Nagoya Castle: A Must-Visit but Lacking Historic Feel

2015-03-28 · Updated: 2026-08-11 · Original (Korean)

This article was translated from the original Korean post with AI assistance. Read the original Korean post →

Day two of the trip.

Today's schedule is to see Nagoya Castle in the morning, look around the Otsu market street next to it, and then take a train to the hot spring town of Gero. I planned it to be as relaxed as possible, but we'll have to see if it actually is, or if we'll be out of breath rushing around. Anyway, enough of the pessimistic talk—let's head out to see Nagoya Castle!

Just like in Korea and China, every city in Japan seems to have a castle where the old feudal lords used to live. Osaka has Osaka Castle, Nagoya has Nagoya Castle, and so on. Unlike in Korea or China, it seems that in Japan, even if a castle is destroyed, they usually restore it after historical research.

I became a fan of Tokugawa Ieyasu after reading the novel Daemang (The Great Hope). So, ever since I decided to come to Nagoya, I had huge expectations for the castle he built. It must be quite an incredible castle, considering there's even a line in an Ise folk song that goes, "Ise embraces the port, the port embraces Ise, and Owari Nagoya embraces the castle." But once I got here and looked into it, I found out it was completely destroyed by US bombing during World War II. On top of that, I was disappointed even before going because I heard the newly rebuilt castle looks different from the original. Still, it's considered one of Japan's top three castles (or more accurately, the Three Famous Castles of Japan), so I had to go see it. Honestly, though, it's beyond me how a castle that wasn't even properly historically researched for its restoration can be ranked so highly.

After checking out and leaving our luggage at the hotel, we took the quiet weekend morning subway, got off at Sengen-cho Station, and headed toward Nagoya Castle. When you get out of the station, you can see the castle in the distance. Seeing it from afar definitely has the power to make your heart flutter.

Guide map showing the overall structure and main facilities of Nagoya Castle — Looking at the map in front of the entrance, the areas currently under construction are marked in red. I guess it's still not completely finished.

Wooden sign reading Special Historic Site Nagoya Castle — A lot of Koreans must really visit here.

Admission ticket printed with the four seasons scenery of Nagoya Castle — The admission fee is 500 yen. It doesn't feel too expensive, but since it's not a properly preserved castle, it doesn't feel cheap either. They say it's beautiful when the cherry blossoms bloom, so it would probably feel like a bargain then. Opening hours are from 9 AM to 5 PM. However, the main keep, the Tenshukaku, is only open until 4 PM, so you should go in the morning.

Nagoya Castle information board showing today's event schedule — If we had more time, we would have sought out these events to watch, but we were short on time, and Chef Kim, who came with me, doesn't really like this kind of thing, so we skipped it.

Stone walls and white watchtowers of Nagoya Castle seen across a wide dirt path — The weather was a bit chilly, but it was a really nice day. The sky was pleasantly blue, and it harmonized perfectly with the predominantly white buildings of Nagoya Castle. I guess people here don't have to worry about smog blowing over from China?

Park walking path surrounded by large trees and an information board — Chef Kim, who is also a bonsai expert, enjoying looking at the trees more than the castle.

Nagoya Castle watchtower with white exterior walls built on a high stone wall — Just like in the West, Japanese castles also had deep moats dug around them to prevent enemy invasions. But since there's no water, it feels a bit empty.

Wooden sign with an explanation of the Honmaru Omote Ichinomon (main gate) site

A small wooden information board stands in front of a castle wall densely built with large and small stones. — Since the buildings were completely destroyed and rebuilt, their locations seem to have shifted slightly. This wall was around the main gate when Nagoya Castle was first built, but now the gate is completely gone, and only this wall remains. If they were going to rebuild it, they should have done it properly; this lack of meticulousness is quite un-Japanese.

A white information board with multilingual explanations and old black-and-white photos of the Nagoya Castle Honmaru Goten (palace).

White exterior castle buildings and people taking a walk are seen across a wide dirt plaza under a blue sky.

Looking at this makes me feel good about Suwon Hwaseong Fortress in Korea, which seems to have been restored with proper historical accuracy. Well, Bulguksa Temple and almost all our other cultural assets were restored pretty haphazardly, without even needing to look closely. If I had my way, I'd want both Japan and Korea to tear down the poorly reconstructed ones and rebuild them properly based on accurate historical research. But considering the money already spent, I know that's nonsense.

There must be a lot of artifacts from that era inside, so I should go in and take a look.

#WhatKindOfHistoricalResearchIsThis #ItsJustANewBuilding #CantFeelTokugawaIeyasuAtAll #SoDifferentFromAtsutaShrineYesterday #ShouldHaveLivedAGoodLife