5. Denpark
Denpark is a theme park in nearby Anjo City. Since Anjo is known as the Japanese Denmark, a lot of the architecture and gardens inside are made to reflect a Danish townscape. Some of the highlights include the windmills, a children’s play area with an incredibly long roller slide that I may or may not have gone on, and many gardens in bloom with seasonal flowers. Apparently kids can also try their hand at making sausages inside the park. I took the easier route and just ordered a pizza with sausages on top. Hehe.

6. Nagoya City Science Museum
The science museum was a place I visited during Golden Week when Frannie came to see me. It probably wasn’t the most ideal time to go because it was insanely busy. In fact when we initially made our way there late in the morning we had to give up and go for lunch instead because the line to get in was outside the door. (@_@) Luckily we had enough time to go through all the exhibits when we made our way back. Overall I would say the museum was really fun and all the exhibits are hands on and interactive. However the line ups are a little insane, so if you’re keen on visiting the planetarium and activity labs, make sure you get there early enough to grab an advanced ticket!

7. Expo Memorial Park
Expo 2005 was held for 185 days in Nagakute City, just east of Nagoya. Today many of the pavilions have been removed and the space has been reverted back into parkland. While Expo Memorial Park has considerably quieted down, there are still lots of things to do inside. Since the park covers about 430 acres, the best way to visit all the areas is to take the free shuttles.

As an avid Studio Ghibli fan, one of the places I recommend visiting is Satsuki and Mei’s House. The house is a recreation from the movie My Neighbor Totoro and it’s probably the most popular attraction inside the park. To get in you must join a tour and purchase the tickets in advance. I think when the attraction first opened the tickets sold out almost daily. Now that the buzz has died down it’s a lot easier to get tickets. I would say the house is definitely worth visiting because it’s exactly like how you would picture it from the movie. I felt like I was reliving my childhood inside!

There are other places to visit inside the park, including the gardens, recreational centres, the huge ferris wheel, and the exhibition spaces. You can even take a picture with the two mascots Morizo and Kiccoro (or known together as Moricoro). There’s enough things to do that you could stay there for the day and leisurely go at your own pace.

8. Nagashima
Okay okay I know Nagashima isn’t a typical tourist attraction. Nagashima is like an all-in-one amusement park, hot springs resort, waterpark and outlet mall in one convenient location. You can even visit the Anpanman Museum next door! Lol. However, what I really want to highlight is the Nabana no Sato flower park inside the complex.

Nabana no Sato hosts one of the largest flower festivals in Japan during the warmer months. In the winter however, hordes of people go to the park just to see the nighttime illuminations. The illuminations run from mid October to early May and you can buy an admissions package which includes the return ticket from Nagoya Station. We also used one of the vouchers in our ticket package to visit Begonia Garden, which houses an incredible display of Begonia flowers.

However the main highlight was seeing the amazing illumination display throughout the park. Every corner of the park is lit up as you make your way from the tunnels towards the theme area. I don’t think I have words to describe how magical it was inside. When I went in January it was a little colder than I would have liked, so I recommend bundling up before going cause it’s totally worth staying outdoors the entire time you’re there. =)