Kakunodate Samurai District
A former samurai district that was home to about 80 samurai families, Kakunodate was formerly a castle town and samurai stronghold in Akita. A remarkable display of samurai architecture, Kakunodate offers spacious streets, courtyards, and weeping cherry trees, making it one of the most popular locations for hanami parties in Japan. Among the six houses open to the public, the Aoyagi house and Ishiguro house are known for both their outstanding size and quality. In addition to the Aoyagi and Ishiguro houses, there are four other houses open to the public with differing levels of accessibility. These houses show insight to the middle class samurai residences; though smaller, these houses provide a glimpse of the lifestyle of the less glamorous samurai.
Both a museum displaying traditional handiwork of craftspeople, and the former samurai district displaying the lifestyle of the samurai are available to the public. With a nostalgic ambiance, the modest town of Kakunodate is reminiscent of true samurai life during the Edo era.
