The Hokuriku area is located in the central part of Honshu facing the Sea of Japan and consists of four prefectures: Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui.
The area is also known for its heavy snowfall, especially in Minamiuonuma City and Joetsu City in Niigata Prefecture, which are known as one of the heaviest snowfall areas in Japan. As a result, many ski resorts are located in the area, which attracts many ski and snowboard fans from all over Japan during the winter season.
This area is also known as a treasure trove of foodstuffs from the sea to the mountains, with Toyama Prefecture in particular known throughout Japan for its firefly squid, a jewel of the sea, and Himi's cold yellowtail, which is a nationally recognized brand.
Major attractions include Niigata Prefecture's Bandai Bridge, Toyama Prefecture's Kurobe Dam, Ishikawa Prefecture's Senrihama Nagisa Driveway, and Fukui Prefecture's Tojinbo.
The Bandai Bridge in Niigata Prefecture, completed in 1929, is a reinforced concrete bridge consisting of six arches with granite veneer and measuring 306.9 m in length, making it one of the largest bridges of its time.
It was designated as a National Important Cultural Property in 2004 because of its high cultural value in the history of Japanese architecture, and has become a symbol representing Niigata Prefecture.
The Kurobe Dam in Toyama Prefecture was constructed upstream of the Kurobe River, and is the tallest dam in Japan at 186 meters, classified as one of the largest dams in the world.
Construction began in 1956 and was completed in 1963, taking about eight years, involving a total of 10 million people, and costing 51.3 billion yen, a tremendously large amount of money for the time.
The dam is equipped with a viewing plaza and observatory, where visitors can enjoy the view of the surrounding mountains and watch the annual 10-ton per second water discharge from June to October. It is also famous as a dam that attracts many tourists from inside and outside of the prefecture.
The Senrihama Nagisa Driveway, located in the western part of the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, is known as the only road in Japan that allows ordinary vehicles to drive on the sandy beach along the coastline. Since many tourists from inside and outside of the prefecture visit the beach every summer, road signs are set up only during the summer season, and there are also many facilities on the beach where visitors can enjoy refreshments and other amenities.
Tojinbo" in Fukui Prefecture is a cliff created by the erosion of the coastline's rock surface by waves and currents. The 25-meter-high precipitous rock cliff stretches along the coastline for about 1 km, and the columnar joints of pyroxene andesite make it a very precious place even from a global perspective.
Tojinbo is not only a place where visitors can enjoy the spectacular scenery created by nature, but also a popular spot for shopping and dining with its many traditional stores.
The museum is like a park where anyone can drop in. The museum's concept is to provide a place where visitors can feel familiar with contemporary art and encounter it in a variety of ways. The word "contemporary art" may sound esoteric to some, but here you can actually see, touch, and feel many exhibits, including Leandro Erlich's "Swimming Pool" (also known as "Leandro's Pool"). Visitors can en...»
There are only three natural driveways in the world where you can drive on the sandy beach.It is about 8 kilometers long, and can be driven on the beach by bus, motorcycle, or bicycle. The secret lies in the size of the sand, with each grain measuring approximately 0.2 mm.Each grain of sand is about 0.2 millimeters in diameter. The same size of fine sand contains seawater, which hardens and tight...»
At 186 meters high and 492 meters long, the Kurobe Dam is Japan's largest arched dome overflow dam and one of the tallest in the world. The sightseeing water discharge, which sprays out more than 10 tons of water per second, is very powerful, and is held from late June to mid-October. Construction began in 1956 and took seven years to complete, overcoming numerous difficulties in the face of Mot...»
Tojinbo is a geologically unique and unusual sight of columnar cliffs of pyroxene andesite that juts out into the Sea of Japan and stretches for more than 1 km. This large-scale columnar jointed rock formation is rare in the world, and is a very valuable geological site along with Mount Kumgang on the Korean Peninsula and the west coast of Norway in Scandinavia.It is designated as a national scen...»
Tateyama Murodo-hira, at an elevation of 2,450 meters, is one of the world's heaviest snowfall areas, with an average snow depth of about 7 meters. In particular, "Yuki-no-Otani" (Snow Valley), a 5-minute walk from Murodou Station, has a heavy snowfall due to a blowdown, and its depth exceeds 20 meters at the most. Snow plowing along the road creates a 500-meter wall of snow, and when the Alpine...»
Kenrokuen Garden is a beautiful garden known as one of the three best gardens in Japan. The vast grounds are dotted with mountains, ponds, teahouses, and other features that allow visitors to enjoy a variety of landscapes. The garden is decorated with natural beauty from season to season, and the snow hanging in winter is especially famous as a Kanazawa tradition. The garden is illuminated at n...»
This is a historical townscape with many traditional townhouses built from the time of the establishment of the teahouse district to the early Meiji period (1868-1912). The beautifully designed deogoshi (latticework) and cobblestone-paved streets are full of taste, and the area has been selected as an Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings by the Japanese government. ...»
The temple Myoritsu-ji is also commonly known as "Ninja Temple" because of its unique architectural structure and secret tricks used to deceive the enemy. In fact, there were no ninjas involved; the name derives from the temple's architectural structure. When Maeda Toshiie entered Kanazawa Castle in 1583 during the Warring States period, the temple was built as a prayer hall for his political ph...»
Kanazawa's Nagamachi area, which was once the castle town of the Kaga Hyakumangoku clan, was inhabited by samurai during the Kaga Domain era, and is lined with samurai residences. The stone pavements and earthen walls of the old days still remain, and among them is the Nomura family's samurai residence, which is open to the public. The Nomura family's residence is a perfect combination of a pres...»
Located in a corner of Kaga Onsen-kyo, Yamanaka Onsen is a hot spring resort with a long history. Surrounded by mountains, the hot spring town also offers a rural mountain atmosphere with its natural mountains, valleys, and rivers. The town is lined with inns along the Daishoji River valley and other areas. Yamanaka Onsen Attractions Yamanaka Onsen, literally "in the mountains," is an area with ...»
Located in the Nagaoyama General Park (Katsuyama Dinosaur Forest), this natural history museum has exhibits centering on dinosaurs. The museum is nationally renowned as a treasure trove of dinosaur fossils and is one of the largest in the world. Worldwide, it is considered one of the three major dinosaur museums, along with the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Canada and the Drikung Dino...»
A large theme park where you can enjoy numerous attractions on a vast site surrounded by beautiful lawns facing the Sea of Japan. Especially in summer, one of the largest swimming pools in Japan opens, attracting many tourists from Kansai and Chukyo. Visitors can enjoy approximately 50 screaming slides and the largest scale water resort on the Sea of Japan. The amusement pool is also one of the l...»
The observatory at the Rainbow Line Mountaintop Park offers a spectacular view of all the Mikata Goko (Five Lakes of Mikata) stretching across the town of Mihama. The Sea of Japan and the Five Lakes of Mikata can be seen from any direction, east, west, north, south, and west. Five terraces have been set up, and visitors can enjoy the view in a variety of styles, including footbaths and sofas. Th...»
The Toyama City Museum of Glass Art is a public art museum that exhibits contemporary glass art works by glass artists from Japan and abroad, as well as historical glass artifacts, with a focus on Toyama glass. The Toyama City Museum of Glass Art is located on the 2nd to 6th floors of the Toyama Kirari complex, which consists of a gallery, library, bank, and other facilities. On the sixth floor ...»