HOME > Japan’s Local Treasures > Inuyama Castle and Inuyama Festival
Japan’s oldest surviving castle is the backdrop for an Aichi festival featuring karakuri dolls and splendid floats
Aichi Prefecture
Only twelve castles remain in their original condition across Japan, and of those, only five have been granted National Treasure status. The Inuyama Festival Float Event began in 1635 at the encouragement of Naruse Hayato no Sho Masatora, a chief retainer of the Owari Tokugawa family and lord of Inuyama Castle, and has been handed down to the present. It is a festival held by Haritsuna Shrine, where the local guardian deity is worshiped. Thirteen splendid floats, each with three tiers, give karakuri doll performances that have been passed down since the Edo period (1603-1867) to the sound of flute and taiko music. At night, all the floats weave their way through avenues lined with cherry trees in full bloom as they parade through the castle town, each of them bearing 365 glowing lanterns. This magnificent sight is truly like something out of a nishiki-e woodblock print.
How to get there
Walk from JR Nagoya Station to Meitetsu Nagoya Station(5 minutes). Take a train from Meitetsu Nagoya Station to Inuyama Station (25 minutes). Inuyama Castle is a 20-minute walk from the station.
65-2 Kitakoken, Inuyama, Inuyama-shi, Aichi-ken
