Kobe City is located in the Hyogo Prefecture of the Kinki or Kansai part of Japan. It sits in between the foot of a mountain and Osaka Bay.
The first time I visited Kobe was 2 years ago when my friend from Saitama and I went to a concert. I didn’t expect much in Kobe because, in my mind, it’s just another city in Japan neighboring Osaka. Our time was limited during that day but we were able to enjoy the Harbor Land and the Kobe Port. There is something in Kobe City that definitely caught my heart. 2 years later, my friend suggested a hike in Kobe. Because of that hike, I was able to see more of Kobe. These are the following places I strongly recommend for a truly satisfying day trip.
Mt. Maya / Mt. Rokko
Mt. Maya is one of the major peaks in the Rokko Mountain Range. It is very accessible from Shin Kobe station. For hikers who want to challenge until the top, climbing up all the way to the peak of the mountain takes about 4 hours and 30 minutes. Casual visitors can ride a ropeway/cable car all the way to the peak of Mt. Maya where the million-dollar view awaits.
In our case, we decided to hike the trail, from the foot of the mountain up to the Nunobiki Falls until the Nunobiki Herb Garden. The trail is very beginner-friendly. We stopped by certain places on the trail and took a snapshot of the views.
Nunobiki Falls
The Nunobiki Falls offers a spectacular view where it looks like the water came from the sky down to the ground.
After a few minutes from Nunobiki Falls is a resting area where hikers can purchase refreshments and leave a message on the notebooks provided. Passing the narrow path after the resting area is the Miharashi Observation Platform. From the platform, you can witness the excellent view of Kobe Port and Osaka Bay.
Nunobiki Gohonmatsu Dam
In between walking from Nunobiki Falls to the Herb Garden, there is a dam called Nunobiki Gohonmatsu dam – Japan’s oldest gravitational dam where the residents of Kobe get their water supply from.
Nunobiki Herb Garden
We are lucky enough to choose Nunobiki Herb Garden as our next location after the Nunobiki Gohonmatsu dam. It is the spring season and surprisingly enough the sakura/cherry blossom trees bloomed early this year and we get to see the Herb Garden with cherry blossom in full bloom, alongside other flowers like tulips. The herb garden is a relaxation place where people can do hanami (sakura viewing), picnic. There are even free-to-use hammocks installed!
Nunobiki Ropeway
The Nunobiki Ropeway takes you all the way to the relaxing Herb Gardens up until the luxurious extravagance at The Veranda. Not only this, the spacious cable car offers you a great view of the Kobe skyline and Osaka bay. To enjoy the Nunobiki Herbs & Garden to its maximum, it is recommended to take the cable car up to the topmost station, and from there, follow the path down to witness the 12 different spacious gardens until you arrive at the mid-station and take the cable car from there or continue walking down the path to reach the bottom station.
Kobe Port
One of the famous sightseeing spots in Kobe is the Kobe Port. There are a lot of things to enjoy in this area: the Harborland, Kobe Port Tower, Meriken Park, and the Cruise. They offer two types of cruise that take you all around Osaka Bay.
Kobe Harborland
Kobe Harborland is a shopping district across Kobe Port Tower and Meriken Park. Tourists can enjoy a wide selection of shops and dine in restaurants or cafes with a seaside view of the port.
Meriken Park
Meriken Park is a vast park where young people hang out together. I’ve seen people who enjoy skateboarding, roller skating, playing volleyball, and other kinds of activities. At night, it becomes a spectacular feat with night illumination. It also has a Starbucks in the middle of the park so it will be a worthwhile stay and boredom is not an option.
Nankin Machi / Chinatown
In the middle of a bustling shopping district in Kobe, there’s a street full of the burning color red, lanterns hang all the way to the end of the street and food stalls and restaurants are lined up. This street is called the Chinatown or Nankinmachi, where you can fill your stomach in delight with a huge variety of Chinese specialty foods!
If you haven’t tried the Peking Duck, this might be an opportunity for you to see what it tastes like. The Xiao Long Bao is also not to be missed when doing a food trip in this area. If you are a budget-saver and you want to try the Kobe beef, there is a food stall at the end of the street that sells Kobe BBQ. One stick costs 1,000 YEN which is definitely a valuable offer.
Arisa in Wanderland 
One thought on “Things To Do and Places To See in Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture”