The Tohoku Region is conformed of six prefectures in the north of Japan's largest island Honshu. The Tohoku region is well recognised for its countryside, mountains, lakes, high quality rice and rough winters.

The zone is also formed by its spectacular scenery, since prolific rice-fields and cosseted orchards to the wild, irregular coastline and the pine-crusted islands of Matsushima Bay. The principal spine of magnificent empty mountains offers wonderful opportunities for hiking and skiing, especially around Bandai-san in the south and the more northerly Towada-Hachimantai area. Both national parks, these regions are distinguished for their flora and fauna, including black bears in remoter districts, while Towada-ko itself is a ponderous crater lake accessed via the picturesque Oirase valley. In Sado-ga-shima, an ample island lying off Niigata, dramatic mountain and coastal scenery offers the backdrop for a surprisingly rich culture - a legacy of its isolation and a number of famous, or infamous, characters who were exiled to the island.

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