer on our last trip, and the end of winter / start of spring on this trip).

We booked a harvesting experience at Ponpoko Farm (website in Japanese), which was another total stab in the dark since the person I was communicating with could not speak English, and there was little information beyond what is on the website and Instagram page.

So, with the kids in boots and armed with the gloves we bought from Daiso (yes kids work gloves are easy to find in Japan), we turned up at the farm at the appointed time, braving the once again narrow roads to get into the farm area. Our host (didn’t get his name) did not speak English, but his enthusiasm was clear and he communicated to us via Google translate on his phone. Shortly after, an expat couple arrived. We found out that they were living and working in Tokyo, and had booked this experience as a weekend activity. They couldn’t speak Japanese either, so the entire group of us were communicating with our host via gestures and the translation app where required.

He provided us with disposable gloves for the adults, but there weren’t any child sized ones available. If you’re going with kids, do stop by a Daiso or 7-11 (they carry Daiso products) and you should be able to pick up child sized gloves for 100 yen. The kids also wore boots. Although the fields were not too muddy at that time, they still managed to get their boots rather dirty from tramping around!

What is available to harvest is season dependent, and we had the opportunity to harvest broccolini, cabbage, some lettuces, some salad leaves, turnips, and radishes. Our host also treated us to roasted sweet potatoes at the end of the experience! The vegetables here are grown organically without the use of any pesticides, and they were super tasty straight from the ground! We cooked some of our loot the next evening at our Airbnb listing, and brought the rest back to Singapore to enjoy.

Naritasan Omotesando and Naritasan Shinsho-ji

Naritasan was the place where we found many other tourists for the first time on our trip. Because of its proximity to Narita International Airport, the temple Naritasan Shinsho-ji and shopping street Naritasan Omotesando are a popular stopover destination for tourists going to or coming from the airport. The temple is reminiscent of the popular Senso-ji at Asakusa in Tokyo, without the crowds. We enjoyed exploring the grounds and the connected gardens.

The shopping street is a quaint place to shop for souvenirs and to try some of the local speciality – unagi (grilled eels).

Sakura City – bamboo grove, samurai houses, sakura street and the National Museum of Japanese History

We woke up one day to find the weather forecast to be rain, which meant our plans to visit the Funabashi Andersen Park (see below) had to be shelved for another day. Reluctant to spend the day in a mall, we searched the internet for nearby indoor activities and came across the National Museum of Japanese History in Sakura City, not too far from where we were.

Since the rain had yet to start, we decided to explore the nearby area which had a bamboo grove and some samurai houses that we could explore. We followed the GPS directions and found ourselves in a narrow road area, with some construction going on and the road blocked off. Thankfully, although we couldn’t understand what the workers were telling us, they let us through and we found ourselves to a carpark near the bamboo grove. There was a lady at a small information booth there, who told us we could park the car as long as we left before evening. We’re not sure if that was the official carpark or not!

In any event, we spent a little time at the bamboo grove before the rains came and we retreated to the car. We had to skip the samurai houses, but attempted to drive to the nearby sakura-lined street only to find that they were not yet in bloom. Oh well! A little morning adventure for us all, while waiting for the museum to open.

We then headed over to the National Museum of Japanese History. The museum blew us away! There are 6 galleries (1 was under renovation) documenting Japan’s history from the ancient times all the way to modern day. The miniature models and information panels were so interesting that we spent a lot of time slowly absorbing everything, despite not being able to read Japanese.

The museum was also very family friendly. We were provided with a free stroller to use around the museum, and there is a family activity room near the end of the galleries where we took part in various activities that provided hands on learning experiences. Time flew by without us realising and it was soon lunch time, and time for us to leave to find food!

Funabashi H C Andersen Park – a true gem

This park was so. much. fun. Not sure why it’s not yet popular amongst foreigners, but it’s affordable, spacious, age-appropriate, and everything you’d want in a park for kids. Funabashi HC Andersen Park was an hour’s drive from where we were staying, but totally worth the trek. If you’re staying in Tokyo, it’s also possible to drive out for a day of fun here!

Admission fees are super reasonable (less than USD10 per adult, cheaper for kids, free for under 4 years), and the additional fees for paid activities were also affordable (100 yen for a pony ride).

There are huge playgrounds and adventure courses, all for free, as well as large expanses of grass for families to lay down picnic mats or pitch tents and spend the day. We had our lunch at the food court area here, which was very convenient. It’s not just for young kids. The activities are definitely suited for older children as well, and the adventure courses are challenging even for adults.

The Children’s Art Museum within the park conducts various craft and cooking classes for kids throughout the day. Due to a lack of time, we didn’t manage to participate in any, but the classes on offer such as candle making, wood toy car making, and traditional weaving, looked like lots of fun.

If you’re travelling around the area with kids, please do give this place a go!

Tips to explore a non-touristy places in Japan

Japanese people are some of the most polite people in the world, and you’re likely to find locals willing to politely listen and help you wherever you go. That said, politeness on the surface doesn’t mean that you aren’t inconveniencing them or taking up their time! It’s important to also express your gratitude for their help, in a culturally appropriate manner (for example, by bowing rather than by offering a handshake). When approaching someone for help, or when trying to order in a restaurant, we usually open by using Google translate to play the Japanese statement “I’m sorry I don’t speak Japanese, please be patient with me”.

It’s also crucial to remain open minded and humble, as we are entering another culture and someone else’s home-ground, where our intrusion may be inconvenient. Their way of life may be very different from our own. This discomfort and unfamiliarity brings fresh perspective, which is one of the reasons why we love to travel so much. May our eyes be opened to the world around us.

The place to be if you’re looking to travel outside Tokyo

I hope that this article has given you some inspiration and a little motivation to explore Japan beyond the main tourist cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. There is much more to explore, where crowds are few and beauty is in abundance!