Nagoya
Capital Of Aichi Prefecture; Nagoya Castle Is A Special Historic Site · Nagoya, Aichi
Japan's fourth-largest city, an industrial powerhouse in central Honshu between Tokyo and Osaka, and the heart of the region that builds Toyota's cars. It is often passed through on the shinkansen, but has plenty to offer. Nagoya Castle, built for the Tokugawa in 1612 and famous for the golden shachihoko, the tiger-headed fish on its roof, lost its keep in the bombing of 1945; the concrete keep of 1959 has been closed for a planned wooden reconstruction, but the Honmaru Palace, rebuilt in cypress with painted screens, is superb. Atsuta Jingu, one of Shinto's most important shrines, is said to hold the sacred sword of the imperial regalia. The Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology and the SCMAGLEV and Railway Park show the city's engineering side, and the Tokugawa Art Museum holds scrolls of the Tale of Genji. Nagoya has its own food, called Nagoya meshi: miso katsu, hitsumabushi grilled eel, tebasaki chicken wings and kishimen noodles. The Osu shopping district is lively, and the Ghibli Park is in the suburbs. It is the gateway to Takayama, Ise and Inuyama.
Sakae, Naka Ward, Nagoya, Aichi, 460-0008, Japan
NO OPENING TIME HERE WAS CHECKED - CONFIRM BEFORE GOING. The typical pattern: Nagoya Castle and the Honmaru Palace open daily from about 9am to 4:30pm, with last entry to the palace earlier and the keep itself closed for reconstruction. Museums generally open about 9:30 or 10am to 5pm and close one day a week: the Toyota museum and Tokugawa Art Museum usually on Mondays, the Railway Park usually on Tuesdays. Atsuta Jingu's grounds are open at all hours. Ghibli Park opens only to ticket holders on fixed dates and is often closed on Tuesdays. The traps: Monday and Tuesday closures, arriving at Ghibli Park without a ticket, and eel queues. Confirm times before relying on them.