Nagoya between castles, gardens and science
Accommodation in Nagoya
Nagoya brings together historic buildings, an important shrine, landscaped gardens, wildlife and plant life, and a science museum with a large planetarium dome. Its attractions range from castle history and religious traditions to botany and astronomy. If you’re looking for a holiday apartment in Nagoya, these varied interests can help guide your travel plans.
Castle history and a restored palace
Nagoya Castle is designated a Special Historic Site of Japan. The historic complex includes Honmaru Palace and the extensive Ninomaru Garden, as well as a large castle tower, high stone walls and deep moats. The ensemble therefore brings together a palace and garden with the distinctive architectural features of the castle grounds.
The Honmaru Palace also has a more recent history: its restoration was completed in 2018, and the palace has been fully open to the public ever since. If you’re especially interested in historic architecture, you can make a point of including this part of the castle in your travel plans.
Atsuta Jingū: a shrine in a leafy grove
In southern Nagoya, Atsuta Jingū is set in the green Atsuta Grove. The shrine draws around seven million worshippers each year and preserves the Kusanagi Sword, one of Japan’s Three Sacred Treasures. The grove, the shrine’s religious significance and the relic associated with the site offer a different focus from the castle grounds. If you’re interested in Japan’s religious traditions, you can include Atsuta Jingū in your selection of Nagoya experiences.
Animals, plants and garden design
Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens is home to around 450 animal species, including koalas and elephants. The botanical garden within the same grounds offers a focus of its own, with around 7,000 plant species on display. A cherry blossom corridor features around 100 varieties and 1,000 trees. Wildlife and botany thus offer different areas of interest, without requiring you to focus your trip on just one of them.
Tokugawa Garden also offers a distinctive way to experience the landscape. This Japanese stroll garden features a pond fed by a stream flowing through a ravine from a waterfall; the pond represents the sea. In this design, water connects different landscape elements. Seasonal highlights include fresh greenery and autumn foliage, as well as peonies and irises.
A planetarium among the world’s largest
The FUJI Nagoya Science Museum features the FUJI Sky Dome planetarium, which has a diameter of 35 metres. It is one of the largest in the world. The museum adds a focus on science to the historic and garden-related attractions. For families with varied interests, Nagoya offers several possible themes: castles and palaces, shrines, animals and plants, garden design, or astronomy.
When choosing a holiday apartment, you can consider which of these experiences you’d most like to shape your trip. This way, your search can reflect the things you want to discover in Nagoya, rather than a feature of the accommodation that can’t be inferred from the attractions.
Other places in the same selection: Iwakura, Inazawa, Chiryū, Tokoname, Handa, Gamagōri, Seto, Toyoyama.
For the broader travel overview: Aichi Prefecture.
