Kumamoto Castle
Impregnable castle
One of the most beautiful and impressive castle in Japan, Kumamoto castle was built in 1607 by Kiyomasa Kato. It took seven years to construct. Kiyomasa Kato was a daimyo of the Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo period, and was known as an excellent architect of castles and fortification. As he put his all knowledge and experience of battles he involved in, there were so many excellent aspect in the castle such as the stonewall, and the castle was known as impregnable castle. The castle had 49 turrets, 18 turret gates, and 29 castle gates, all contained within a circumference of 5.3 km of stone walls.
Utoyagura
Kumamot castle in 1874.
Kiyomasa Kato’s Family crest, "Kikyomon"
Japan web magazine’s recommend
Kumamoto Castle（熊本城） DATA
- Address： 1-1, honmaru, Kumamoto-shi, Kumamoto
- Transport（by public transportation）： 10min walk from "Kumamoto castle"stop of city tram. 10 min ride from JR Kumamoto Station.
- Transport（by car）： 20 min from Kumamoto IC via route 57.
- Parking： 200Yen for 2hours
- Closed： December 29 to 31
- Hours： 8:30 to 18:00 (until 17:00 from November to March) Admission ends 30 minutes before closing time.
- Phone： 096-352-5900