Ishikawa Prefecture
Where is Ishikawa?
Ishikawa Prefecture is part of the central Chubu region on Honshu, Japan’s main island.
It borders Toyama and Gifu Prefectures to the east and Fukui Prefecture directly to the south. To the west and north, the coast of Ishikawa faces the Sea of Japan.
Kanazawa is the largest city and the capital of the prefecture.
What is Ishikawa known for?
Ishikawa is well known as a hub for traditional handicrafts, including gold leaf, lacquerware, and silk dyeing.
As a coastal prefecture, Ishikawa is famous for seafood and the prefecture is regarded as one of the best places in Japan for fresh fish.
The prefecture is also home to Kanazawa-style curry, thick dark brown curry served with rice, shredded cabbage and usually topped with a fried pork cutlet.
The city of Kanazawa is considered to have one of the best preserved samurai districts in the country and is also home to Kenroku-en Garden, one of Japans “Top 3” traditional gardens.
Where should I visit in Ishikawa?
Many visitors to Ishikawa Prefecture will choose to stay in the city of Kanazawa.
Kanazawa is home to Kanazawa Castle and a number of well persevered historic districts packed with traditional Japanese townhouses. Highlights include the Higashi-Chayagai tea house district and the Nagamachi Samurai District.
The city is also home to Kenroku-en Garden, one of the most famous traditional Japanese gardens in the country.
The area around the Kenroku-en Garden is also populated with a large number of museums covering topics such as traditional arts and crafts, contemporary art, modern literature, Zen Buddhism and local history.
Mount Hakusan in the south of the prefecture is one of the largest mountains in Japan. The area surrounding it is an excellent location for skiing and winter sports.
Nature lovers will enjoy the remoteness of the Noto Peninsula, with a large number of beaches, fishing villages, cliffs and rock formations spread cross the area.
When is the best time to visit Ishikawa?
Ishikawa has a fairly wet climate, with cloudy weather and occasional rain showers throughout the year. The prefecture is part of Japan’s “Snow Country”, part of the western coast which sees a large amount of snow brought by cold Siberian winds from mainland Asia.
Spring (April to May) brings pleasant and mild weather. Early-mid spring is a great time to enjoy the cherry blossoms when they are in full bloom.
Summer (July to August) sees warm and occasionally humid weather.
Autumn (September to November) sees milder temperatures similar to spring but temperatures rapidly decrease the closer it gets to winter.
Winter (December to March) sees snowfall throughout the prefecture with even cities such as Kanazawa affected by significant levels of snow. Despite the snow, temperatures do not usually go below freezing.
All Events in Ishikawa
Tokyo Auto Salon
Tokyo's largest car event with over 200 different exhibitors and 300,000 car fans attending over 3 days.
schedule 9:00 am - 7:00 pm
payments from ¥3000
schedule 9:00 am - 7:00 pm
payments from ¥3000
Glover Garden & Hello Kitty 50th Anniversary Collaboration Event
2024 sees Nagasaki Glover Garden celebrating its 50th anniversary alongside Hello Kitty, who is also celebrating her 50th birthday!
schedule 8:00 am - 9:00 pm
payments from ¥180
schedule 8:00 am - 9:00 pm
payments from ¥180
ONE PIECE ONLY EXHIBITION
Exhibition focusing on the 1,000th chapter of the manga, revealing the creation process of ONE PIECE from a sheet of paper to being distributed to the hands of millions of readers.
schedule 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
payments from ¥800
schedule 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
payments from ¥800
Ashikaga Flower Park Illuminations
From the 18th October 2024 until the 16th February 2025, Ashikaga Flower Park will be decorated with over 5 million LED lights.
schedule 3:30 pm - 8:30 pm
payments from ¥700
schedule 3:30 pm - 8:30 pm
payments from ¥700
Tokyo Romantic Flea Market
Twice a month in the central area of Tokyo, 100 sellers gather together in the plaza of Shibuya Garden Tower for the Tokyo Romantic Market. Here you can find a variety of antique and vintage items
schedule 4:00 pm - 10:00 am
payments FREE
schedule 4:00 pm - 10:00 am
payments FREE
Glover Garden Night Illumination
During the winter season the garden's features are used to form part of the night illuminations featuring warm glowing lights and multiple projection mappings around the garden.
schedule 8:00 am - 9:00 pm
payments from ¥180
schedule 8:00 am - 9:00 pm
payments from ¥180
Kagoshima Illuminage
Kagoshima Prefectural Yoshino Park will be decorated with a multitude of different light scenes, artworks and sculptures.
schedule 5:45 pm - 10:00 pm
payments from ¥900
schedule 5:45 pm - 10:00 pm
payments from ¥900
Tours and Activities in Ishikawa
None found.
Where should I stay in Ishikawa?
Many travellers choose to stay in Kanazawa due to its somewhat central location on the prefectures coast and excellent inter-city travel options.
Kanazawa has plenty of hotels suited to budget travelers, with a range of budget hotel chains commonly found throughout Japan such as Tokyu Stay and The Square.
Visitors seeking a luxury stay will find accommodation throughout the prefecture that will meet their needs.
There are stylish modern hotels such as Korinkyo in Kanazawa available while traditional Japanese guest houses (ryokans) or spa resorts such as Yunokuni Tensyo are located throughout the prefecture.
When choosing a location is is important to consider where it is in relation to the activities on your itinerary especially if you intend to visit more rural areas such as the Noto Peninsula.
How do I get to Ishikawa Prefecture?
The most convenient methods to reach Ishikawa Prefecture are by air or train.
The Hokuriku Shinkansen operates between Tokyo and Tsuruga and stops at Kanazawa Station.
From Osaka and Kyoto, visitors are recommended to take the Thunderbird Limited Express train bound for Tsuruga and from there, transfer to a Hokuriku Shinkansen to reach Kanazawa.
Ishikawa Prefecture has two airports, Komatsu and Noto.
Noto Airport is a small airport near Wajima on the Noto Peninsula. There is currently only 1 round trip per day operating to/from Tokyo Haneda.
Komatsu Airport offers a wider selection of domestic flights with connections to Tokyo (Narita and Haneda), Naha, Sapporo, Sendai and Fukuoka. It also offers a small number of international connections including Seoul, Taipei and Shanghai.
Neither airport have direct rail connections but Komatsu Airport connects to railway stations in the cities of Komatsu, Kanazawa, Fukui and Kaga via bus.