Samurai Houses

Top choice in Kyūshū


In the Teppō-machi area, northwest of the castle, are buke yashiki (samurai residences) set along a pretty, 450m-long gravel road with a stream down the middle. Most of the houses are inhabited, but several are open to the public.

Teppō-machi is about a 10-minute walk from Shimabara Castle.


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1. Shimabara-jō

0.26 MILES

This hilltop castle was ruled mostly by the Matsudaira clan from the 1660s and played a part in the Shimabara Rebellion. It was rebuilt in 1964. As well…

2. Seibō Kinenkan

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On the grounds of Shimabara Castle, this museum is dedicated to the work of Kitamura Seibō, a native son of Shimabara and sculptor of the central statue…

3. Koi no Uyogu Machi

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The spring water that flows into Shimabara from Mt Unzen is so pure that koi can swim in it, and in this district south of the castle you can see the fish…

4. Nehan-zō

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In the cemetery of Kōtō-ji Buddhist temple (江東寺) is this tranquil Nirvana statue, dating from 1957. At 8.6m, it's the longest reclining Buddha in Japan.

6. Unzen Ropeway

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This cable car gets you close to a shrine and the summit of Myōken-dake (1333m), from where the hike via Kunimi-wakare takes just under two hours to…

7. Gojū-shūnen Hiroba

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In the centre of Unzen village and at the base of the jigoku (literally 'hells'; boiling mineral hot springs), this plaza commemorating the national park…

8. Shimada Museum of Arts

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Through the winding backstreets south of Honmyō-ji (about 20 minutes on foot), this quiet museum displays the calligraphy and scrolls of Miyamoto Musashi …