Thanks to the expansion of the shinkansen, Kanazawa (金沢) is a quick ride from Tokyo. The capital city of Ishikawa Prefecture retains much of its charm due to being spared from the air raids of WWII. Boasting several historic districts and one of the top-ranked gardens of Japan, the land original held by the Maeda Family in the Edo period has much to offer.

The name Kanazawa, which literally means marsh of gold, is said to be originated from a legend that the peasant Imohori Togoro washed gold dust in a local marsh. It is also said that the name is originated from the fact that the present Kenrokuen Garden area was called Kanazawago and Kanazawanosho in ancient times.

1. Be greeted by one of the best train stations

Which way is sacred? The trip you’re about to go on, or the adventure you are entering out in town? Torii Gates normally mark the separation between the divine and the mundane but at Kanazawa Station it has been incorporated into the aesthetics.

The legs of the Torii gate-like structure are shaped to resemble tsuzumi, a type of drum used in Noh theater. The name comes from this characteristic, “Tsuzumi-mon” or “Tsuzumi Gate”. Make sure to look at it from the outside back in.

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Historic Geisha Districts

Let’s just jump straight into the Chaya (茶屋) or what English speaking people call Geisha districts. Chaya, which literally translates as “tea house”, and Kanazawa has three!

To top that off, two of Kanazawa’s historical rows of teahouses along with Kyoto’s Gion have been designated as Japan’s cultural assets.

The chaya buildings are distinguished by the beautiful wood latticework called 木虫籠 (きむずこ, kimuzuko) or sometimes 紅殻格子 which is literally red latticework. For every 1.8 meters, there are 70 vertical lattices. They are given a reddish hue from the type of wood they are and upon closer inspection, they are actually trapezoidal with the long side on the outside.

This not only adds to the aesthetic but is brilliant at protecting the privacy of those inside while still allowing them to see out. Watch out for them while you are walking around.

2. Higashi Chaya District (東茶屋街)

Higashi Chaya (東茶屋, literally the “east tea shops”), is one of the designated national cultural assets. Of the three in Kanazawa, this is the largest and has all these cute little back alleys near it.

You can sometimes see geisha or Maiko (geisha apprentices) walking these streets on their way to work.

The “real deal” Chaya you need a special invitation to but you can go to a restored chaya house where visitors can explore, Shima. A great sneak peek at the real deal!

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3. Kazue-Machi District (主計町街)

Kazue-machi (主計町), named for Todakazue, a samurai family of the Kaga region. (Machi means town). Located along the Asanogawa river it is less touristy and more “private” than the other geisha areas of Kanazawa, don’t take that as you shouldn’t see it though! It’s gorgeous.

Kanazawa’s second national cultural asset chaya district, spared from WWII, has a lot of the streets retaining their ancient charms. This is some of feudal Japan at it’s best.

The “street” view along the water of Kazue-machi. This pathway is quite wide for Japan and I’d imagine it was that way due to the waterway usage back in the day.

4. Nishi Chaya District (西茶屋街)

Much smaller, this is literally the “West” Tea District. It’s on the complete opposite side of town from the other two geisha districts. However, it is a good place to stop along with when you go to the Samurai District, Naga-machi Buke Yashiki District (長町武家屋敷) and see the Nomura Samurai House.

5. Naga-machi Buke Yashiki District (長町武家屋敷)

Naga-machi Buke Yashiki District (長町武家屋敷) is full of streets lined with mud packed walls and located just to the west of the castle. Naga machi just is the name of this part of town as best I can tell. Though “naga” can mean long, I didn’t see anything that would distinctly make it called that but the streets are pretty long and narrow!

The second half of the name is “samurai residence” and two of the chief retainers of the Maeda clan (back to Kanazawa castle) lived in this area.

The area is distinctive in winter with the straw lining on the walls. The name for this? “Komo” (薦) and they protect the walls from the massive amounts of snow that Kanazawa gets.

6. Nomura Samurai House

While you are checking out the samurai town of Nagamachi (長町), why not see what one actually was like? This is where the wealthy samurai and their families lived!

You’ll feel like you’ve been wisped back to Edo-period Japan! Walk past the gate into the Nomura Samurai House (武家屋敷跡 野村家) to see exactly the splendor they lived in.

While inside, you can experience one of the best private gardens in Japan! Also, make sure to have matcha tea in a tea ceremony room!

7. Kenrokuen (兼六園)

I use to not be a big garden person. You see gardens like this and you change your mind!

Kenrokuen (兼六園) is one of the three most famous gardens in Japan. The other two are Korakeun in Okayama and Kairakuen in Mit.

The kanji mean “concurrent” and “six” and “garden or park”. Again, Japan and the literal names! This comes from the Chinese that there were six features that make an ideal garden.

• spaciousness
• seclusion
• artifice
• antiquity
• water
• panoramas

This park DEFINITELY hits all the widgets. It’s massive. Expect to spend a fair amount of time here.

8. Kanazawa Castle

The honmaru, 本丸 or main bailey, of Kanazawa castle doesn’t have any structures on it anymore. But it does have this lovely view through to the mountains!

Like most of Japan’s wooden build castles, they burned down a lot over the years. The most recent being 1881 with the only surviving original structures of two storehouses and the Ishikawa-mon Gate. The gate dates from 1788!

The main feature, however surprisingly as you should know my feeling on most rebuilds by now, is a rebuilt section of the two turrets with a long storehouse that would have made up part of the castle walls.

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Rebuilt using all traditional methods, it’s a feat of architecture that needs to be seen! Oh, and don’t forget, this is one of the 100 finest castles so bring your stamp book!

9. Try a Kaiseki Dinner

If you are going to have Kaiseki (懐石) or kaiseki-ryōri (懐石料理), a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner, Kanazawa is a great place to do so! I highly recommend Kotobuyika. (Not sponsored, I just really enjoyed it!)

The building is some 150+ years old, it is a designated a city of Kanazawa cultural property. Originally it was a kimono shop. At the turn of the 20th century, it was turned into a restaurant.

10. Visit Oriental Brewing: Craft Beer in Kanazawa

One of my favorite things to do in a new town is to try the local craft beer! Oriental Brewing has three pubs located around town (Higashiyama, Kohrinbo and Kanazawa station), you’ll definitely be able to try out a few!

Getting Around Kanazawa

The best option for tourists is to use the loop bus. One of my favorite Japanese inventions, most cities have one.

For information and a free map, there is a Tourist Information Center inside Kanazawa Station or at the Transportation Information Center by the bus stops on the East gate side.

For a 200 yen flat rate you can take the right or left route that will take you to all of the major attractions. The buses depart from bus stop #7 (head out the east exit of the station) every 15 minutes from 8:30 am to 6 pm.

Getting to Kanazawa

Train travel almost always wins when traveling in Japan! Heading from Tokyo? The Hokuriku shinkansen is a direct shot, making the trip super convenient. Don’t forget about some possible stopover locations on your way though like Matsumoto and Takazawa.

Hitting the western circuit? The JR Thunderbird limited express line will get you from Kyoto. It’s also one of my favorite liner trains!

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