Okayama Prefecture offers tourist attractions such as the Seto-ohashi Bridge, Yubara Hot Springs, and Okayama International Circuit; sightseeing events such as the Hanzaki Festival, Tsuyama Cherry Blossom Festival, and Heartland Kurashiki; and local delicacies such as kibi dumplings, Tsuyama hormone udon, and Hiruzen yakisoba.
Okayama Prefecture is located in the southeastern part of the Chugoku region and has about 90 islands in the Seto Inland Sea. Once called Kibi Province, Okayama Prefecture is home to the Zouzan burial mounds, the Sakusan burial mounds, and the large Ryomiyama burial mounds, and the size of these mounds suggests that in ancient times Okayama was a larger power than the Yamato Imperial Court.
After Kibi Province became a vassal state to the Yamato Imperial Court, it became Bizen Province, Bichu Province, and Bingo Province, and Mimasaka Province was created from Bizen Province.
During the Edo period (1603-1867), the area was ruled by the Ikeda and Mori clans, but Kurashiki City was considered as a natural domain, and that city, located in the southern part of Okayama Prefecture, has become a famous tourist destination as the Bikan Historical Quarter with its beautiful scenery of white walled towns along the river.
In addition to ancient ruins scattered throughout the prefecture, Okayama Prefecture is also home to places and historic sites associated with historical events, such as the Battle of Mizushima and the Battle of Fujito, which were fought in the Genpei War, and the path taken by Emperor Godaigo when he was exiled to Oki during the Nanbokucho Period (1336-1568). Okayama Prefecture is a national historic site.
There are two castles in Okayama Prefecture: Okayama Castle, a national historic site, and Bitchu Matsuyama Castle, a national historic site and an important cultural property.
Okayama Castle, also known as Karasu Castle or Kin Karasu Castle, is built on a small hill. Okayama Castle was built by Ukita Naoye on the Ishiyama Castle, and served as an important fortress in each period.
On the other hand, Bitchu Takamatsu Castle, also called Takamatsu Castle, is famous for being attacked by water by Hideyoshi Hashiba, and both are nationally famous tourist attractions.
When you are tired after touring historical sites, it is your turn to heal your body and soul. Okayama Prefecture is dotted with hot springs, and the hot springs of Shimoyubara Onsen, Ashi Onsen, Maga Onsen, and Goroku Onsen are called Yubara Onsen-kyo, and together with Yunogo Onsen and Okutsu Onsen, are known as Mimasaka Sanyu, and are visited by many people.
Okayama Prefecture includes the production area of Bizen ware, which is one of the six oldest kilns in Japan. Bizen Pottery kilns are scattered around Bizen City, where visitors can not only acquire pottery, but also experience pottery making.
Okayama Prefecture is a land of flourishing agriculture, and produces the largest amount of grapes in western Japan. In addition, the production of fruits such as pears and peaches is also thriving, and many B-class gourmet foods have been created. Kakioko is an okonomiyaki with oysters, and has even been registered as a trademark by the Bizen Higashi Commerce and Industry Association. Bukkake udon, now famous throughout Japan, is a specialty of Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture.
The area, with its rows of willow trees swaying in the wind, white walls and sea cucumber walls casting a beautiful contrast and casting shadows on the Kurashiki River, retains much of its traditional Japanese architectural beauty. There are many cultural facilities such as the Ohara Museum of Art, which has a collection of world-famous paintings, a folk art museum, and an archaeology museum....»
Gagyuzan (Mt. Gagyuzan) consists of four peaks, the remains of which can be seen from the 487-meter-high summit to the southern ridge of the castle. The present "Bicchu Matsuyama Castle" is said to have been completed in 1683 by Katsumune Mizutani, lord of the Matsuyama domain. It takes about 1,500 meters from the castle town at the foot of the mountain to reach the main castle tower on the summ...»
The main shrine and worship hall, dedicated to Kibitsuhiko-no-mikoto, are national treasures, built in a grand and graceful hibi-irimoya style. The present main hall and worship hall were begun by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, the third Seiin Taishogun of the Muromachi Shogunate, at the order of Emperor Go-Kogon, and moved to the present location in 1425. It is the only one of its kind in Japan to use th...»
Korakuen Garden is one of the three most famous gardens in Japan and is designated as a Special Place of Scenic Beauty, the highest level of garden design. It is also highly acclaimed overseas, being ranked three stars in the Michelin Green Guide Japon. The garden was built by order of the feudal lord of Okayama, Ikeda Tsunamasa, and was completed around 1700. Although the garden was modified by...»
Construction of the castle began in 1573 by Ukita Naoye and was completed in 1597. The castle tower was destroyed by fire during the war, but has been rebuilt and the interior is used as an exhibition hall. In the northwestern corner stands a turret that survived the fire and reminds us of the days when the castle was worth 315,000 koku. ◎Ukita Naoye (1529-1582)Ukita Naoye initially served Urak...»
This historical building was used as a school building until it was relocated in 1990.It has been used as a filming location for movies and TV commercials, attracting much attention. The construction cost was nearly three times larger than the Kuse town budget at the time. The construction materials were selected from superior cypress and cedar timbers from the Kiyama National Forest in Maniwa Ci...»
Demikatsudon is a rice bowl with cabbage and cutlet (some serve without cabbage) and demiglace sauce on top. This katsudon was invented by the founder of Ajitsukasa Nomura, a restaurant in Okayama, when he was a trainee chef in a hotel in Tokyo. Demikatsudon, a mixture of Japanese and Western cuisine, has a unique taste that is different from the orthodox katsudon with eggs. Boiled cabbage is plac...»
Okayama prefecture has one of the highest amount of octopus catch in Japan. The octopus from Shimotsui, Kurashiki in Setonaikai Sea where the sea current is fast is said to be tasty with its firm flesh and unique texture. It is of high quality. Takomeshi, a specialty of Kurashiki, is a dish of octopus cut in small pieces and cooked together with rice. The fragrant of the sea spreads in your mouth....»
Sozuri nabe has been a popular hotpot since long time ago in Tsuyama city, Okayama prefecture. The word sozuri comes from the meat shaved off (sozuru) from cow’s bones. A branded beef “Sakushuushi” is used for the nabe. Fresh sozuri beef is simmered in a sweet and salty say sauce-based soup, together with burdocks, tofu, and other vegetables. It has a light flavor, unlike its appearance. The softl...»
This is a donburi (rice bowl) with mochi (rice cakes). It is an inventive gyudon (beef rice bowl) with mochi instead of rice. Smooth tasty mochi is topped with ingredients of gyudon with a little sweet sauce. This is a dish which one can fully enjoy “himenomochi”, a specialty of Shinjoson. Himenomochi is made with waters of Shinjogawa river that runs from “Kenashiyama” where a primeval forest of b...»
Eating fresh shako (mantis shrimp) from the Setonaikai Sea as sashimi (raw). Shako becomes thinner and thinner as time passes after it dies as it produces an enzyme that melts its flesh. Being able to eat it raw means it is very fresh. It is tasty with soy sauce, but is even better with sudachi citron....»
Wild boar cuisines such as botan nabe have been eaten by local people of Nimi since long ago, as the area has many wild boars. People came up with the idea of making the wild boar a local specialty, and this is how wild boar ramen was born. Serious damages to farm products had been made by wild boars, and more and more wild boars were caught every year. Wild boar ramen was developed by the youth g...»
This udon noodles is 2cm wide and 1m long, with springy texture that fills your stomach. It is a specialty of Tamashima which ascetic monks of Entsuji preferred to eat. The year when Entsuji was built is unclear, but it was rebuilt by a zen priest called Tokuou Ryokou in 1698 during the Edo period, and changed its name to the current name during the Shotoku years between 1711 and 1716. During the ...»
One of the three great production areas of oysters is Okayama prefecture. The environment is suitable for farming high quality oysters. Oysters are also called “the milk of the ocean” and contain various nutrition such as protein, calcium, zinc, and other minerals. Oysters go well with any kind of dish, and “oyster nabe” is the hotpot style dish with oysters. Miso is spread around the inside edge ...»
This is an inventive sushi based on “Okayama bara sushi”, a representative dish of Okayama, imitating the Okayama Castle, also known as “Kinujo”. Black beans are used to portray the black walls of the castle tower, and yellow Chinese chives and gold leaf are used to portray the golden roof tiles and the shachihoko fish on the roof-ridges. The seafood from Setonaikai sea such as Sawara (Spanish mac...»
“Hiruzen okowa” is a local dish of Hiruzen area, located in the Northern part of Maniwa city, Okayama prefecture, near the border to Tottori prefecture. It is an essential dish for festivals and celebrations in Hiruzen. It is said that its origin was when people were cooking festive red rice, they added the ingredients for chirashi sushi by mistake together with red beans and it turned out as a de...»
Bukkake udon is a dish of boiled udon noodles topped with various ingredients and seasonings and a little bit of だしsoup poured over. The noodles and soup can be served hot or cold, and have more ingredients and various seasonings compared to those of other prefectures. It is said that each household has its own bukkake udon. The soup has a strong taste, particularly with a sweet taste, which is in...»
A traditional sushi colorfully decorated with a lot of fresh fish and seasonal vegetables. In the Edo Period the lord of Chikuzen Okayama, Mitsumasa Ikeda issued the Thrift Ordinance which ordered to have only “one soup and one side dish” for a meal. Barazushi was then invented to get past the order by putting a lot of fish and vegetables with sushi rice but still looking as “one side dish.” It ha...»
Fry soft conger-eel, specialty of Tamano city, mix with rice cooked with cereals, and fry together with sweet and salty kabayaki sauce. It is exceptionally delicious when you eat it together with a softly boiled onsen egg on top of it. It is a taste that is addictive. Conger-eels contain a lot of vitamin A and vitamin E, which are good for healthy skin. Moreover, it has less than half of the fat o...»