Watch flooded rice terraces mirror the sunset
For a few weeks in spring, around rice planting, terraced paddies on hillsides by the sea are filled with water and turn into mirrors that catch the sky and the setting sun. Watch from a lookout above, since the paddies and the paths between them are farmers' land. All three are in western Japan, far from Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, and are easiest to reach by car or taxi.
In Genkai, Saga, on the north coast of Kyushu, small paddies step down a slope straight to the sea, and on spring evenings each flooded one turns the color of the sunset. From the lookout you see the sun sink into the sea above the terraces in one view; April to early May is the best time. It is about 30 minutes by taxi from Karatsu Station, and the lookout has only a few parking spaces.
Terraced paddies run down a slope to the Sea of Japan in Nagato, Yamaguchi, and around planting time, mid-May to early June, the flooded fields turn pink in the sunset. After dark, the lights of squid-fishing boats, called isaribi, line up out at sea, so you can watch the terraces and the boat lights together. There is no bus, so come by car or taxi; the viewpoint is a short walk from a free car park.
Terraces cover the slope of a small island in Matsuura, Nagasaki, and beyond the flooded paddies you see the Genkai Sea off northwest Kyushu and the sun setting into it. You watch from a lookout beside the prefectural road, without stepping into the fields. The car park is small, so arrive early in the evening.