10BRENDA's Reviews Page 3/16

Matsue Horikawa Sightseeing Boat

This tour boat with a roof floats on the 3.7km-long moat around the national treasure, Matsue Castle. The boatman gives a guide with humorous stories, while you relax and watch scenery.

Shimane
Ships

14 May 2026 See More

The Matsue Horikawa Sightseeing Boat is truly a perfect example of blending slow city living with nature.
Sitting on the charming old-style boat and slowly drifting along the moat around Matsue Castle, with weeping willows, old trees, and traditional samurai residences along the shore, it feels like time is flowing backward. The slow pace makes your whole body relax.
What’s even more moving is the eco-friendly environment this waterway reflects.
Even though it runs through the heart of Matsue City, the moat is full of life thanks to the local community’s careful protection of the water quality and surroundings.

Matsue Castle

Perched on a 29-meter tall hill in the flatlands near Shinji Lake, Matsue Castle was designated a Japanese national treasure in 2015. It was built some 400 years ago by Yoshiharu Horio, the lord of Izumo and Oki Provinces. The castle is sometimes nicknamed “Plover Castle” due to the castle gables resembling a plover bird with outstretched wings.

Shimane
Tourist Attractions

14 May 2026 See More

Matsue Castle is absolutely worth making a special trip for.
It is one of only 12 surviving original castle keeps in Japan, and one of the very few designated as a National Treasure—only five castles in the entire country have that status.
Compared with many castles rebuilt in reinforced concrete after the war, the most captivating thing about Matsue Castle is that it has beautifully preserved its original wooden structure from more than 400 years ago, dating back to the early Edo period. That simple, steady, and dignified sense of history is something modern reconstructions simply can’t match.

Yaegaki Shrine

This ancient shrine enshrines Susanoo-no-Mikoto and Inatahime-no-Mikoto, deities from the legend of Yamata-no-Orochi, the eight-headed serpent. According to mythology, Susanoo defeated the serpent to protect Inatahime, whom he later married. Today you’ll see many flocking to this spot for its believed extra boost for blessings for matchmaking, marital harmony, and safe childbirth.

Shimane
Shrines & Temples

14 May 2026 See More

The Mirror Pond fortune-telling is especially charming because it doesn’t give you a rigid black-and-white answer.
Instead, through the interaction between the water and the paper, it gently follows nature and offers guidance for where you are in this moment.
When you softly place a coin on the blank fortune paper and watch it float across the clear surface of the pond,
as the words gradually appear, an incredible sense of calm fills your heart.

Shimane Art Museum

A lakeside museum themed around harmony with water, located along the shores of Lake Shinji. Designed with a low profile to blend seamlessly with the surrounding landscape, its gentle, wave-like curves evoke the image of a "nagisa," the connecting point between water and land.

Shimane
Museums

14 May 2026 See More

The Shimane Art Museum is truly a must-visit place for anyone who loves Katsushika Hokusai’s ukiyo-e.
Many people may not realize that the museum holds more than 1,000 Hokusai-related works. Seeing those fluid, life-filled lines up close is genuinely thrilling.

Adachi Museum of Art

The founder of the museum is a successful businessman, Adachi Zenko, who was born in Yasugi City, Shimane Prefecture. Bringing together the modern Japanese paintings of renowned artists such as Yokoyama Taikan, Yokoyama Seiho, Uemura Shoen, Hashimoto Kansetsu, Sagakibara Shiho, the museum stores about 2000 artworks, including ceramic arts and wooden sculptures.

Shimane
Museums

14 May 2026 See More

The Adachi Museum of Art truly brings the aesthetics of the Japanese garden to their highest form.
The fact that it has been chosen by an American specialty magazine as Japan’s top garden for more than 20 consecutive years is completely well deserved.
Yokoyama Taikan’s paintings are certainly stunning, but the real showstopper is that entire living Japanese painting—the garden itself—constantly shifting with the seasons, light, and shadows.
And after taking in all that beauty, sitting down in the museum café for a cup of coffee feels like the perfect finishing touch to the whole visit.

Ginza Tamaya Tokyo Skytree "Goma Tamago"

These charming, egg-shaped sweets feature black sesame paste and smooth black sesame filling wrapped in fluffy castella cake, all coated in white chocolate. The shape and size resemble a real egg, and slicing one open reveals a visually appealing four-layered cross-section. With delightful flavors created by layering different textures, this treat is perfect as a thoughtful souvenir to delight friends and family.

Asakusa, Tokyo Skytree
Snacks

25 Apr 2026 See More

Every time I get my hands on them, I just can't stop eating them one after another.

Izumo Taisha

Izumo Taisha is one of the most revered, ancient shrines in Japan, along with Ise jingu Shrine. Its records go as far back as writings from the Kojiki, Japan’ oldest historical account compiled in 712. The deity enshrined here is Okuninushi no Okami, who is known as the deity of love and marriage.。

Shimane
Shrines & Temples

19 Apr 2026 See More

Izumo Taisha is known as Japan’s most powerful shrine for matchmaking.
Within this ancient and majestic sacred grounds, the most heart-melting and smile-inducing sight is definitely the scattered statues of the White Rabbit of Inaba found throughout the shrine.
There are so many of them, and every single one is wonderfully lively and adorable. The craftsmen have given that grateful little rabbit from the myth of Okuninushi a wide range of modern personalities and expressions.

Izumo Hinomisaki Lighthouse

The 43m-tall lighthouse stands on Cape Hino at the western edge of Shimane. 63m above sea level, this is Japan's tallest stone lighthouse. This large western-style lighthouse was selected into the IALA list of 100 lighthouses as historic and architectural monuments and 50 Best Lighthouses in Japan.

Shimane
Tourist Attractions

19 Apr 2026 See More

The view on a clear day is truly breathtaking.
This pure white stone lighthouse, the tallest in Japan, stands between Shimane’s flawless blue sky and the dramatic Sea of Japan. The contrast of blue and white is so pure, vivid, and beautifully balanced that you just can’t stop taking photos.
And the best part here is definitely the time spent strolling along the coastal walking path.

Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Center

Iwami Ginzan was registered as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site in 2007. This guidance facility offers a chance to learn about its history, life at the mine, and research findings. Stop by before visiting Iwami Ginzan to gain a deeper understanding of why it was selected as a World Heritage site.

Shimane
Museums

12 Apr 2026 See More

The Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Center is absolutely the perfect place to start.
The interactive exhibits are smooth and modern, and they vividly bring the mining process and the area’s prosperous past to life right in front of you.

Iwami Ginzan, Omori area and Ginzan Area

This mine was Japan’s major producer of silver, known not only domestically but also globally. Iwami silver mine was registered as a World Heritage Site in 2007. Omori district and Ginzan district were the center of mining and economy in Sennoyama area. Between the two districts, there is the Iwami Ginzan Tourist Information Center.

Shimane
Tourist Attractions

12 Apr 2026 See More

What makes this place so special is that it doesn’t have the over-commercialized feel of a typical tourist old street. Because there are fewer visitors, you can slow your pace to the fullest and wander almost effortlessly, taking in this silver town that once influenced the world economy.