Japanese Castles to Visit

With their white walls, sweeping roofs and massive stone bases, Japanese castles are among the most striking sights in the country. This guide covers the castles most worth visiting, explains which are original and which are rebuilt, and offers tips for making the most of each visit.

Most castles that stand today were built or rebuilt between the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Many were destroyed in the Meiji era, by fire or by wartime bombing, and only twelve original main keeps survive. Several rebuilt castles are also impressive, and some ruins have spectacular settings. Renovation work and opening hours change, so check the official source before visiting.

Useful Castle Terms

• Tenshu (天守) – the main keep or tower, the castle’s most recognisable building.
• Ishigaki (石垣) – the sloping stone walls that support the keep and enclosures.
• Yagura (櫓) – turrets and watchtowers along the walls.
• Honmaru (本丸) – the innermost enclosure, where the keep usually stands.
• Genzon tenshu (現存天守) – an original surviving keep from the Edo period or earlier.

The Five National Treasure Castles

Five original castle keeps are designated National Treasures of Japan, and they are the best places to see authentic interiors with steep wooden stairs and original beams.

• Himeji Castle (姫路城), Hyogo. Japan’s most famous castle, nicknamed the White Heron Castle, Shirasagi-jo (白鷺城). It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993 and is an easy stop by bullet train between Osaka and Hiroshima.
• Matsumoto Castle (松本城), Nagano. A black-walled keep nicknamed the Crow Castle, Karasu-jo (烏城), reflected in its moat with the Japan Alps behind. Its interior has narrow, steep stairs, so wear practical shoes.
• Inuyama Castle (犬山城), Aichi. A small hilltop keep above the Kiso River, among the oldest surviving keeps. The top balcony offers wide views toward Gifu.
• Hikone Castle (彦根城), Shiga. An elegant keep near Lake Biwa with a beautiful garden, Genkyuen. The city’s mascot, Hikonyan, is a cat wearing a samurai helmet.
• Matsue Castle (松江城), Shimane. A dark, sturdy keep in a lakeside city, designated a National Treasure in 2015. Boat tours on the moat give a different view of the castle.

Other Original Surviving Keeps

The remaining seven original keeps are smaller but full of character, and visiting all twelve is a popular goal for castle fans.

• Hirosaki Castle (弘前城), Aomori. Famous for its cherry blossom festival among thousands of trees. The keep was moved temporarily for stone wall repairs, so check its current position and access.
• Maruoka Castle (丸岡城), Fukui. A compact keep with stone roof tiles, set among cherry trees.
• Bitchu Matsuyama Castle (備中松山城), Okayama. The highest of the original keeps, on a mountain often surrounded by morning sea of clouds. It is known for a cat who became an unofficial castle lord.
• Marugame Castle (丸亀城), Kagawa. Known for its towering, beautifully curved stone walls. Combine it with a bowl of Sanuki udon nearby.
• Matsuyama Castle (松山城), Ehime. A hilltop complex reached by ropeway or chairlift, with views over the city and the Seto Inland Sea.
• Uwajima Castle (宇和島城), Ehime. A small, graceful keep on a wooded hill in southwestern Shikoku.
• Kochi Castle (高知城), Kochi. Rare for keeping both its keep and its main residence buildings. A lively Sunday market runs along the street nearby.

Famous Reconstructed Castles

• Osaka Castle (大阪城), Osaka. The keep is a twentieth-century reconstruction with a museum inside, set in a large park with huge original stone walls and moats. It is linked to the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
• Nagoya Castle (名古屋城), Aichi. Known for the golden shachihoko, mythical fish ornaments on the roof. The keep has been closed for a planned wooden reconstruction, but the beautifully restored Honmaru Palace has been open to visitors; check what is accessible.
• Kumamoto Castle (熊本城), Kumamoto. Severely damaged in the 2016 earthquakes and gradually being restored, with the main keep reopened. Elevated walkways let visitors see the repair work.
• Okayama Castle (岡山城), Okayama. A black keep beside the Korakuen garden, one of Japan’s three great gardens. It also carries the nickname Crow Castle.
• Aizu-Wakamatsu Tsuruga Castle (鶴ヶ城), Fukushima. Famous for its red-glazed roof tiles and its role in the Boshin War.
• Shuri Castle (首里城), Okinawa. The palace of the former Ryukyu Kingdom, very different in style from mainland castles. It was destroyed by fire in 2019 and is being rebuilt, so check progress and open areas.

Ruins and Unusual Castles

• Takeda Castle ruins (竹田城跡), Hyogo. Only stone walls remain, but on autumn mornings the ruins can float above a sea of clouds, earning the nickname Castle in the Sky.
• Goryokaku (五稜郭), Hakodate, Hokkaido. A star-shaped Western-style fort, best seen from the nearby observation tower. In spring the moats are lined with cherry blossoms.
• Edo Castle site, Tokyo. The former shogun’s castle is now the site of the Imperial Palace. The East Gardens are usually open to the public and show massive stone foundations of the old keep.
• Gujo Hachiman Castle (郡上八幡城), Gifu. A small wooden reconstruction on a mountain top, especially beautiful in autumn.

Original or Reconstructed: Which Should You Visit?

Original keeps such as Himeji, Matsumoto and Inuyama let you climb the same wooden stairs and see the same beams used centuries ago. The interiors are often bare, dim and steep, which is part of their charm: you can imagine how defenders moved through them, peered from arrow slits and dropped stones through openings in the floor.

Reconstructed castles, by contrast, are frequently concrete buildings with lifts, air conditioning and museums inside. Osaka Castle and Okayama Castle are good examples. They may feel less authentic, but their exhibitions explain samurai history, armour and battles in detail, and many have excellent top-floor views. Some cities, such as Nagoya, are working toward faithful wooden reconstructions using traditional methods.

Do not overlook castle grounds and ruins either. Even where no keep survives, the stone walls, moats and gate foundations reveal the castle’s scale. Many grounds are now public parks that are free or inexpensive to enter and become spectacular during cherry blossom season. A good plan is to see at least one original keep for atmosphere and one reconstructed castle for its museum.

Tips for Visiting Japanese Castles

• Expect to remove your shoes in original keeps; bring socks and carry a bag for your shoes if none is provided.
• Original keeps have very steep, narrow stairs, so they may be difficult for people with limited mobility.
• Arrive early during cherry blossom season and on holidays, when queues can be long.
• Many castles offer castle stamps; some fans collect them in a book for the 100 Fine Castles of Japan.
• Check for renovation closures, as repair work is common and can last years.

Final Thoughts

Whether you choose the soaring white walls of Himeji, the dark elegance of Matsumoto or a mist-wrapped ruin, castles bring Japan’s samurai history to life. Add one or two to your route, and look closely at the stonework, gates and views that made these fortresses so powerful.