The city of Nishio, reachable from Nagoya by Meitetsu train in around 50 minutes, is known as one of Japan's foremost regions of Matcha tea production. It also offers a wealth of sightseeing destinations, including temples and shrines associated with Matcha and Matcha museums, and, a bit farther afield, the famed "art island" of Sakushima. And aside from Matcha, you can also enjoy another well-known local specialty: Isshiki eel!

Nishio Matcha

Graced with a mild climate and the Yahagi River, Nishio is Japan's leading Matcha town. Its history began when Shoichikokushi, the founder of the temple of Jissoji, established in 1271, planted tea seeds on the temple grounds. In around 1872, when Adachi Jundo, the head priest of Kojuin Temple, introduced tea seeds and tea-production techniques from Uji, local farmers also began to cultivate tea, and now the area is known as Japan's premier tea-producing region.

What are especially worth trying are sweet treats made with Matcha. At a bunch of locations throughout the city you can try parfaits, traditional Japanese sweets, shaved ice, and other delicious concoctions. These are also quite photogenic, so their popularity has ramped up sharply in recent times, especially among women, making for lines at the most popular establishments. Why not make the rounds of different shops as you enjoy sweet Matcha creations!

Isshiki Eel

The amount of eel – unagi – from in Nishio puts it among the top producers in Japan, and the city takes great pride in this local specialty. Expertise in eel-farming techniques cultivated over a century of tradition make for eel that is farmed under conditions virtually identical to nature, and the eels produced through these extremely labor-intensive methods are neither too large nor too small, tender-skinned, and nicely fattened for diners to enjoy.

Sakushima

Sakushima, enveloped by gentle sea waters and abundant nature, is an island of contemporary art where you can enjoy an art picnic that takes place once a year. The locale also earned attention when it appeared in the 2010 movie "Detective Conan: The Lost Ship in the Sky," and lately it's become a tremendously popular destination among women because of all the places where it's possible to take Insta-worthy photos. Sakushima is also home to the Niiya Coast: a sandy beach of mysterious beauty that includes fragments of mussel shells, making it Japan's only purple beach.