Kobe Itinerary: What To Do & Where to Stay!

Kobe Itinerary, Japan

Kobe is one of my favorite cities in Japan. It’s cool, cosmopolitan and has the world’s best beef! It’s close to Osaka and Kyoto, so is a great place to stay if you are exploring the Kansai area in the west of Japan. It’s also less crowded than Osaka and Kyoto, and I tend to find that the hotels are much cheaper here. Having visited many times, I decided to put together this Kobe itinerary that includes details on what to do, along with hotel and restaurant recommendations.

If you are visiting the Kansai area then you might also want to check out my articles on things to do in Osaka, and my 3 day Kyoto itinerary here.

What to see and do – 3 Day Kobe Itinerary

Day One – Harborland, Port Tower, Chinatown and Sweets Tour

AM: Harborland and Port Tower

Begin your trip to Kobe by spending some time down by the waterfront. Harborland is a large shopping area by the water.

The Umie shopping complex consists of a North and South Mall, which houses many clothing and souvenir shops, along with a cinema and gaming arcade. If you haven’t visited a Japanese arcade, try it out! Last time I was there I played a zombie shooting game and took some funny pictures in the purikura photo booths.  It was a lot of fun even though I’m not really into gaming at all.

The best part of Harborland for me has to be the food. Connected to the shopping complex there’s a huge building called Mosaic filled with restaurants for just about every cuisine you can think of.  It’s a great spot for lunch and to rest after a hard morning of shopping.

Outside of the Umie complex by the waterfront there’s a Ferris wheel you can ride, and a lot of sightseeing and dinner cruises depart from this area too. If you have kids with you, the Anpanman Children’s Museum is also here, and is fun for young children.

Also close by to Harborland is the Kobe Port Tower. This distinctive, bright red structure is 108 meters tall and is open to the general public.  At the top of the tower there is an observation platform, which costs 700 yen to enter, along with a revolving cafe.

If you have time I recommend stopping by the cafe for a more relaxed viewing experience. All of the seats are outward facing and it takes around 20 minutes to rotate 360 degrees.  During this time you can sip on a coffee or try a dessert.

PM: Chinatown & Sweets Tour

A short walk from the Harborland area lies Kobe’s Chinatown, Nankinmachi.  As one of Japan’s largest Chinatowns, Nankinmachi consists of a compact area filled with over 100 eateries and souvenir shops. Your biggest problem here will definitely be choosing from the food on display because it all looks so good! It’s pretty crowded around this area at the weekends, with long queues common for the most popular restaurants. If you want to go during a quieter time, a weekday is probably better. Either way, it would be easy to spend an hour or two exploring this area.

Along with it’s world renowned beef, Kobe is also famous in Japan for amazing desserts. In fact there are so many wonderful patisseries and dessert shops that the  Kobe tourism authorities have put together a free ‘Sweets Tour’ map that you can download. I recently visited Akito Patisserie and Motomachi Cake, both in the Motomachi area. If you want more details about these establishments you can read an article I wrote about Kobe desserts for Kansai Scene magazine here.

Day Two – Kitano & Sake Tasting

AM: Discover the historical houses of Kitano

When the port of Kobe opened 150 years ago, many foreign merchants settled in the Kitano area of the city. Today visitors can discover many beautiful historic houses and former foreign embassies. There is a pass you can buy that will allow you entry to to several houses, or if you are just interested in visiting one in particular, you can buy individual tickets too.

As a British person living in Japan, I couldn’t resist checking out England House to see what the Japanese take on a traditional English house would look like.

Entry to England House costs 750 yen.  Inside there is a room with an authentic working British pub, as well as a room displaying Sherlock Holmes memorabilia and a bathroom with a tub that’s filled with champagne corks. Outside you can also take your picture at a replica Baker Street Tube Stop.

One of the most popular houses is the Trick Art Museum at the Amazing Consulate. Entry here costs 800 yen. Japan has many trick art museums, if you haven’t been to one before, they are a lot of fun. 3D paintings allow you to pose beside the pictures to make it look like you are inside them. You can check out a couple of pictures I took from the trick art exhibition I saw in Kochi last year to get an idea of what to expect.  Just be aware that you’ll probably have to wait in line to get a chance to have your photo taken with each backdrop.

PM: Sake Tasting

The Nada area of Kobe is famous in Japan for producing sake, and there are many breweries that you can visit. Admission is generally free, and the museums contain a lot of information about the sake brewing process. Several of the breweries also offer tasting tours too. The Fukuju brewery offers free tastings, and has a good English website with information along with tours throughout the year.

Day Three –  Arima Onsen & Mount Rokko

AM: Arima Onsen

If you are interested in visiting Japanese hot springs, known as onsen, then you should take a few hours to explore the little spa town of Arima Onsen.  It’s full of bathhouses you can visit, and has lots of narrow traditional streets and wooden buildings.  There are also a number of shrines and temples, along with traditional Japanese restaurants and souvenir shops.  You can book an advance package online at one of the area’s largest spas here.

PM: Mount Rokko

After a refreshing morning trying out the various hot springs in Arima Onsen, take a cable car from there to Mount Rokko. As well as the wonderful panoramic views of Kobe and Osaka Bay, there are a number of restaurants to visit on top of Mount Rokko. There’s also a country house with paddle boats for hire and a botanical garden.  If you have been spending a lot of time in big cities, it’s a good opportunity to escape the crowds and noise.

Other points of interest on Mount Rokko include the Snow Park with ski slope open for visitors during the winter time. Animal lovers should check out Rokko Pasture, which has mini pigs, sheep, goats, rabbits and horses to interact with. There’s also a cheese factory, museum and shop on site.

Where to eat – restaurant recommendations in Kobe

Of course if you are a carnivore, you can’t visit Kobe without trying the beef. You’ll have no trouble finding restaurants around the city that offer English menus with beef options. The area around Sannomiya station has a high concentration of restaurants and is where many locals go for a night out. Aside from eating beef, here are a few other restaurants I have eaten at:

Romantic: Tooth Tooth Garden Restaurant (They also have a great all you can eat & drink beer garden on their rooftop from May-September, but you need to pre-book as it’s so popular).

Buffet style: Fisherman’s market – extensive buffet selection mainly seafood, and sushi but also chicken/pizza dishes too. Good dessert selection!

Coffee and cake: Mama’s Selection Motomachi Cake – delicious cakes from only 300 yen each

Yakiniku (Barbeque): Don Don

I haven’t personally experienced it but dinner cruises are also very popular with visitors to Kobe.

Where to stay – Kobe accommodation 

There are a variety of options accommodation wise in Kobe, I’m usually on a bit of a budget so tend to opt for the lower cost hotels. I have stayed in a few business hotels in the area and Air BnB apartments. Here are my personal recommendations:

Luminous Hotel: This business hotel is practically next door to Hyogo station and is spacious, comfortable and reasonably priced. The area is pretty quiet by night, so don’t stay here if you want to be amidst the bustling bars and of Sannomiya. I really like this hotel and have stayed here three times in the last year.

Air BnB – I’ve stayed at this Air BnB apartment twice, it’s a good option for families and groups of friends as there are two double bedrooms. It’s very close to Shin Kobe station so easy to access if you’re coming to Kobe by the Shinkansen (bullet train).

I haven’t stayed here personally but…

If you feel like a splurge,  I suggest staying at the Hotel Piena. The rooms look glamorous and spacious, and the hotel is known for it’s amazing breakfast buffet. In fact, Tripadvisor has awarded this hotel for serving the best breakfasts in Japan for the last five years! I’d love to try it, but unfortunately it’s only available for hotel guests. If you have eaten breakfast here, please let me know how it was in the comments below!

I hope you enjoyed reading this Kobe itinerary! If you have any recommendations drop me a line in the comments below!