Kanazawa
Samurai streets, gold leaf and one of Japan's great gardens.
The old castle town of the Maeda lords, with one of Japan’s great gardens and teahouse streets still lit at night. We arrange the parts that are hard to arrange from abroad: the garden before the paying hours, an afternoon with the geiko, a counter seat in crab season.
A personal reply within one working day, from the specialist who plans your trip.
- Nights
- 2 nights, plus a day for Shirakawa-gō
- Best weeks
- Early to mid April for cherry blossom, and November for the colour and the first crab
- Getting there
- About 2 h 30 from Tokyo by Shinkansen. About 2 h from Kyoto, changing at Tsuruga
- A base for
- Shirakawa-gō, about 1 h 15 by bus, and the hot-spring towns of Kaga
More than the garden.
Kanazawa has kept its crafts: UNESCO named it a Creative City of Crafts and Folk Art in 2009. Two of its teahouse districts, Higashi Chaya and Kazuemachi, are protected as historic districts, and Kenroku-en, traditionally counted among Japan’s three great gardens, is a Special Place of Scenic Beauty.
Most visitors give Kanazawa a day between Tokyo and Kyoto. What they miss is the evening: the chaya streets after the shops close, a counter dinner of whatever came in that morning, and the garden again at first light. We plan both days.
Ask someone who knows Kanazawa.
Tell us your dates and what you’d like from Kanazawa, or the one thing you need booked. The specialist who plans your trip replies within one working day.
What we arrange in Kanazawa.
Each can be booked on its own, or as part of a whole trip.
Kenroku-en before the gates open
The garden opens free before its paying hours, from 4 am in summer and 6 am in winter, through two of its gates. A guide walks it with you before the crowds.Request this →
Gold leaf, by hand
Kanazawa makes more than 99% of Japan’s gold leaf. In a workshop in Higashi Chaya, you lay it on a piece of your own to take home, in under an hour.Request this →
Crab season at the counter
Snow-crab season opens on 6 November: the small female kōbako-gani until 29 December, the male crab until 20 March. We book the counter and ask for the best of the day.Request this →
An afternoon with the geiko
On set Saturdays outside summer and New Year, the city’s tourism association opens a teahouse for an hour of dance and music by Kanazawa’s geiko. We book your places, or ask about a private evening.Request this →
Also in Kanazawa:Hotels & ryokanTrain tickets & transfersSIM cards & pocket wifi
Where to stay.
Kanazawa is small enough to walk, with buses for the rest. Four choices, and who each one suits.
We book hotels and ryokan →Around Kanazawa Station
Suits short stays · day trips
The Shinkansen, the airport bus and the buses to Shirakawa-gō and Takayama, with shops and restaurants close by. A short bus ride from the sights.
Kōrinbō and Katamachi
Suits first visits · food lovers
The historic centre, within walking distance of Kenroku-en, Nagamachi and the 21st Century Museum, with the city’s restaurants and bars around Katamachi.
Higashiyama
Suits slow evenings · craft lovers
Across the Asano River beside Higashi Chaya: wooden teahouse streets that grow quiet once the shops close.
Yuwaku, Yamashiro or Yamanaka
Suits ryokan stays · hot springs
For a ryokan and a hot spring. Yuwaku is about 40 minutes by bus; Yamashiro and Yamanaka are a short Shinkansen ride to Kaga-Onsen, then a car or bus.
When to go.
Kanazawa is wet: about 2,400 mm of rain and snow a year, with the most in December and January. Our pick is November: the colour in Kenroku-en, the first crab of the season and the snow ropes going up in the garden.
March to May
Spring
Cherry blossoms usually open in early April and peak around 8 April. Kenroku-en is lit in the evenings during cherry-blossom week.
June to August
Summer
The Hyakumangoku Matsuri fills the first weekend of June, its parade re-enacting Maeda Toshiie’s entry into Kanazawa Castle in 1583. Then comes the rainy season, and hot, humid weeks in July and August.
September to November
Autumn
Kenroku-en’s maples turn through November. In early November the gardeners rope the pines against the snow, starting with the Karasaki pine, and crab season opens on the 6th.
December to February
Winter
Snow usually arrives in late December and falls often through February, though it rarely lies long in the city. Straw mats cover the walls of Nagamachi until March, and Kenroku-en is lit on some February evenings.
| Month | Average high | Rainfall | Usual peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7 °C (45 °F) | 256 mm | |
| February | 8 °C (46 °F) | 163 mm | |
| March | 12 °C (53 °F) | 157 mm | |
| April | 17 °C (63 °F) | 144 mm | Cherry blossom |
| May | 22 °C (72 °F) | 138 mm | |
| June | 26 °C (78 °F) | 170 mm | |
| July | 30 °C (85 °F) | 233 mm | |
| August | 31 °C (88 °F) | 179 mm | |
| September | 27 °C (81 °F) | 232 mm | |
| October | 22 °C (71 °F) | 177 mm | |
| November | 16 °C (61 °F) | 251 mm | Autumn colour |
| December | 10 °C (50 °F) | 301 mm |
Pairs well with Kanazawa.
Easy to combine, by train from Kanazawa.
About 2 h 10, changing at Tsuruga
Osaka
Street food, castle views and a big-hearted city.Kanazawa and Osaka →
About 2 h 30 by Shinkansen
Tokyo
Neon nights, quiet shrines and the best sushi counters.Kanazawa and Tokyo →
About 2 h 45, changing at Tsuruga and Kyoto
Nara
Ancient temples and deer beneath the maples.Kanazawa and Nara →
Questions about Kanazawa.
How many nights should we give Kanazawa?
Two, plus one more for a day in Shirakawa-gō or a night in a hot-spring ryokan nearby.
Can we visit Shirakawa-gō?
Yes: it’s about 1 h 15 by bus, with seats booked ahead. Its winter light-up is different. In 2027 it runs on four January evenings, every place is booked in advance, and nobody gets in without a ticket, so ask us early.
Is the 21st Century Museum open?
Until April 2027: it closes for renovation from May 2027 to March 2028. The view from below its Swimming Pool needs a timed slot booked on the day, and visits last five minutes.
Can you book just one thing, like a crab dinner?
Yes. Every service can be booked on its own, from one seat at a counter to a guide for a morning. One booking is as welcome as a whole trip.
Book a single service →Plan your Kanazawa.
Tell us your dates and what you’d like to see and feel. We’ll send a personal quote, and change anything until it feels right.
A personal reply within one working day, from the specialist who plans your trip.