20 Castles in Hyōgo worth your time

Hanakuma Castle: a ruined castle site with historical markers, a short walk from Motomachi Station.

What it is

• A castle built by Araki Murashige under Oda Nobunaga's order.
• Construction took about one year.
• Fell in 1580 after an attack by Ikeda Tsuneoki.
• Now a ruined castle site, also known as Hanazumi Castle.

What to see

• A monument marks the castle ruins.
• A simulated stone wall is on the site.
• A simulated main keep base is on the site.
• The castle had a main keep, second bailey, and third bailey.

Getting there

• 5-minute walk from Motomachi Station.
• Located west of Motomachi Station.

Read more about Hanakuma Castle

Akashi Castle, a historic hirayamashiro, offers a glimpse into Edo period defense and beautiful cherry blossoms.

What it is

• A hirayamashiro castle built to restrain western daimyo.
• Construction ordered in 1617, completed in 1620.
• Also known as Kiharu Castle and Kinko Castle.
• Castle ruins designated a National Historic Site in 2004.

What to see

• Sumi Yagura and Hitsujisaru Yagura are Important Cultural Properties.
• Repaired yagura and stone walls after 1995 earthquake.
• The castle site was a battlefield during the Kakitsu Rebellion.

When to go

• Akashi Park is a Top 100 Cherry Blossom Spot.

Official site

www.akashijo.jp

Read more about Akashi Castle

Explore a mountaintop castle ruin, once home to the Akamatsu clan, a national historic site.

What it is

• A Japanese castle, a national historic site.
• Built during the Muromachi period.
• Residence of the Akamatsu clan.
• A mountaintop castle (renkakushiki yamashiro).

What to see

• Main bailey, second bailey, and third bailey.
• Horse riding ground.
• Samurai residences.

When to go

• Annual festival on November 23rd.

Getting there

• 30-minute walk from Kounohara-Enshin Station.
• 30-minute drive from Harima Shingu Interchange.

Read more about Shirahata Castle

Explore Horii Castle Ruins Fureai Park, a medieval castle site with moats and earthworks.

What it is

• A Japanese castle site, now a public park.
• Opened as Horii Castle Ruins Fureai Park on April 1, 2020.
• Likely owned by the Horii clan or an Akamatsu clan vassal.
• Served as a base for the Akamatsu clan's control of eastern Harima.

What to see

• Typical medieval castle site with moats and earthworks.
• Site measures 160 meters east-west by 200 meters north-south.

Getting there

• Nearest station is JR Kakogawa Line Kawai-Nishi Station.

Read more about Horii Castle

Explore the impressive ruins of a mountaintop castle, known as Japan's Machu Picchu.

What it is

• A Japanese castle in Asago, Hyogo Prefecture.
• Known as "Castle in the Sky" or "Japan's Machu Picchu."
• Also called Torafusu-jo, meaning crouching tiger castle.
• Designated a National Historic Site since 1943.

What to see

• Stone walls of the castle remain almost intact.
• One of Japan's largest existing mountain castles.
• Castle layout is 400m north-south and 100m east-west.
• Built on the summit of Mount Kojo, 353.7m above sea level.

Official site

www.city.asago.hyogo.jp

Read more about Takeda Castle

Explore the ruins of a 15th-century mountain castle, once home to the Akamatsu clan.

What it is

• A Japanese mountain castle, built in 1469.
• Designated as a National Historic Site.
• Built by Akamatsu Masanori.
• Became the residence of the Akamatsu clan.

What to see

• Castle ruins on Mt. Oshio, 370m above sea level.
• Site of over 60 enclosures.
• Low stone walls at the base of enclosures.

Getting there

• Located in Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture.
• 10km north of central Himeji City.

Read more about Okishio Castle

Explore Kanatsurube Castle ruins, a medieval mountain castle with a deep moat and ancient pit dwellings.

What it is

• A medieval mountain castle built by the Nakamura clan.
• Designated a municipal historic site in 1996.
• Part of Yume no Mori Park.
• Excavations from 1992 to 1994 revealed its full scope.

What to see

• Castle ruins with a main bailey and a west bailey.
• A 20-meter wide, 9-meter deep dry moat.
• Four building remains in the main bailey.
• A deep well.
• Yayoi period pit dwellings beneath the castle ruins.

Read more about Kanatsurube Castle

Akō Castle is a historic Edo-period castle ruin with scenic gardens and impressive original earthworks.

What it is

• Edo period castle, construction started in 1648.
• Residence for the lords of the Akō Domain.
• Designated a National Historic Site.
• Selected as one of Japan's Top 100 Castles.

What to see

• Honmaru Garden and Ninomaru Garden are scenic beauty spots.
• Castle had 10 corner turrets and 12 gates.
• Tenshu-dai (castle tower base) remains.
• Old Akō waterworks, one of Japan's three great waterworks.

Address

兵庫県赤穂市上仮屋1424-1 Map

Official site

www.ako-hyg.ed.jp

Read more about Akō Castle

Himeji Castle is a well-preserved 17th-century fortress with many original buildings, crucial to Tokugawa shoguns.

What it is

• Castle built at the start of the seventeenth century.
• Crucial power base for the Tokugawa shoguns.
• UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• National Treasure.

What to see

• White castle keep watches over the city.
• Nearly 1,000 gun and arrow slits dot the castle walls.
• More original buildings than any other Japanese castle.
• Main keep, smaller subsidiary keeps, gatehouses, towers, and galleries.

Official site

www.himejicastle.jp

Read more about Himeji Castle

Explore Kinoyama Castle, an ancient mountain castle ruin with a rich history and excavated artifacts.

What it is

• A Japanese castle ruin in Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture.
• A medieval mountain castle built in 1352 by Akamatsu Norisuke.
• Considered the oldest castle in Hyogo Prefecture.

What to see

• Stone walls and gate foundation stones have been excavated.
• Memorial towers for the Akamatsu family are on the main keep site.
• Excavated artifacts are displayed at a local cultural center.

Read more about Kinoyama Castle

Explore a reconstructed castle palace, built in 1609, that served as a domain's administrative center.

What it is

• A Japanese castle in Hyogo Prefecture.
• Built on a small hill called Sasayama.
• Ordered by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1609.
• Served as the administrative office for the Sasayama Domain.

What to see

• The Ninomaru Goten, used as the domain's administrative office.
• The O書院 of Ninomaru Goten, restored in wood in 2000.
• A hirayamajiro designated as a National Historic Site.

Official site

withsasayama.jp

Read more about Sasayama Castle

Explore Rikan Castle, a 14th-century mountain fortress, for its historical significance and unique design.

What it is

• A Japanese castle in Harima Province.
• Built in 1349 by Bessho Atsunori.
• Served as a northern defense for Shirohata Castle.
• Designated a National Historic Site in 2017.

What to see

• A renkaku-style mountain castle.
• Located on Mount Rikan, 373 meters above sea level.
• Unstable stone walls are present.
• Entry is allowed with a guide up to Sannomaru.

Read more about Rikan Castle

Explore Miki Castle ruins, a National Historic Site with a dramatic siege history.

What it is

• A Japanese castle in Harima Province.
• Also known as Busan Castle or Bessho Castle.
• One of the three great castles of Harima.
• Destroyed in 1615 by order.

What to see

• Castle ruins on a plateau south of the Mino River.
• Main keep area remains as Uenomaru Park.
• The main keep has an elevation of 58.2 meters.
• A designated National Historic Site.

Read more about Miki Castle

Explore Sumoto Castle, Japan's oldest mock tenshu, a National Historic Site with rich history.

What it is

• A Japanese castle, also known as Mikuma Castle.
• Designated as a National Historic Site.
• Built in 1526 by Ataka Haruoki.
• Selected as one of the Continued 100 Fine Castles of Japan.

What to see

• The current mock tenshu, built in 1928.
• This mock tenshu is the oldest in Japan.
• Remaining earthworks, ponds, and stone steps.

Read more about Sumoto Castle

Explore the ruins of Itami Castle, a National Historic Site with Japan's oldest castle tower base.

What it is

• A Japanese castle, also known as Arioka Castle.
• Designated a National Historic Site.
• Built by the Itami clan.
• Site of Japan's oldest castle tower base.

What to see

• The honmaru (main keep) is now Arioka Castle Ruins Historic Park.
• Excavations confirmed the oldest stone walls for a castle.

Read more about Itami Castle

Himeji Monolith is a restaurant and wedding venue in a historic building.

What it is

• A restaurant and wedding venue.
• Utilizes a former Ministry of Communications building.
• Opened as Himeji Monolith in 2009.
• Designated an Important Urban Landscape Building.

What to see

• The exterior retains its original 1930 appearance.
• Registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property.

Read more about Himeji Monolith

Kuroi Castle is a mountaintop national historic site with a rich samurai history.

What it is

• A Japanese castle, also known as Hogetsu or Hozuki Castle.
• Built by Akamatsu Sadayori during the Kenmu era.
• Designated a national historic site on August 11, 1989.
• Selected as one of the Continued 100 Fine Castles of Japan.

What to see

• Located on Mt. Shiroyama, 356m above sea level.

Read more about Kuroi Castle

Izushi Castle town offers a walkable Edo-period experience with traditional streets and local specialties.

What it is

• Historic castle town from the Edo period.
• Streets unchanged for around 400 years.

What to see

• Shinkoro Clock Tower, completed in 1881.
• One of Japan's oldest clock towers.
• Distinctive sake cellar buildings with red clay exteriors.
• Local shops offering sara soba buckwheat noodles.

Read more about Izushi Castle

Explore the ruins of a 16th-century mountain castle, a National Historic Site with a dramatic past.

What it is

• A Japanese mountain castle, also known as Yakami Takajō.
• Built by Hatano Kiyohide during the Eishō era.
• Base for the powerful Hatano clan.
• Designated as a National Historic Site.

What to see

• Remains of a castle on Mt. Takajō (460m).
• Remains of a castle on Mt. Hokoji (340m).

Read more about Yakami Castle

Explore a modern reconstruction of a historic Edo period castle, rebuilt with traditional methods.

What it is

• A Japanese castle in Hyogo Prefecture.
• Built in 1617 by Toda Ujikane.
• A flatland castle from the early Edo period.
• Reconstructed in 2018.

What to see

• A complex four-story keep with two attached turrets.
• The reconstructed keep in Amagasaki Castle Ruins Park.

Official site

amagasaki-castle.jp

Read more about Amagasaki Castle