Quite apart from formal and informal activities at J. F. Oberlin, Exchange & Study Abroad Program participants will also find plenty to do off campus. Machida City, the Tokyo suburb where J. F. Oberlin is located, is a lively, upbeat town which is neither too big nor too small.

In Machida are up-scale department stores, discount shops, small shops selling traditional goods such as tea or kimonos and quiet coffee shops that feature all-you-can-eat lunch hours. Machida is a young city, and its economy is geared towards the college crowd.

Machida is also convenient in terms of location. Well-served by trains, it provides easy access to downtown Tokyo and Yokohama as well as nearby mountains and beaches. The Odakyu commuter rail line, which has an express stop in Machida, runs between Shinjuku—the new power center of Tokyo—and Odawara and the Izu resort area. The Yokohama Line runs from Hachioji and Mt. Takao with its Tokugawa period shrines, to Yokohama with its Chinatown and trendy shopping areas. For those who want to travel to Kyoto and beyond, the Yokohama Line also offers access to Japan's famed "bullet train" (Shinkansen) from Shin-Yokohama station.