Audio walking guides in Yokohama
Photo: Justin Taylor · CC BY 2.0
These are self-guided audio walks around Yokohama. You pick a route, put one earbud in, and the guide talks you through it stop by stop — what you are looking at, and why it is there. There is no group to keep up with and no meeting time. 10 walks covering Minato Mirai, Chinatown & the Bluff, Sankei-en, Noge, Yamate, Sōji-ji, Kanazawa Hakkei, The Old Tōkaidō and more, 292 minutes of narration in total.
Start your free guideA free account is needed before a guide plays. Hear a minute first if you would rather try it than sign up for it.
Every walk in Yokohama
Minato Mirai: The Harbor of the Future
Start with the skyline in front of you and a fact that explains it: not so long ago, none of this was Japan. In 1859, when the shoguns…
Chinatown & the Bluff
Pause under this gate before you go in, because the gates are the key to the whole quarter. There are ten of them ringing Chinatown, and the four…
Sankei-en: The Silk Baron's Garden
Before you take a step, know whose vision you are standing in. This whole valley, ponds, hills, teahouses and all, was the private garden of one man, Hara…
Noge: Yokohama After Dark
Look across the water first, at the skyscrapers of Minato Mirai, all glass and clean lines, before you turn your back on them, because this walk is about…
Yamate: The Hill of Foreign Houses
The climb up from the port is short and steep, and that steepness is the whole point of this place. It was precisely because this ground rose sharply…
The City That Invented Your Dinner
This is the most delicious walk in the city, and also, secretly, one of the most historically important. Because Yokohama was the door through which the modern world…
Sōji-ji: The Zen Headquarters
This walk is a complete change of key from the rest of Yokohama, and a welcome one. Leave the port and the neon and the food behind, take…
Kanazawa Hakkei: The Eight Views
First, let us clear up a confusion. This is Kanazawa, but it is not the Kanazawa, the famous castle town of gold leaf and geisha on the Japan…
The Old Tōkaidō
You have almost certainly travelled the Tōkaidō without thinking about it, because the name lives on in the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, the original bullet-train line, and in the busy…
Negishi: Where Japan Learned to Race
This is one of the strangest and most atmospheric places on any of these Yokohama walks, and one of the least visited, so if you like your history…
Questions about walking Yokohama
What is the best self-guided walking tour in Yokohama?
It depends how long you have. Minato Mirai: The Harbor of the Future (35 minutes, 6 stops) starts at Sakuragichō Station and is the one most people begin with. Chinatown & the Bluff covers a different part of the city in about 29 minutes. All 10 walks in Yokohama are listed on this page with their length and starting point.
Do I need to book a walking tour in Yokohama?
No. Every wanderaudio walk is self-guided, so there is nothing to book and no departure time. You start whenever you arrive, and you can stop halfway and pick it up the next day.
How much do the Yokohama audio guides cost?
Your first guide is free. You make a free account before it plays, with an email address or a Google login, and no card. After that a single guide is $4.99, a 30-guide pass, spendable on any guides in any cities, is $29.99, and every guide in Japan is $59.99. It is a one-off payment, not a subscription.
Are these tours in English?
Yes, all 10 Yokohama walks are narrated in English. Other languages are not available yet.
Can I do these walks alone?
Yes — that is what they are built for. There is no group and no guide waiting for you, so walking alone works exactly the same as walking with someone. You choose the pace and the order.
What can I do in Yokohama if it rains?
1 of the Yokohama walks are indoor walkthroughs rather than street walks, so they work in rain and in the August heat. They are marked "indoors" in the list on this page. Check opening hours and admission separately — wanderaudio does not sell tickets.