Why you should add Kanazawa to your Japan itinarery
We didn’t really know what to expect when we decided to add Kanazawa to our list, but we are so glad we did!! This was by far the most surprising place we visited in Japan.
Kanazawa might not be the first place international visitors think of when planning a trip to Japan, but it’s well-established destination for Japanese travellers and can get particularly busy on weekend and public holidays.
Once we spent some time there, we could completely understand why. You have one of Japan’s most famous gardens, an enormous castle park, old samurai and geisha districts, incredible seafood, traditional crafts and some genuinely beautiful streets. That said, this location felt more authentic and more relaxed than Kyoto or Tokyo.
It was also really easy to explore. We added Kanazawa because it fitted nicely into our route between Takayama and Kyoto. It ended up being somewhere we wished we’d given more time to.
So if you’re planning a Japan itinerary and wondering whether Kanazawa is worth the detour, this is what we did, what we loved and why we’d absolutely include it again.
Higashi Chaya District
This was one of our favourite areas to wander around, we managed to buy lots of lovely souvenirs including kimonos.
Higashi Chaya is one of the city’s historic geisha districts, filled with traditional wooden buildings, old teahouses and little shops selling local crafts and food.
Kanazawa is particularly famous for gold leaf, and you’ll see it everywhere. From traditional crafts and jewellery to food and even gold-leaf ice cream. We explored Higashi Chaya in the evening, which we’d definitely recommend. Once things start getting quieter, it’s a lovely area to walk around without really needing a plan.
We went out for dinner the night we were there, unfortunelty most places were booked so we had to put our name down and go back a couple of hours later.
Omicho Market - amazing sushi!
If you like seafood, you absolutely need to visit Omicho Market.
Kanazawa sits close to the Sea of Japan and is known for its incredibly fresh seafood, and Omicho Market is where you’ll find lots of it all in one place. I’m sure we even saw the potentially poisonous Puffer Fish on the menu at one place.
The market has been part of Kanazawa for more than 300 years and today has around 170 shops selling fresh fish, seafood, giant snow crabs, oysters and so much more.
There are loads of little restaurants and food stalls around the market, so rather than having somewhere specific planned, we just found somewhere that looked good and went in. The sushi was amazing, and surprisingly cheap! I think I would even say this was the best sushi we had on our entire trip.
Kenrokuen Garden
Kenrokuen is considered one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan, alongside Korakuen in Okayama and Kairakuen in Milto.
And yes, it deserves a visit.
The garden sits next to Kanazawa Castle and was developed over generations by the Mazda family, who ruled the Saga Domain during the Eco period. Inside you’ll find ponds, streams, bridges, traditional teahouses, carefully landscaped gardens and some beautiful views across the grounds.
We visited in the morning before leaving for Kyoto, and it’s somewhere we’d definitely make time for if you’re visiting Kanazawa.
Kanazawa Castle
Right next to Kenrokuen you’ll find the huge grounds of Kanazawa Castle. The castle was once home to the powerful Made family, who governed the Saga Domain for almost 300 years during the Eco period. Much of the original castle was lost in fires over the centuries, but a number of gates and buildings have been reconstructed using traditional techniques.
Even if you don’t spend hours exploring every building, it’s really easy to combine the castle grounds with Kenrokuen because they’re right next to each other.
Ninja Weapon Museum
This was a personal highlight of ours, after our short visit to the small museum, our imaginations went a little crazy and every time we looked at a traditional castle we pictured ninjas jumping off the roof.
Some believe ninjas are a myth, not us, this was an amazing experience where we got to see first-hand the weapons they used and learn about their methods, Our visit even finished off with blade throwing contest (think axe throwing setup but with a ninja blade that’s maybe an inch wide).
It was interesting, rather the black-clothed characters you see in films, historical shinobi were associated with things such as intelligence gathering, infiltration and cover operations.
It’s only a small museum so you won’t need hours for it.
Getting Around
One of the best things we did in Kanazawa was hire electric bikes.
Our hotel gave us the information for Machi-nori, Kanazawa’s public electric bike sharing scheme, and we were able to arrange and pay for a one-day pass at the hotel reception desk.
There are bike stations all over central Kanazawa, so you can pick up and return the bikes at different points around the city.
How It Works
Network: Pick up and return bikes at any designated Cycle Port across the city center without needing to return it to your starting point.
The Bicycles: Compact 20-inch, pedal-assist electric bicycles that make riding up slopes and across longer routes effortless.
Access & App: Download the Machi-nori app to check real-time bike availability, battery levels, and station maps. You can also link an IC card (like Suica) for quick unlock.
One-Day Pass: Costs around 1,650 yen, allowing unlimited rentals up until 23:59 on the day of use, provided each individual ride stays under 30 minutes.
How long do you need in Kanazawa?
We only had around 24 hours and looking back, this was enough time if you need to keep moving to your next place, if you have the space to spend some more time here, we would suggest 48 hours would be enough.
Kanazawa to Kyoto
We pre-booked our train online, the change at Tsuruga is now necessary.
13:05 Train to Kyoto change at Tsuruga
14:02 Changed at Tsuruga
14:14 Limited Express (Thunderbird/Shirasagi) from Tsuruga
15:09 Arrive in Kyoto
We used the Klook app for our train reservations.
Klook: is a highly popular official partner that formats multi-leg Japanese train bookings clearly into english itineraries.
