I wasn't particularly interested in Nagoya Castle until I learned that the city had faithfully reconstructed Honmaru Palace—including spaces such as Jorakuden Hall and Yudono Shoin—using surviving prewar plans, photographs, measurements, and wall paintings. In other words, Nagoya Castle offers more than just a castle keep; you can also visit the shogun's residence. Once I learned that, I was determined to go.
Honmaru Palace was what I looked forward to most, and it was every bit as breathtaking as I expected. From the entrance and Omote Shoin to Jorakuden Hall, there was a succession of gold-leaf wall paintings, carved transoms, decorative metalwork, and elaborately designed ceilings. It was so lavish that my neck started to ache from constantly looking up. I could also hear other visitors gasping in amazement.
Yudono Shoin was equally fascinating. This was the shogun's private bathing and relaxation area. Rather than a bathtub, it featured a steam bath. The craftsmanship of the woodwork was exquisite, and even the bathing area had the refinement expected of a facility reserved for the shogun.
Because the palace contains almost no furniture or household items, some rooms can look similar, making it difficult to immediately imagine how they were used. However, by closely observing differences in floor height, the subjects of the wall paintings, ceilings, transoms, and seating arrangements, you can still see how each space reflected status and hierarchy.
If time allows, I highly recommend visiting Nagoya Castle and the Tokugawa Art Museum together. Honmaru Palace showcases the architectural spaces and formal order of the samurai class, while the museum preserves armor, tea utensils, paintings, calligraphy, and everyday objects from the Owari Tokugawa family. Together, they provide a much clearer understanding of daimyo culture and daily life at the time.
I used to have low expectations for Nagoya Castle, but now I feel that simply being able to walk through such a meticulously reconstructed palace makes the visit worthwhile—even without access to the castle keep.
Nagoya Castle | Review by Holly
Other Reviews by Holly
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Hisaya-odori Park
Hisaya-odori Park is a long, linear urban park located along Hisaya-odori Avenue, recognized as one of Japan's "100 Best Roads." Combining parkland with commercial amenities, visitors can enjoy shopping and dining amidst lush greenery.
I made a special trip to Hisaya-odori Park this time mainly to see the limited-time event held in collaboration with Nagoya’s popular chick-shaped pudding dessert, Piyorin. There was a large Piyorin-shaped installation featuring a transparent dome design, and visitors could walk right inside to take pictures. Taiwan has similar events, but being able to go inside was still pretty unusual and interesting. Many people took the opportunity to enter and take commemorative photos, so it was hard to get a shot of the chick without anyone inside.
Besides the event itself, the area around Hisaya-odori Park is also quite lively, with many well-known shops and restaurant brands nearby. If you enjoy shopping or looking for unique stores, it might be worth checking in advance to see which places nearby are worth visiting. While walking around this time, I unexpectedly came across the main HARBS store in Nagoya Sakae, which immediately brought back memories of the food. I hesitated and wondered whether I should go in, but when I saw the line outside, I decided to leave it for next time.
Hisaya-odori Park is also conveniently connected to the underground shopping area. Heading downstairs takes you into the Central Park underground mall. I also stopped by a used camera store that a friend had recommended before. There were so many restaurants in the underground mall that I didn’t know what to eat. This area is just as commercially vibrant as Tokyo. -
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Sarutahiko Shrine
Sarutahiko Shrine enshrines Sarutahiko Ookami, the God who appears at the beginning of things and guides everything in the right direction. The Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters) and Nihonshoki (Chronicles of Japan) tell us that he "enlightened the first heavenly grandson of the nation to this land." The votive tablet (Ema) depicts the "Michibiki no Mai (Dance of Michibiki)'' unique to the Sarutahiko Shrine, guiding wishes in the right direction.
I really liked the atmosphere of worship here.
Compared with Ise Jingu, Sarutahiko Shrine has relatively fewer worshippers. It may be less lively, but that makes it easier to appreciate the buildings and every corner of the grounds at your own pace. I was especially impressed by the uncommon octagonal designs found throughout the shrine and the main sanctuary built in the distinctive Satahiko-zukuri style, with its unique double-gabled roof.
This architectural style, which differs from the forms commonly seen at most shrines, gives the entire shrine a distinct character. The grounds also have places worth seeing, such as the Direction Stone, Takara Stone, and Sarume Shrine. The Direction Stone is one of the features most closely associated with the shrine, giving physical form to the main deity's role in guiding people and providing a more tangible way to pray for good fortune.
Sarume Shrine, meanwhile, represents beliefs related to the performing arts and the repose of spirits, which showed me that even within the grounds of a single shrine, you can learn about different aspects of Japanese Shinto culture.
Overall, this isn't a particularly large shrine, but it has many details worth taking the time to observe. If you're not in a hurry, you can explore it slowly. It's not far from the Inner Shrine and Okage Yokocho area and can be reached on foot, so you can include them together in your itinerary and experience the character of this rare shrine in Ise that isn't affiliated with Ise Jingu. -
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Otori Shrine
Otori Shrine, with a history of about 1200 years, is the oldest shrine in Meguro Ward, Tokyo. Founded during the Heian period, it's depicted in the oldest map of Edo, the "Chōroku Edo-zu," created in the Muromachi period. Being one of the only nine shrines featured in this map, it is counted among the "Edo Kyūsha" (Nine Shrines of Edo).
Otori Shrine is located in Zoshigaya, Tokyo, and has deep historical ties to Kishimojin Temple. Its main deity is Yamato Takeru, with Ukanomitama also enshrined here, and it is also the place where Ebisu, one of the Zoshigaya Seven Lucky Gods, is worshipped. The deity here was originally enshrined under the name “Sagi Myojin” within the grounds of Kishimojin Temple. It was moved during the Meiji period due to the order separating Shinto and Buddhism, gradually taking shape as the present-day Otori Shrine.
I stopped by Otori Shrine this time because of the Zoshigaya Handmade Market, but after actually walking inside, I unexpectedly came away with a good impression of the shrine itself. The handmade market happened to extend onto the shrine grounds during my visit, making it much livelier than usual, but there were still far fewer people than at Kishimojin Temple. Although the market extended onto the shrine grounds, there were fewer stalls here, and the works were more focused on floral art and handicrafts. I especially liked a Christmas wreath made with stained glass. It was delicate and had a very distinctive style.
The biggest surprise this time was unexpectedly seeing a chinowa ring being set up for the year-end purification ceremony. I knew there would be a chinowa ring in the summer, but I didn’t expect one at the end of the year. I paused for a moment when I saw the large ring woven from miscanthus reeds, then immediately took out my phone to double-check the correct way to walk through the “chinowa-kuguri.” After all, I had only done it before at Kitano Tenmangu Shrine in Kyoto, and enough time had passed that I had almost completely forgotten. Since it was such a rare opportunity, of course I quickly followed the instructions online and walked through it to cleanse myself of impurities. -
