Must visit: Himeji Castle

1:30 AM


As you exit the train station, you can see the Himeji Castle in the distance. Just follow the main road towards the castle. You can get a good view of the castle from the view deck on the 2nd floor of the JR Himeji Station. 





A masterpiece of construction, the Himeji-jo or Himeji Castle is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the largest castle in Japan and is considered one of its premier castles. A national treasure it has never been destroyed by fire, natural calamities or wars and it stands in its originality. 


This white fortress is also known as the "Hakuro-jo" (white egret castle) or "Shirasagi-jo" (White Heron Castle) due to its white color and its appearance of a bird taking flight.







It was initially built as a fortress in 1333. The Himeji Castle overlooks the city and is built with a highly developed and ingenious system of defense. For example, one loses an enemy’s sense of orientation as they try to infiltrate the castle’s defenses. The castle grounds also have a lot of gates that will lead you to paths that force them to pass through smaller paths which traps them and allows the castle defenses to fend off an invasion. As you head towards the main keep, for instance, it seems you are close to it but as you enter the next gate you find yourself further. 





There are also paths that lead to dead end confusing the enemy. There are small windows in the wall called "Catsuma" where arrows or gunfire can be fired from a safe spot. With these and many other ingenious features, this castle has never fallen into the hands of the enemy.  


The largest structure of the castle is the main keep is 6 levels high. It is currently empty with only a few exhibits inside. You can, however, climb all the levels and reach the top of the keep. You will need to remove your shoes and just wear your socks inside to protect the wood. There are steep stairs to reach the top so be warned. If there are many visitors at a particular time, they may control the number of visitors per floor to ensure safety. 





Weapons Rack
model of the castle







The castle grounds are free but to enter the main keep you’ll need to pay an entrance. 


You’ll need half a day to see just the castle, so if you want to explore more of Himeji you might need more time. On our visit, we spent the entire morning at the Himeji Castle and spent the rest of the day in Kobe. 

You can visit Himeji as a day trip if you’re visiting Osaka or Kyoto. You can take the bullet train to Himeji from Osaka or Kyoto. It’s 44 minutes on the Bullet train from Kyoto (Y5590 one-way) or takes the JR Tokkaido Sanyo Main Rapid line for 1 hr 33 mins (Y2270 one way). If you’ll be coming from Osaka,  it takes 44 minutes on the Bullet train  (Y3740 one-way) or 1 hour 2  mins on the JR Tokkaido Sanyo Main Rapid line (Y1490 one-way).  

You can use the JR Pass or Kansai-Hiroshima Pass for the bullet train. 





WEBSITE:  https://www.himeji-kanko.jp/en/
ENTRANCE FEE:  ¥1,000 for adults (over 18 years old), ¥300 for elementary school to high school students, free for children before elementary school.
HOW TO GET HERE: About 15-minute walk from JR and Sanyo Dentetsu Himeji station NEAREST TRAIN STATION: JR Himeji Station and Sanyo Dentetsu Himeji station


HOURS OF OPERATION: 9:00 to 16:00

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