Aichi Travel Guides

Aichi Prefecture offers tourist attractions such as Korankei, Little World, and Nagoya Port Aquarium; sightseeing events such as the Osu Daimyo Machijin Festival, Toyota Oiden Festival, and Daimyo Gyoretsu; and local delicacies such as tebasaki (chicken wings), hittimabushi (fried eel), and uiro (rice cake).

Aichi Prefecture faces the Pacific Ocean and consists of three regions: Owari, Nishi Mikawa, and Higashimikawa.

Aichi Prefecture, once known as Owari Province and Mikawa Province, was the birthplace of warring feudal lords such as Nobunaga Oda, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, and Ieyasu Tokugawa. After Ieyasu Tokugawa united the country and established the Edo shogunate, the land became the domain of the Owari Tokugawa family, one of the three Tokugawa families, and prospered.

Today, the prefecture is known as the headquarters of Toyota Motor Corporation and other automobile-related industries.

Aichi Prefecture, which produced many warlords, is home to many historic sites such as the ruins of Nakono Castle, where Nobunaga Oda Nobunaga is said to have been born, Komaki Castle, which is said to have been built by Nobunaga, and Furuwatari Castle, which was the residence of Yoshinao, the son of Ieyasu Tokugawa, all of which are tourist spots.

As a city representing the Chubu region of Aichi Prefecture, it has an image of buildings and the like, and this is true of Nagoya City, the prefectural capital, but it is also a place where one can enjoy the richness of nature, with its 4,000 maple trees and the autumn leaves on the surface of the Tomoe River that flows nearby in the fall. In the suburbs of Nagoya City, you can enjoy the rich nature of the four seasons at places such as Korankei, which is covered with 4,000 maple trees, and Chausuyama Kogen, which is surrounded by greenery and has lodges and campgrounds.

One of the pleasures of traveling is to taste the local specialties and cuisine. Aichi Prefecture is famous for its fruit production, with the Chita Peninsula producing grapes and the Atsumi region producing some of the best melons in Japan.

Nagoya is also famous for its eel. Hitsumabushi" is a specialty of Aichi Prefecture, where the eel is broiled, chopped into small pieces, and served on rice in a bowl.

Aichi Prefecture is also home to many local specialties, such as "Kishimen," an udon noodle dish characterized by its flat, board-like shape. Uiro" is made by kneading rice flour and other ingredients with sugar and hot water, then steaming it in a mold. There are several types of UIRO, including those made with brown sugar and azuki beans.

Other Aichi specialties include miso nikomi udon, Nagoya chicken, which is one of Japan's three great chickens, toasted bread with butter and topped with ogura-an (sweetened red bean paste), and miso katsu (deep-fried pork cutlet) with hatcho miso sauce.

Recommended spots for Aichi

Pick up sightseeing spots and specialties!

Inuyama Castle

The view that even Nobunaga saw! Japan’s oldest castle tower

Located on the border between Owari and Mino provinces, this flat mountain castle was built on a hill about 88 meters high on the south bank of the Kiso River. It is also known as "Hakutei Castle. Only the castle tower is extant. It is one of the "12 existing castle towers" built before the Edo per...»

Meiji Mura

Travel back in time to the Meiji Era

This large-scale open-air museum on a beautiful hillside of one million square meters preserves and exhibits buildings from the Meiji period (1868-1912). Opened in 1965, 67 historical buildings from the Meiji period, including 11 nationally important cultural properties, have been relocated and res...»

Atsuta Jingu Shrine

Shrine dedicated to Kusanagi no Shinken, one of the three sacred weapons

The shrine is located in the lush green forest of Atsuta, surrounded by camphor trees that are more than 1,000 years old. Known as "Atsuta-san" since ancient times, the shrine is well known to the people and attracts about 7 million worshippers a year. The shrine was founded in 113 B.C. The Kusana...»

Nagoya Castle

The magnificent castle built by Tokugawa Ieyasu

Nagoya Castle was built by Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first barbarian general of the Edo shogunate, with a total of more than 5 million construction workers, and was well known throughout Japan. Built in 1612 by Tokugawa Ieyasu as his final effort to unify the country, Nagoya Castle, with its glittering ...»

Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium

Meet marine friends from Japan to Antarctica

At one of the largest aquariums in Japan, you will be welcomed by 50,000 marine creatures of about 500 species, including killer whales, emperor penguins, sea turtles, and tropical fish. It is also the only two places in Japan where you can meet killer whales and emperor penguins! South Pavilion] ...»

Nagoya City Science Museum

Look up at the starry sky and feel the wonder! Full of the fascination of science!

The Nagoya City Science Museum is a comprehensive science museum equipped with one of the world's largest planetarium domes with an inner diameter of 35 meters, where you can enjoy learning about science. The exterior design emphasizes the spherical shape of the dome, the planetarium, and instantly...»

Laguna Ten Bosch

A Resort of Sea and Entertainment

A resort complex with theme parks, shopping malls, hotels, and other facilities spread out over the nature-rich Mikawa Bay, where visitors can enjoy the sea in a variety of styles. Various events are held throughout the year, including illuminations and swimming pools. Lagnashea This theme park i...»

Lagunasia

A theme park of sea and adventure inspired by a legendary port town

Laguna Ten Bosch, a resort complex overlooking the rich natural beauty of Mikawa Bay, is a theme park inspired by the Age of Discovery, where dreams of maritime adventure unfold. The park offers a fusion of Spanish, Italian, and Greek cultures, creating an atmosphere as if you were in a medieval po...»

The Little World Museum of Man

Enjoy the world’s cultures and gourmet food! World Travel for a Day

The museum displays authentic traditional architecture from around the world and introduces visitors to the cultures and lifestyles of countries around the world. Visitors can see, touch and experience traditional houses, daily utensils and costumes. In addition, there are 32 buildings from 23 cou...»

Moricoro Park

An urban oasis surrounded by greenery and water

The former site of the Aichi Expo (held in 2005) has been transformed into a large urban park as a memorial park. The park features one of the tallest Ferris wheels in the Tokai region, "Satsuki and Mei's House," which was very popular during the Expo, a spacious lawn, beautiful gardens, an ice ska...»

Korankei

Gorgeous autumn foliage spot

This is a forest of maple trees planted by the monk Sanei Hon Shu of Kozakuji Temple in the early Edo period (1603-1868) with the wish to make the beautiful nature even more beautiful. In November, approximately 4,000 maple trees turn yellow and red, creating a spectacular scene. The temple is also...»

Pottery Trail (Yakimono Sanpomichi)

Historical scenery of a town with kilns

This is a model course for sightseeing in Tokoname City, known as one of the six oldest kilns in Japan (Tokoname Kilns) and the largest producer of beckoning cats in Japan. This attractive course on the theme of ceramics was spontaneously generated, and visitors can experience the history and cultu...»

Sakushima Island

Photogenic Scenery and Gastronomy on an Island of Art

Sakushima is a remote island in Mikawa Bay, dotted with artworks and attracting much attention. In the western part of the island, there is the village of Kurokabe, where black walls were painted to protect it from the sea breeze, creating an atmosphere that makes you feel as if you have wandered i...»

Misonikomi Udon ((udon noodles stewed in miso)

The rather strong noodles boiled with fermented soybean paste of a specialty

The dish which put in and boiled the solid and thick noodles which are made with only flour and water for the thick soup which was made with soup stock of dried bonito and the Haccho soybean paste which is Nagoya specialty. Chicken, thin fried tofu, egg and leek include and are also excellent in nut...»

hitsumabushi (chopped kabayaki eel on rice)

Enjoy as it is served, then with condiments, and with green tea or dashi at last. Three different flavors in one dish.

A dish with small chunks of grilled eels topped on rice in a small ohitsu. It is said that the origin of Hitsumabushi is a staff meal which used offcuts of eels. You can enjoy 3 different flavors of Hitsumabushi from one serving of ohitsu, put some from ohitsu into a bowl and eat as it is, and top w...»

Taiwanese Ramen

Toyokawa Inari Sushi

Inari sushi that has been inherited from long ago

Inari sushi is said to have its origin in the beginning of 19th Century, when people made sushi by stuffing rice in the deep-fried tofu offered to the Oinari san. Inari sushi has been sold since long ago in Toyokawa, a temple city that flourished in front of Toyokawa Inari Shrine, one of the three g...»

Spaghetti with Ankkake Sauce

Tebasaki (second segment of chicken wing)

Kishimen (noodles made in flat strips)

Doteni (beef sinew stewed in miso and mirin)

Representative of Nagoya feed! The public who can grumble and is weepingly food by which the flavor was concentrated.

The taste of the common people who boiled giblets of a cow fiber and pork with fermented soybean paste and sweet rice cooking wine. "DO, please", it's called. It's one of the dish which represents Nagoya loved at a house and a pub and is said to be the dish Osaka origination transferred from "DO, an...»

Tenmusu (Shrimp Tempura Onigiri)

Springy shrimp tempura, light batter and rice make an amazing balance

Temmusu is a bite-sized onigiri (rice ball) with small shrimp tempura inside. No salt is used for the rice, as flavored shrimp tempura is used. The springy shrimp, light batter and rice make the best combination. Nowadays it is famous as a delicacy of Nagoya, however the roots of this onigiri is sai...»

Miso Oden

Konparu Fried Prawn Sandwich

Akakaranabe (Red Hot Pot)

Morning Set (Breakfast Special)

Nameshi (Vegetable Rice) and Dengaku

Miso Katsu (Miso Cutlet)

A ‘Nagoya Meshi’ with sauce made with haccho miso

Almost all cutlet restaurants in the Tokai area has “miso cutlet” in their menus. It is an extremely popular dish and is one of the representative dishes of Nagoya, called “Nagoya Meshi”. This is a dish where a special sauce made of haccho miso, bonito stock and sugar is poured on top of the cutlet....»

Pickled Moriguchi Daikon (Radish)

Toast Topped with Adzuki Beans

Jumbo Size Fried Prawns

Famous fried prawns of enormous size

Maruha restaurant hotel only uses prawns larger than 25 centimeters for their jumbo size fried prawns. The prawns are carefully fried with special batter around them. The huge size will certainly bring you deep satisfaction. Refrigerated and frozen battered prawns are available also, making them per...»

Seto Yakisoba

Steamed noodles, cabbage and pork make the simple but best combination

Seto yakisoba is a simple fried noodles dish where steamed noodles (of which the color is a little brown, like a rubber band) are mixed only with cabbage and pork, stewed with a salty-sweet flavor. The stock from boiling the pork is used with soy sauce added. Noodles and cabbages are cooked like a m...»

Toyohashi Curry Udon

A surprising double-layered dish! Toyohashi Curry Udon, a dish that entertains people twice

The udon noodles in Toyohashi udon restaurants are 100 percent home made. Toyohashi Curry Udon was born so that more people can enjoy the delicious udon. When one eat’s curry udon, the curry soup tends to remain uneaten. A creative idea is used for Toyohashi curry udon in order for the people to enj...»

Dried Sea Eel

Shinojima Island Shirasu

Mikawa Bay Shrimp

Nagoya Cochin (breed of chicken)

Ayu Gyoden (Dengaku)

A dish with a fragrant smell of burnt miso. The appetizing aroma goes well with sake.

Ayu Gyoden is a miso dengaku of ayu (sweetfish covered with sweetened miso). Not only ayu but small and light fish such as aji (horse mackerel), kisu (sillaginoid fish), and haze (goby) are used. Pierce the fish on a skewer, grill till soft, spread sweetened miso and toast briefly again until it is ...»

Toyota Goheimochi (Fried Mochi)

Himakajima Island Octopus

Asari Clam from Aichi

Ayu from Aichi

Mikawa Bay Sea Mussels

Ikanago from Aichi

Tiger Blowfish from Aichi

Gamagori Mexicali

Chita Beef

Hourai Beef

Quail Egg

Owari Egg

Melon from Aichi

Gamagori Mandarin Orange

Blueberry from Toyota

Koda Town’s Specialty: Fude Persimmon

Sobue Gingen

Cabbage grown in Aichi

Green Perilla (Oba) grown in Aichi

Aichi Wase Fuki

Koshizu Green Onion

Mochina (Japanese Mustard Spinach)

Okumikawa Tengu Eggplant

Local Sake in Toyota

Kankyo Shuzo Junmai Ginjo Shitennou (Sake)

Inuyama Loreley Beer

Den Beer

Oni Manju

Shrimp Cracker

Hatcho Miso

Yamasa Chikuwa

Shiruko Sandwich

Nagoyan

Uiro (Aichi)

Miso Katsu (Miso Cutlet) Sandwich

Matcha Green Tea from Nishio

Miso Caramel

Bizenya Ancient Aoi Mochi

Ryotei Tsutamo Warabi-Mochi

Bankaku Sohonpo Shrimp Cracker Yukari

Sanwa’s Chicken Wing

Aoyagi Sohonke Frog Manju

Teppan Spaghetti (spaghetti on an iron plate)

Miso Skewer Katsu

Aichi