Nagahama
Nagahama City developed as a stopover town on the Hokkoku-kaido route, connecting Kyoto to the Hokuriku region, as well as a port city on Lake Biwa. The Kurokabe Square district (the square of the black wall), centered on an old bank with black walls renovated into a glass museum, is one of the city’s must-see attractions. Along the Hokkoku-kaido road, a row of old merchant houses line up to offer a landscape of yesteryear.
The hamlet of Kunitomo
Located about a 15-minute drive northeast of downtown Nagahama, this hamlet is one of Japan’s most famous ancient arquebus production centers. After the introduction of firearms by the Portuguese in 1543, the arquebus became the primary weapon on Japanese battlefields, revolutionizing military tactics. Due to the incessant conflicts that the region has experienced since ancient times, many blacksmiths with great know-how have settled there, allowing organized mass production. At its peak, the site was said to have 70 blacksmith shops and more than 500 artisans. Although today it is a peaceful hamlet, a visit to its museum specializing in arquebuses will allow you to glimpse the vestiges of its past glory.
- The entrance ticket to the Arquebus Museum costs 350 yen.
- It is closed on Monday.
Kinomoto-juku
Located about 15 minutes by train from Nagahama, Kinomoto is an old stopover town on the Hokkoku-kaido route. It also developed as a monastic district around the Jizo-in temple, a place steeped in history founded in 675. Within its walls stands a large 6-meter bronze statue representing Bodhisattva Jizo. It is a replica of the main statue, known to cure eye diseases. In Kinomoto, an ox and horse market was held twice a year until the beginning of the Showa era. The breweries of sake and ancestral soy sauce factories are lined up there, preserving the authentic charm of traditional merchant houses.
- To go to Kinomoto-juku, take the JR Hokuriku Line from Nagahama to Kinomoto Station. Kinomoto-juku is a 5-minute walk from the east exit.
Chikubu Island (Chikubushima)
Located in the northern part of Lake Biwa, Chikubu Island is an uninhabited island with a circumference of approximately two kilometers. Surrounded by steep cliffs, this island has been revered since ancient times as a land inhabited by deities (kamis). Its must-see places, Hogon-ji Temple and Tsukubusuma-jinja Shrine, stand side by side, connected by a 30-meter-long corridor called the “boat corridor”. Testimony to Shinto-Buddhist religious syncretism, the entire island remains imbued with a mystical atmosphere today.
- Access to Chikubu Island is by cruise ship from the ports of Nagahama, Imazu or Hikone (approximately 30 to 40 minutes journey).
- The entrance fee to the island is 600 yen (which includes visiting Hogon-ji Temple and Tsukubusuma-jinja Shrine).
- It takes around 90 minutes to visit the island. The recommended route from the port will take you successively to the Hogon-ji temple, the three-story pagoda, the Kara-mon gate, the Kannon pavilion, the boat corridor, the Tsukubusuma-jinja shrine, before returning to the port.
- To access Hogon-ji Temple, you will have to climb a steep stone staircase of 165 steps. Wearing walking shoes is strongly recommended.