Dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the feudal military government known as the Tokugawa Shogunate, Nikko Tosho-gu is a spectacular shrine complex composed of more than a dozen separate buildings. Unlike most Japanese shrines, Nikko Tosho-gu features a number of buildings decorated with elaborate wood carvings and pure gold leaf. The complex contains elements of both the Shinto and Buddhist religions, and is set in a beautiful evergreen forest. Five of the structures here have been declared National Treasures, but highlights include the five-story pagoda at the entrance and the grave of Ieyasu, which can be accessed by climbing hundreds of stone steps.
321-1431 Tochigi Prefecture, Nikko, Sannai, 2301, Phone: +8-12-88-54-05-60