Nijo Castle Building Reopening After 17 Years

Above, one of the gates to Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

When I saw the following story, I had to think a bit about when we visited Nijo Castle in Kyoto, Japan with the first G-TOUR.

That was in 2004, 20 years ago. We toured the castle and experienced its "nightingale floors" which were designed to alert the castle's residents of possible assassins by their squeaks during Japan's feudal period.

Asahi Shimbun posted an article on the reopening of one of the palace buildings after 17 years.

They begin with:

KYOTO—One of the main buildings at Nijo-jo Castle here, a UNESCO World Heritage site, will reopen to the public on Sept. 1 after being closed for 17 years, the city government announced on June 17.

The castle’s Honmaru-goten Palace was closed to the public in 2007 due to concerns about its earthquake resilience, following damage caused by the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake.

Since 2017, the city has invested 1.56 billion yen ($9.89 million) to reinforce the structure and to restore its paintings. The renovation work was completed in March this year.

This will be the first time that the palace has been open to the public year-round. Prior to its 2007 closure, it was open only twice a year.

To read more, go here. 

Video: Things To Do In Kyoto

Above, a gate at Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Kyoto, Japan is one of those "must-see" places in Japan for foreign visitors. Anyone who is remotely interested in Japanese culture should visit the city at least once. I've been there twice.

Kyoto is much more laid-back than Tokyo and not as crowded when one is away from the tourist sites.  Even then, the experience is still a pleasant one. 

News On Japan posted a video on "Things To Do In Kyoto" that is worth a viewing.

The post starts with:

There are so many incredible things to do in Kyoto—you can visit golden temples and vermillion shrines, stroll through Zen rock gardens and swaying bamboo forests, slurp down bowls of ramen and participate in graceful tea ceremonies.

It’s one of the only places you can still glimpse geisha in extravagant kimono and white makeup rushing to appointments in wooden teahouses. Monks still live and work in the city’s 2000 temples and shrines—you’ll see them in flowing robes performing ceremonies and hear the chanting.

To view the video, go here. 

Japan's Most Impressive Castles

Above, now dry, one of the former moat of Osaka Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

A trip to Japan isn't really complete without visiting at least one castle.

I've been to three of them: Osaka Castle, Nijo Castle (Kyoto) and the ruins of Sendai Castle.

Japan Cheapo has an article on the ten most impressive castles to visit in Japan.

They begin with:

When you think “castle”, the image of Rapunzel-esque European castles might come to mind—with imposing stone ramparts and tall towers at each corner. Japanese castles, on the other hand, stem from a completely different tradition. While they are surrounded by moats and tall stone walls, the main structures have always been constructed from wood. As a result, few structures have survived the great fires that swept cities during the times of the shoguns, the anti-feudal destruction of the late 19th century Meiji period, and the incendiary bombs dropped on Japan during World War II.  

 What makes a good castle? 

A small number of Japanese castles have survived the fires and turmoil and are more or less as they were during the castle building boom of the 16th and 17th centuries. However, most castles you see today are post–World War II reconstructions. Some were thrown up using steel reinforced concrete, while some of the reconstructions, from the 1980s, have been done using traditional construction techniques, faithful to those used in the 1600s. However, you can’t just dismiss the concrete reconstructions completely. Many are important historical reminders and have become icons of the cities in which they are located.

To read more, go here. 

Nijo Castle, Kyoto's Gem

Above, one of the gates of Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Nijo Castle in Kyoto may not be a destination that people immediately think of when looking for places to visit while in the city, but it is well worth a visit.

I visited Nijo Castle in 2004 during G-TOUR and we all found it an interesting place, especially the "nightingale floors" inside that were designed to warn the residents of intruders.

Japan Today has an article on the castle.

They begin with:

KYOTO - Nijo Castle probably isn’t the first destination that comes to mind when one thinks of famous places to visit in Kyoto. 

It is after all one of the 17 sites across Kyoto to be collectively designated by UNESCO as a world heritage site under the combined banner of Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto. The castle’s rich history begins in 1601 when Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the enduring Tokugawa dynasty, ordered its construction to serve as the official residence of the shogun in Kyoto. The castle itself houses two palaces, the Ninomaru and the Honmaru.

Above, a Nijo Castle garden. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To read more, go here.

Early Morning Sightseeing On Rise In Tokyo and Kyoto

Above, an early morning view of the Skytree from Asakusa. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Japan is looking to accommodate foreign tourist "early birds" by opening attractions earlier and longer.

The Japan Times reported:

More tourists in Kyoto and Tokyo are sightseeing early in the morning, although many venues are not yet ready to handle the new trend. 

In Kyoto, home to a huge array of temples and shrines, officials have been trying in recent years to ease congestion from the influx of visitors by opening tourist sites longer each day and seeking to attract off-season visitors. 

Nijo Castle, for example, opens at 8 a.m. from July through September, 45 minutes earlier than usual, and closes at 7 p.m. in July and August, two hours later than usual. It also offers a seasonal breakfast set featuring Kyoto-style congee with yuba (bean curd skin) and other ingredients. 

Tokyo Skytree, a 634-meter-tall broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida Ward that was completed in 2012, is not very crowded soon after it opens at 8 a.m. Some early bird tourists visit the tower for its sweeping views of the capital and to make tour plans for the day.

To read more, go here.

Put Kyoto On Your Travel Bucket List

Above, the stage of Kiyomizu-dera. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Whether or not you've been to Japan before but never visited Kyoto, you should add a visit to your "bucket list".

The Evening Standard (U.K.) has an article on why Kyoto should be on people's bucket lists. I have been there twice, first with G-TOUR in 2004 and again three years ago. I enjoyed it both times.

They begin with:

Kyoto was the capital of Japan for over 1000 years until 1868, yet it has a completely different feeling to its modern day counterpart. 

The dizzying array of neon lights are instead exchanged for more traditional, low-rise architecture set to the backdrop of the verdant mountains that surround the city. 

Kyoto was created in a grid according to the principles of Feng Sui and whether it is psychological or not, you immediately feel a sense of positivity and warmth on arriving in the city. 

Juxtaposing modern, urban life with traditional Japan, follow the city’s cobbled paths where an unsuspecting side road leads to impressive pagodas and shrines and unexpected pockets of calm. Boasting over 2,500, each temple and shrine is as impressive as the next – and it would certainly take a lifetime to see them all. But it is not just the extensive selection of religious landmarks that have tourists – Japanese and foreign alike – heading to Kyoto. The city is the ideal place to get a taste, both literally, with the extensive selection of five-star dining, and metaphorically of Japanese culture. 

We’ve selected our top reasons to visit Kyoto.

Above, a gate of Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To read more, go here.

Become A Shogun While Sitting On The Loo

Above, a shinkansen view of Kyoto. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Visitors to Kyoto, Japan, specifically the Kyoto municipal subway Kyoto Station, will be offered the chance to become a shogun while sitting on the loo.

According to the Asahi Shimbun:

KYOTO--Visitors sitting on the throne at a subway station here can now feel flushed with emotion, as if they were a shogun bringing the curtain down on a rule of nearly three centuries. 

The view from the toilet seat is one seen by Tokugawa Yoshinobu (1837-1913), the 15th and last shogun of the Edo Period (1603-1867), looking out over his bowing vassals clad in kimono. 

The stall-size photograph, measuring 2.5 meters long by 3.7 meters wide, re-enacts the historic event, known as Taisei Hokan, in which Yoshinobu returned political power from the Tokugawa Shogunate to the emperor at Nijo Castle’s Ninomaru Palace.

To see the toilet seat's view, go here. 

Nijo Castle To Get Makeover

Above, the gardens of Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Back in 2004, the first G-TOUR to Japan made a stop at Kyoto's Nijo Castle. The tour group toured the castle as well as the castle's gardens.

Now, plans are underway to make more effective use of the castle.

According to the Asahi Shimbun:

KYOTO--A planned makeover of historic Nijo Castle here could involve renting out the room where modern Japan came into being so international conferences can be held there. 

The castle, a World Heritage site that was built in 1603 at the start of the Edo Period, played host to the last Tokugawa shogun as he handed over the reins of government to Emperor Meiji, thus ushering in the Meiji Restoration in 1868. 

A 12-member panel on Sept. 16 submitted recommendations to the Kyoto city government about ways to make more effective use of the feudal fortifications in Nakagyo Ward.

To read more, go here. 

Top 20 Most Popular Japanese Castles

Above, Osaka Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It must be that time of year again where travel websites start posting lists of the top most popular places, attractions, airlines, cities, etc.

Japan Today has posted TripAdvisor's "top 20" Japanese castles. Of the 20, I've visited two of them. I am hoping to visit the number one castle during my next visit to Japan.

They begin with:

TOKYO —TripAdvisor has revealed its top 20 best Japanese castles for 2016 based on commentary from domestic travellers – can you guess which castle is number one?

Above, a gate of Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To see what they are, go here. 

Japan's Tourism Numbers Continues To Surge

Above, one of the gates to Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Japan's tourism numbers continues to climb. They are ahead of last year at the same time.

The Japan Times reported:

The number of tourists and other visitors arriving from overseas reached 1,817,100 in August, up 63.8 percent from the same month last year. There was a surge in the number of vacationers from China, government data showed Wednesday. 

A record 12.88 million foreigners are estimated to have visited Japan in the year through August, up 49.1 percent from the same period last year and a significant advance on the goal of 20 million the government wants to achieve by 2020, the year Tokyo hosts the Olympics.

To read more, go here. 

Kyoto's Shortage of Luxury Hotel Accommodations

Above, three generations at Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Kyoto, Japan is a very popular place to visit by foreigners. Readers of Travel + Leisure magazine voted it the world's best city to visit two years in a row. 

According to the Japan Times, Kyoto drew 55.64 million foreign tourists tourists in 2014.

Unfortunately, Kyoto's popularity has created a headache. There is a shortage of luxury accommodations.

The Japan Times wrote:

The city has made it easier to use its public wireless network; it supports 13 different languages on its website; it arranges business conferences with overseas travel agencies that cater to the wealthy, and is hoping for an influx of luxury hotels. 

But the sharp increase in the number of foreign visitors to Kyoto also brings with it challenges and difficulties. One is a shortage of high-class accommodation.

As for me, I am going to visit Kyoto next month as a day trip, but I am staying in nearby Osaka

To read more, go here. 

Japanese Government To Seek Visitors' Information

Above, the garden of Kyoto's Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Striving to be at their peak in hospitality in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, the Japanese government will be asking foreign tourists some personal information so that services can be better tailored to them.

According to The Japan News (Yomiuri Shimbun):

The government will establish a system that transcends language barriers and smoothly provides “omotenashi” hospitality services to foreign visitors. 

Foreigners will be asked to volunteer personal information such as their religion, languages, food preferences and chronic diseases. 

This information will then be passed on to hotels, restaurants, hospitals and other institutions in Japan. 

The Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry has included funds in its fiscal 2016 budget request for a prototype system.

To read more, go here. 

The Fastest and Cheapest Ways To Kyoto From Tokyo

Above, a view of the garden of Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Here's a scenario for you.

Suppose you are vacationing in Japan and your itinerary has you in Tokyo but you need to head down to the Kyoto-Osaka area. What's the fastest and cheapest ways of getting there?

Well, our friends at Tokyo Cheapo have posted an article with different alternatives for going from Tokyo to Kyoto, their costs and other factors that should be considered.

In their article, they review each of the following means of transportation to Kyoto: shinkansen, bus, plane and local train,

They begin with:

Tokyo and Kyoto, along with Osaka, are usually on top of tourists’ itineraries when they visit Japan. Tokyo is commonly regarded as a city of modernity, whereas Kyoto is seen as a city of tradition. These places aren’t exactly next to each other, so how do you get from Tokyo to Kyoto? There are plenty of ways, and what to choose depends on whether you consider time or cost to be more important.

To read more, go here. 

Kyoto Fortifies Its Tourism Appeal

Above, an ornate gate of Kyoto's Nijo Castle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

With record numbers of foreign tourists coming to Japan, the city of Kyoto is taking steps to fortify its attractiveness to foreigners.

TravelPulse reported:

As Japanese tourism undergoes one of the most prosperous periods in its history, it’s also undergoing changes from within as new destinations inside Japan are rising to challenge the most established attractions in the country. After Tokyo, Japan’s primary gateway and capital, the top attraction is Kyoto, which has been hard at work to continue to enhance its appeal. 

In 2014, Japan attracted a record number of tourists. The 13 millionth overseas visitor arrived at Tokyo’s Narita Airport on Dec. 22. That’s pretty impressive when you consider that in December, 2013, the airport was celebrating its 10 millionth arrival. U.S. visitation to Japan is also setting records. Some 818,000 Americans arrived in Japan from January through November 2014 for an increase of 11.9 percent. That number exceeded the total US visitors in the entire 2013.

 To read more, go here.

Japan's 30 Best Travel Destinations

Above, Nijo Castle's gate and three generations in Kyoto. Nijo Castle is no. 17 on the list. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

TripAdvisor must have been very busy recently. They've taken another survey (or it could be part of a previous survey) on what overseas visitors think are the top thirty travel destinations in Japan.

Rocket News 24 has the list and I have visited several of them.

Before going into they list, they wrote:

It’s time once again for travel website Trip Advisor’s list of the best places in Japan, as chosen by overseas visitors to the country. One of the things that makes Japan such a fascinated place to travel is its extreme mix of historical and modern attractions, both of which are represented in the top 30 which includes shrines, sharks, and super-sized robots.

The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan is listed with TripAdvisor.

To see the list, go here. 

Nerd Tour Japan 2014: Days Seven and Eight

Above, a view of Kyoto from Kiyomizu-dera. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Anime News Network's Zac Bertschy and Hope Chapman present the last part of their Japan "Nerd Tour" of otaku and Japanese cultural places of interest.

This time, they are in Kyoto.

The start their pictorial article with a visit to the Fushimi Inari Shrine. They also visit Nijo Castle, Kinkaku-ji "Golden Pavilion," Kiyomizu-dera and the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum where displays of Tezuka's creations, including Astro Boy (Mighty Atom) and Kimba, the white lion, are featured.

To read and see (a lot of photographs) more, go here.

Japan’s Cities Offer The Best of Old and New

Above, a view of the gardens of Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Over at the Utica, New York Observer-Dispatch there is a new three-page article on things to see and do outside of Tokyo.

They begin with Kyoto and then move to Kanazawa and, from there, to Hiroshima and nearby Miyajima. Then, the article proceeds to Osaka (I am surprised that Osaka wasn't mentioned right after Kyoto since the two cities neighbor each other) and day trips from Osaka to Nara.

To view the full article, go here.

Foreign Visitors Pick The 20 Coolest Places In Japan

Above, a gate at Nijo Castle in Kyoto.  Nijo Castle is on the list of 20 coolest places in Japan.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Trip Advisor has recently completed a survey of foreign visitors to Japan to see what they say are the 20 coolest places in Japan.

RocketNews24 has the list posted. Before they go into the list, they wrote:

The users of travel website Trip Advisor recently ranked Japan’s best free sightseeing spots. Of course, if you’re visiting Japan from abroad and in a position to spring for airfare, odds are you’re not so strapped for cash you can’t afford to spend a little bit to enjoy yourself, since you came all the way here. 

With that in mind, the site has now compiled the 20 coolest places in Japan, as chosen by overseas visitors, regardless of whether or not they charge admission.

To view the list, go here. 

Japan's Tourism Numbers Hit Record High During First Half of 2013

Above, the gardens at Nijo Castle in Kyoto.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) reported that a record number of foreign visitors to Japan rose to a record high during the first half of this year.

According to Jiji Press:

Tokyo, July 24 (Jiji Press)--The number of foreign visitors to Japan in January-June rose 22.8 pct from a year before to an estimated 4,954,600, hitting a record high for the first-half period, the Japan National Tourism Organization said Wednesday. 

The increase came as the yen's recent weakening made travel to Japan cheaper, according to the government-affiliated agency. Also behind the growth were service launches by new low-cost carriers.

To read the full story, go here. 

Trip Planner To Japan

Above, the gardens of Kyoto's Nijo Castle.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Economic Times (from the Times of India) has a good article on planning a trip to Japan.

It begins with:

Culture, history, retail therapy, grief tourism ... Japan packs all this and more. ET tells you how to ensure a smooth, convenient trip to the country in any of the four seasons.

 I don't know what "grief tourism" is, but the article does contain some great tips on making a visit to Japan an enjoyable one.

One item caught my eye.  It is on the recommended trip duration.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), the ideal trip duration would be 6-7 days.

Personally, my trip durations in Japan tended to be about 9-12 days in length.  Maybe that's just me. Also, they say the spring or summer seasons are the best for visiting. Perhaps for some people, but the summers in Japan can be brutally hot and humid and not my cup of tea.  I prefer autumn or spring.

Despite some disagreements, it is a worthwhile article to read for some ideas.

To read the article, go here.