Chiba (prefecture)
Discover Chiba (prefecture)
Chiba Prefecture (千葉県 Chiba-Ken) is located directly east of Tokyo, and bordered by Ibaraki Prefecture to the north. A large part of the prefecture is made up of the Bōsō Peninsula (房総半島 Bōsō-hantō), which shields Tokyo bay from the Pacific Ocean. Much of the western/northwestern part of Chiba is relatively uninspired urbanity and bedtowns for Tokyo, but once you get past the city and watch the sharp descent into rural countryside of sprawling rice fields, rolling hills, and striking coastlines, you will realize why Chiba has been variously called "Edo's Breadbasket" and "Tokyo's Secret Backyard".
What to Experience in Chiba (prefecture)
Taste of Chiba (prefecture)...
Not available
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsWhile JR trains run the entire coast of Chiba, the inner coast is just a 30-minute ferry ride from Kurihama, south of Yokohama. 1997 saw the completion of the Tokyo Wan Aqua Line bridge and tunnel, which burrows under and rises across Tokyo Bay between Kisarazu (Chiba prefecture) and Kawasaki (on the Tokyo side). The tunnel is not economical at ¥4000 for a passenger car, unless you have an ETC card which brings the price down to ¥1500. You can take highway buses through the tunnel and over the bridge from Tokyo Station, Shinagawa, Haneda Airport, Kawasaki and Yokohama stations for up to ¥1500 one way to Kisarazu. The center of the JR network in Chiba is, unsurprisingly, JR Chiba Station. But be careful when taking trains to the Boso Peninsula, as there are two different ways trains can get to Awa-Kamogawa, the final stop....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
The lower Boso peninsula has several artificial attractions that are popular for family excursions but probably of limited appeal to other travelers:
Safety Information
Nearby Destinations
Glimpses of Chiba (prefecture)
a light house on a rocky outcropping in the ocean
a view of a town and a body of water
a small island in the middle of the ocean
a wooden bridge over a body of water
a wooden bridge over a body of water
a wooden bridge over a body of water
a view of the ocean from a rocky shore
a white light house on top of a rocky cliff
a view of the ocean from a hill
a yellow cable car going up a mountain side
a light house on a rocky outcropping in the ocean
a view of a town and a body of water
a small island in the middle of the ocean