A total of 29 sites throughout Japan—from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa and the Ogasawara Islands in the south—have been officially designated National Parks.
This page provides a brief description of each of these National Parks.
Yoshino-Kumano National Park
Designation: February 1, 1936
Area: 59,793 ha
Prefectures: Mie, Nara, Wakayama
Yoshino-Kumano National Park consists of the central mountainous area of the Kii Peninsula as well as meandering rivers and the seashore in the southeastern part of the peninsula. Mt. Yoshino is noted for its cherry blossoms and historic sites, as well as for Mt. Omine, which has long been worshipped by ascetic devotees, and Kumano-Sanzan. There are many cliffs along the extended coast from Owase to the Shiono Promontory where an abundance of varied landscapes can be admired.
San'inkaigan National Park
Designation: July 15, 1963
Area: 8,783 ha
Prefectures: Kyoto, Hyogo, Tottori
San'inkaigan National Park is a marine park that extends across the 75-kilometer-long seacoast from Amino of the Oku-Tango Peninsula to the sand dunes of Tottori. Beautiful caves eroded by seawater can be found here. This park is famous for the sand dunes of Tottori, some of which reach heights of up to 100 meters. Hamabohu (glehnia) and other plants that are uniquely associated with these sand dunes grow in the harsh environment of this area amid sand that is in constant motion.
Setonaikai National Park
Designation: March 16, 193
Area: 66,934 ha
Prefectures: Hyogo, Wakayama, Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime, Fukuoka, Oita
Setonaikai National Park consists of about 3,000 islets, small and large, and is famous for offering a sweeping view of huge clusters of islands floating in the calm inland sea. One such example of such beauty can be obtained in the view of the Bisan Archipelago as seen from Mt. Washu. Areas of white sandy beaches bordered by green pines, such as those found along the Shibukawa coast and in Keino-Matsubara, as well as terraced fields and other scenes of people living in a state of intimate connection with nature are signature attributes of this park.