Go! Central Japan is a bilingual (English/Japanese) tourist guide site for the Chubu region, focusing on topics spanning more than one prefecture.

"East Sea" area, on the southern Pacific coast

Aichi Mostly urban sprawl around Nagoya

Gifu Home to the northern Japan Alps and many hot springs

Shizuoka Home to the famous Mount Fuji and the scenic Izu Peninsula

"North Land" area, the northwest part of the Chubu region

The eastern part of the Chubu region. The name is a kanji abbreviation of old province names: 甲斐 (kai = Yamanashi), 信濃 (shinano = Nagano) and 越後 (echigo = Niigata)

Chubu Centrair International Airport, Japan's third major international gateway, is located on an artificial island 30 minutes south from Nagoya. Most larger cities around the region have airports, but they generally only serve domestic flights.

True to the name, the Tokaido Shinkansen bisects the southern Tokai region and connects Shizuoka and Aichi with Tokyo and Kyoto by High-speed rail. Nagano, Toyama, Kanazawa and Fukui can be reached from Tokyo by the Hokuriku Shinkansen. If accessing Niigata prefecture from Tokyo the Joetsu Shinkansen is your best bet. A couple non-bullet trains can be used to access Chubu. The most common non-shinkansen route is on the Thunderbird, limited express train connecting Osaka and Kyoto to Hokuriku Shinkansen terminus Tsuruga. If coming from Ise, Kintetsu Railway connects Ise with Nagoya by limited express train in 80 minutes. The Kumano region is connected with Nagoya by the Nanki limited express train. If accessing Niigata from the north the Uetsu line, connecting Niigata and Akita is your best bet.

A car ferry operated by Shin Nihonkai Ferry connects Tsuruga and Niigata to Akita in Tohoku and Tomakomai in Hokkaido runs once a week, along with that they also operate a ferry connecting Niigata to Otaru just east of Sapporo. Taiheiyo ferry connects Nagoya with Sendai and Tomakomai. Long Distance Journeys by ferry are much less efficient than the shinkansen and all of these routes take more than 18 hours however one may find them more comfortable and enjoyable than a train. Smaller ferries connect Toba in Mie prefecture with Tahara on the Atsumi Peninuesla. Tsu is also connected with Chubu Centrair International Airport by direct ferry. For those shorter routes the ferries are usually faster due to the indirect route that must be taken to travel overland and the slower trains in these areas. Ferries operate 4 times a day between Atami in Shizouka Prefecture and Izu Oshima, the largest of the Izu Islands.

For budget-conscious travellers, long-distance buses can function as cheaper alternative to trains and provide overnight accommodation for longer journeys to Chubu. Willer Express and Jr buses are the largest long-distance bus companies. The JR pass is not available on long-distance buses, but Willer Express offers a Japan Bus Pass that lasts for 3, 5 or 7 non-consecutive days. All major cities are served by long-distance buses from Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. Kanazawa, Toyama and Niigata also are served by direct buses from Sendai. Nagoya is the city in the region best connected by long-distance buses, these buses connect cities like Matsuyama, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Izumo and Sendai directly with Nagoya.

Like the rest of Japan trains are the primary method of travel around Chubu. There are three Shinkansen routes in Chubu, the Tokaido Shinkansen connects Aichi and Shizuoka, the Joetsu Shinkansen provides access to Niigata but the Hokuriku Shinkansen is probably the most useful for travelling around Chubu as it connects Nagano to Kanazawa via Toyama. One should be aware that the Hokuriku Shinkansen's faster class, the Kagayaki requires reservations. The most useful non shinkansen route for travelling around Chubu is probably the Takayama main line which connects Nagoya to Toyama bisecting the region and serving Takayama, Gero and other tourist attractions. The largest private rail company in Chubu is Meitetsu who operates trains around Nagoya to various destinations such as Nagoya's Airport and Inuyama.

The main use of ferries in the Chubu region is access to Sado island, boats depart every three hours from Niigata to Ryotsu Port on the islands eastern side, from Joetsu boats depart to Ogi port on the western side of the Island twice daily. All ferries to Sado are operated by Sado Kisen. Also in Niigata prefecture, Awashima is connected to Murakami. Shin Nihonkai Ferry offers a car ferry from Tsuruga to Niigata (and continues to Akita and Hokkaido). There are also many ferries around the Izu Peninsula, Suruga ferries connects Shizouka and Toi and Tokai Kisen connects Atami to Itō and Inatori.

• Nirayama Reverberatory Furnace - Part of the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution: Iron and Steel, Shipbuilding and Coal Mining, Izunokuni
• Shirakawa-go and Gokayama - old farm houses that have been preserved, Shirakawa-go is the largest of the villages. Gokayama actually consists of two separate villages, Ainokura and Suganuma in Nanto, Toyama
• Mount Fuji While the mountain itself is included, the site is actually registered as a "cultural" listing consisting of more than 20 sites, including each of the Sengen Shrines around the mountain.

• Kenrokuen Garden - One of the official Top 3 gardens in the nation, it has been a favorite for decades. (Kanazawa)
• Yokokan Garden - Part of the Matsudaira Clan's second home (Fukui)
• Shimizuen Garden (Shibata)
• Shiratori Garden - An oft-forgotten gem in the region's largest city (Nagoya)

• Zenkōji National Treasure, Nagano
• Eiheiji a quiet mountain temple where visitors can meditate Eiheiji
• Natadera a secluded temple in Komatsu
• Eihoji A National Treasure with a scenic garden (Tajimi)

Sengen Shrines are shrines associated with Mount Fuji, and although there are Sengen Shrines outside of the Chubu area, the top are only here in Shizuoka Prefecture and Yamanashi Prefecture around the mountain.

• Atsuta Shrine, home to one of Japan's three Imperial Regalia Nagoya
• Togakushi Shrine in Nagano
• Toyokawa Inari Shrine, one of that top Inari shrines Toyokawa
• Kunozan Toshogu Shrine, Shizuoka

Chubu is home to many of Japan's top museums, most notable is Kanazawa's 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, the most visited museum in Japan but the D.T. Suzuki Museum and the Kaga Honda Museum are also worthwhile museums in Kanazawa. As the largest city in the region Nagoya has many museums mostly relating to its industrial history, the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology tells the story of Toyota's growth into the largest car company on earth and SCMAGLEV and Railway Park is one of Japan's top railway museums. The Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum in Katsuyama is the largest dinosaur museum in Japan and a must-visit for any dino lover. The remote Chiune Sugihara Memorial Hall in Yaotsu commemorates Sugihara Chiune and the story of how he saved hundreds of Jews from the Holocaust.

Chubu has a couple amusement parks but they are mostly centred around Nagoya, Legoland Japan serves as Nagoya's biggest theme park, despite not falling in Chubu Nagashima Spa Land serves as a popular day-trip from Nagoya and is home to the Steel Dragon 2000, the longest rollercoaster in the world. Chubu's most visited amusement park is Fuji-Q Highland in Fujiyoshida and one can view Mt. Fuji while riding a rollercoaster there. Most medium-sized cities will have their own amusement park and the theming can vary wildly from park to park.

Chubu has a wide variety of Onsens ranging from Onsens in the mountains of the Japanese Alps to those found in multi-story bathouses. The most famous Onsen in Chubu is probably Yamanouchi where the hot-springs are not meant for humans but for monkeys instead, there is Shibu Onsen near the Monkey Park where humans can Bathe. The Japan alps is full of onsens with the Oku-hida region providing stunning views of the Japan Alps from an onsen. The fuji five lakes are perhaps the best place to view Mt. Fuji from an onsen yet it is overshadowed by Hakone in Kanto. There are also many urban onsen resorts like Gero Onsen, one of Japan's top 3 onsens and Kaga Onsen outside of Kanazawa.