We brought our little ones to Nagoya Castle on our last full day in Japan for a glimpse into the country’s history and culture. Nagoya Castle was built in 1612 during Edo Period by Tokugawa Ieyasu of the ruling Tokugawa family as the seat of the Owari branch. Back then, it was one of the largest castles in the country. Hommaru Palace within the castle walls was constructed in 1615 by to be used as residence and government of the first lord.
The palace and main castle tower were designated as national treasures in 1930. However they were burnt down in 1945 during World War II. This is an aerial photo of the castle photographed around 1931 exhibited in one of the halls. The original castle had wooden structure. The current castle was rebuilt in 1959 with ferro-concrete.
On our way into the castle, we chanced into 2 ‘Ninja’ performers giving away brochures to their upcoming events. DL and CL were both amazed by their moves and pleased to have photos taken with them. Thereafter, our first stop was the Hommaru Palace.
Works to restore the Hommaru Palace started in 2009 and the first section was opened to public in 2013. The works are divided into 3 stages. We got to see the first and second stage of the building during our visit in December 2017. The cones and barricades outside the palace were tell-tale signs that restoration works was still ongoing. All the works are expected to be completed in 2018.
Footwear is not allowed in the building, so on our way in, we took a pair of loan slippers each. Then we stowed our footwear away in the lockers provided. The information boards within the restored Hommaru Palace come in 4 languages: Japanese, English, Korean and Chinese. We took time to admire the elegant interior decorated with gold covered walls and paintings, restored in impressive details. And of course took many photos.
After visiting the Hommaru Palace, we did not walked around to the corner towers or other smaller buildings. Instead we headed straight to the Main Donjon (fortified tower) of Nagoya Castle. Noticed the golden ornament on top of the roof? It is a kinshachi.
The kinshachi or golden dolphins are symbols of Nagoya Castle. Shachi are mythical creatures that are said to be able to summon water and was used as a charm to prevent fire. In addition, they were used as symbol of the feudal lord’s authority. Kinshachi were added to the castle roofs in the Muromachi Era (1334-1400). This is the one exhibited on 1st storey. There is another one on 5th storey which you can sit on the replica and take photos.
Though the original kinshachi were destroyed in the fire but they were also re-constructed in 1959. Thanks to the 40x zoom of my Nikon Coolpix B500 compact camera, i managed to capture this photo of a kinshachi right atop the 7th storey high main keep.
We took the elevator and went straight up to the observation deck on the topmost floor of Main Donjon.
Here, we enjoyed clear unblocked view of Nagoya City from the observation deck.
There are exhibit halls from 5th storey all the way down to 1st storey and each hall runs along a certain theme.
Examples of the themes include the construction of the castle, life in the castle town back in early days and items (such as roof tile) from the original building. Here are some of the exhibits within the castle:
During construction of the buildings, motor-powered vehicles were still unavailable. People used various devices and technique to transport the large stones. One method was to haul large stones with rope over a path laid with logs. For even larger stones, these were loaded on wooden sleds and pulled by tens to thousands of men, depending on the size. We tried out this method of pulling on a hands-on exhibit. It was real tough!
As always, we like to get a little souvenir as a memento of the place. Besides the souvenir kiosk on the observation deck in the Main Donjon, we also shopped at this quaint museum shop. The food & beverage options in the castle are some stalls selling drinks and ice cream. Thankfully prior to entering the castle, we had our lunch at a cafe in the adjacent Aichi Prefecture Gymnasium.
We spent around 3 hours within the compound and it was definitely time well-spent.
Note:
On the official website, there is a notice that due to the deterioration in the concrete used for Main Tower reconstruction, it now has insufficient earthquake resistance capabilities. As such, the City of Nagoya is planning to restore Nagoya Castle to its original wooden structure, for better earthquake resistance. I was not able to find any date in the notice but do check the website for details before visiting.
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Read about our trip itinerary and the places we visited in Japan Nagoya Itinerary 2017 .
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Address: 1-1 Honmaru, Naka Ward, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture 460-0031, Japan
Telephone: +81 52-231-1700
Official Website: Nagoya Castle
Opening Hours: 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m (check calendar on official website for days closed)
Admission Charge: Adults(18 years and above) JPY500, Junior High Students and Younger Free
Getting There: We took the Meijo Line to Shiyakusho (City Hall) stop. It is a short walk from the station.