IshikawaLeisure

Kaga City Kaga Hashitate Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings (加賀市加賀橋立伝統的建造物群保存地区)

Flow of the course

Previous stop: Learn the history of Kaga (加賀) at the mansion of a merchant enriched by the kitamaebune (北前船)

About 15 min from the previous stop

About 30 min here

About 15 min to the next stop

Next stop: A seafood lunch at a port with some of the largest catches in Japan

About this spot

The Hashitate (橋立) streetscape spreading out right beside the Kitamaebune no Sato Museum (北前船の里資料館) is designated a national Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings. Streets lined with the tall board fences and red-tiled roofs characteristic of shipowners' mansions still convey traces of a village once called the richest in Japan. It is not showy, but simply walking the quiet lanes at an easy pace lets you feel the air of a port town that lived with the sea.

Tips

The highlights are gathered within a few minutes' walk of the museum. The summer sun is strong, so a parasol or hat is reassuring. This is also where people live, so mind your manners when photographing houses and enjoy the walk quietly.