What other travelers are saying about Nagoya Castle
Lovely looking castle which you cannot actually go inside unlike Osaka Castle. But they have recreated a section outside of the castle of what the inside looked like. The good thing is you can take pictures inside which in most castles you cannot.
Other than that you can just look amazed at the external structure of the castle and feel the recreated inner rooms of the castle as part of your 500 yen entrance fee.
Very impressed by the way the stones are stacked as to foundation and base of the castle, especially the corner stones which are very hugh. There are inscriptions done by the stone layers themselves. A wonder how they did it in those times, without modern machinery. Very glad to have visited this place. This is a stop on the Me-guru Nagoya City Tour bus route so it is easy to get to using this bus.
Autumn foliage based on 30 Nov 2024.
Beautiful castle with a garden within the castle grounds in the heart of Nagoya. Sadly the main castle tower was closed at the time of this visit but still getting to see the outer part and taking the tour of Hanomaru Palace was amazing. The garden is also a great area to stroll through. The fall colors on the leaves was just breathtaking.
As Japan’s first castle to be deemed a national treasure, its soaked in history and culture befitting of its status. Though it was amazing to learn about the history of Hommaru Palace, the entire experience itself is quite short. The actual Nagoya Castle itself is still under restoration and will not be completed for a few years, so don’t enter with expectations of going inside the big castle! Even so, it’s still a worthwhile experience to visit one of Japan’s 3 Great Castles.
The reason for the three stars is that the castle (the main building) is currently closed. You can visited a modern recreation of the palace and the surrounding garden. The entrance fee is 500 yen. Before entering the recreated palace building you are required to watch a video which list all the things you cannot do when in the building (you can take pictures without flash though). The palace itself is empty of artifact. There are some nice wall paintings to see. The whole walk through the palace takes about 20-30 minutes.
I hope to visit again in the future when there is more to see, and the main castle building is open to public.
At this time my recommendation is that you can skip the visit to this site if your time is limited.
Note: on weekends there are some "ninja shows" at the site.
