| Saitama (prefecture) ((ja)埼 玉 県, Saitama-ken) | |
 | |
| Information | |
| Country |  Japan |
|---|---|
| Region | Kantō |
| Regional capital | Saitama |
| Area | 3 798,08 km² |
| Population | 7 339 530 hab. () |
| Density | 1 932,43 inhab./km² |
| Spindle | UTC 09:00, Japan Standard Time |
| Location | |
&groups=aller,circuler,voir,faire,acheter,manger,sortir,loger,ville,destination,diplomatie,masque,around,buy,city,do,drink,eat,go,listing,other,see,sleep,vicinity,view,black,blue,brown,chocolate,forestgreen,gold,gray,grey,lime,maroon,mediumaquamarine,navy,red,royalblue,silver,steelblue,teal,fuchsia) 35 ° 57 ′ 0 ″ N 139 ° 33 ′ 0 ″ E | |
| Official site | |
| Touristic site | |
Saitama is a prefecture japanese, located in the region of Kantō, on Honshū the largest island in Japan.
Understand
Saitama forms a sort of buffer zone between the large gray expanse of Tokyo and the mountains of the prefecture of Gunma. It is largely residential, with few attractions, and some pretentious Tokyoites like to call it dasaitama ("Naze-tama"). Some residents of Saitama consider this nickname to be very offensive and therefore best avoided.
Regions
Cities
- 1 Saitama (さ い た ま) – The capital. Note that the name of the Saitama prefecture (埼 玉 県) is written in kanji (characters of Chinese origin) but the name of the Saitama town (さ い た ま 市) is written in hiragana (Japanese syllabary).
- 2 Chichibu (秩 父)
- 3 Kawagoe (川 越) – Worth coming for a day from Tokyo because of its unspoiled architecture and old shops.
- 4 Kasukabe (春日 部)
- 5 Kawaguchi (川口)
- 6 Koshigaya (越 谷)
- 7 Kumagaya (熊 谷) – The last major city of the prefecture going north.
- 8 Kitamoto (北 本) – A quiet suburban town.
- 9 Misato (三 郷)
- 10 Tokorozawa (所 沢)
- 11 Higashimatsuyama (東 松山)
Other destinations
- 1 Chichibu Tamakai National Park (秩 父 多 摩 甲 斐 国立 公園)
To go
By plane
The nearest airports are those of Narita (mainly international flights) and Haneda (mainly domestic flights). Buses from Narita to JR Omiya Station depart every hour and take approximately 2 h, while those starting from Haneda take about 1 h 30. The train ride will cost more, save time at best, and require at least one change unless you manage to board one of the two Express (N'EX) services going early in the morning from Narita to Omiya .
By train
If you are coming from Tokyo, various trains join and pass through Saitama Prefecture:
- Keihin-Tohoku Line: a suburban line on a north-south axis going to Omiya (in Saitama) and passing through central Tokyo (eastern part, including Tokyo station) and descending at Yokohama and Kanagawa prefecture.
- Saikyo Line: another north-south suburban line starting in Saitama but descending in the west side of Tokyo, including Ikebukuro, Shinjuku and Ebisu. Becomes the Rinkai Line and heads east towards Odaiba and Tokyo Disneyland.
- Utsunonimya Line: From Ueno head north towards the town of Utsunomiya, going northeast after Omiya. Mainly a commuter line remains but has less stops than the Keihin-Tohoku and Saikyo lines.
- Takasaki Line: almost the same as the Utsunomiya line but goes northwest after Omiya.
- Shonan-Shinjuku Line: similar to the Takasaki and Utsunomiya lines except that once in Tokyo it does not end in Ueno and turns west, passing through Ikebukuro and Shinjuku and then into Kanagawa prefecture.
- Musashino line: Passes through Saitama (east-west) from Nishi Funabashi in Chiba Prefecture, passing through Minami Urawa and then returning to western Tokyo Prefecture (not in the city).
- ShinkansenHigh-speed trains depart from Tokyo (Tokyo and Ueno stations) and pass through Saitama (stopping at Omiya and Kumagaya) before heading into the mountains of Nagano and Niigata.
- Namboku / Saitama Line: extension of the Namboku metro line, the Saitama line is a line dedicated to Saitama Stadium (built for the 2002 World Cup and where the Urawa Reds football team play). A crowded commuter line in the morning and evening.
By bus
You can take buses from the bus stations in Kyoto and Osaka To Ōmiya, Kawagoe and Tokorozawa, and of Niigata and Kanazawa in Ōmiya and Kawagoe.
Circulate
To see
Do
- 1 Descent of the Ara river (from the small town of Nagatoro (長 瀞)) – You can go down the Ara River (荒 川, ara-kawa) aboard a traditional Japanese wooden boat, admiring the nature of Nagatoro village.
To buy
Eat
Have a drink / Go out
Housing
Around
- Ibaraki Prefecture
- Chiba Prefecture
- Tokyo prefecture – Mainly known for the city of Tokyo, the country's capital and megalopolis.
- Yamanashi Prefecture
- Nagano Prefecture
