Terraced Rice Fields of Four Villages

Ohkura Village is the collective name of four villages (Toyomaki, Takinosawa, Numanodai and Hirabayashi). Their rice paddies are famous for the largest scale in Tohoku Region, 120 hectares in all, which is selected into one of 100 most beautiful terraced rice fields in Japan.

The fields are filled with water in spring, the green rice stalks grow under the summer sun, and fall brings golden ears of rice. Okura Village is one of the most snowy areas in Japan. Terraced rice fields will be all silvery in winter. Each season brings its own beauty here.

On the 1st Saturday of August, there is an annual event, Four Village Terraced Rice Field Firefly Concert. Nearly 1,200 “fireflies” are lit on the terraced fields and a concert is held in the dreamy landscape.

About a 15-minute drive from the four villages, Hijiori Onsen resort is still keeping its 1,200-year history. The name came from an elderly monk (Jizo Gongen) who was suffering from a broken elbow and got healed immediately when he soaked in the hot spring here. The morning market is famous where local vegetables are spread under the inns’ eaves. The local women and tourists’ conversations sound like heart-warming background music there.