Tsuwano Information

29/10/2026

To all sake lovers: great chance to learn about sake directly from the brewers!

In one day, you can:
1) visit 2 sake breweries and learn from the craftsmen,
2) learn sake and food pairing at a renowned Italian restaurant,
and 3) experience Japanese calligraphy at a former samurai school.

Apply from the link below.
https://forms.gle/wqrSAmUxLPxfsfjy6

●●●Event details●●●
Date and time:Saturday 5 December 2026, 9:30am to about 3:30pm
Meeting place and time: Tsuwano Information (inside JR Tsuwano Station), 9:30am
Fee:Free (conditions apply)
Capacity:20 people.
*If we receive more applications than places, participants will be chosen by lottery.

●●●Who can join●●●
This tour is for the following people only:
ALTs (Assistant Language Teachers)
Licensed guide-interpreters
People working in the travel industry
*An interpreter will accompany the tour, so the guidance will be mainly in English.
Requirements
You must be aged 20 or over and able to drink alcohol, as sake will be served.
You will share your experience of the tour on social media.
You will complete a questionnaire after the tour.

●●●Programme●●●
9:30am Depart JR Tsuwano Station
9:45am–11:15am Sake brewery visits
11:30am–12:30pmCalligraphy workshop
12:45pm–3:15pmLocal sake and food pairing
About 3:30pmArrive back at JR Tsuwano Station

華泉酒造合資会社
津和野地酒　初陣 UIJIN
ピノロッソ - PinoRosso
津和野町観光協会

25/09/2026

●●●"Tsuwano Mankitsu Meguri Ticket" campaign●●●
(1 October - 28 December)

A special autumn–winter deal, valid for 2 days including purchase date.

the "Tsuwano Mankitsu Meguri Ticket" gives you admission to any 3 of Tsuwano's 10 museums and sightseeing spots, including the Anno Museum of Art, the Kuwabara Photography Museum, the Mori Ogai Memorial Museum, the Tsuwano Castle Lift and more.

Tickets for adult just ¥1,000, for junior/high school students ¥750, elementary students ¥500.

On sale 1 October – 28 December 2026
at the Tsuwano Tourist Information Centre at the station, the Tsuwano Japan Heritage Centre and participating facilities — the perfect way to enjoy the art and history of this castle town at a bargain price!

See the official announcement (JP)
https://tsuwano-kanko.net/mankitumeguri/

Check out other Tsuwano Autumn events in our calendar
https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0?cid=dHN1d2Fuby5zaGltYW5lQGdtYWlsLmNvbQ

27/06/2026

"Sagimai" egret dance - 20th and 17th July: Timeline is updated!

●Sagimai
Sagimai shares the same root with the Gion festival of Kyoto, both of which are closely linked to Gion worshiping at Yasaka jinja shrine. In the afternoon of July every year, after a set of solemn rituals, a beautiful procession slowly passes through the town centre from Yasaka jinja shrine to the Otabisho, a deity's sacred lodge. A week later, another procession takes the deity back from the Otabisho to the shrine.

●History
Sagimai first arrived in Tsuwano from Yamaguchi in 1542 when the Yoshimi of Tsuwano established kinship with the Ouchi of Yamaguchi. Sagimai didn't seem very popular with the clan of the next feudal lord Sakazaki, with no records from during their rule (1601-1616). Two men were dispatched to Kyoto's Yasaka (then Gion) shrine in 1643 to accurately revive the rituals and the dance. Tsuwano's Sagimai has never been interrupted since then, whereas in other places the tradition was gradually lost over time. Nowadays, many groups from all over Japan, including Kyoto where Sagimai originated, come to Tsuwano to learn Sagimai since Tsuwano is the only place where the dance has been kept in its ancient style.

●Where and When
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1Xih6JBjr1z2mek1pckB110hoVq8jl0A&usp=sharing

27/06/2026

The Sagimai ritual is held on the 20th and 27th of July every year.
The procession routes can be viewed via the link below:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1Xih6JBjr1z2mek1pckB110hoVq8jl0A&usp=sharing

It's tomorrow and it'll be another hot day. get prepared for hot and humid weather and dehydration.
20th and 27th July every year.

sagimai procession routes
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1Xih6JBjr1z2mek1pckB110hoVq8jl0A&usp=sharing

14/06/2026

Shobu iris at Tonimachi on Friday night.
Hydrangea looks great after the rain as well.

02/06/2026

Shobu iris season has come, they look so great under the blue sky! It's getting hotter day by day, be ready for the humid summer everybody!

06/05/2026

Beautiful sunshine, beautiful smiles!

The Steam Locomotive "Yamaguchi" runs between Shin-Yamaguchi and Tsuwano on weekends. It's a reserved-seat-only service, but it's worth taking the trouble!

01/02/2026

Big thank yous to all of you visiting Taikodani Inari Jinja Shrine today for the “Hatsu'uma” festival under cold rain!

Hatsu'uma is the day to worship the Inari deity, and foxes are believed to be her messengers. A Tsuwano folktale says the deity once saved a samurai by finding his missing key to the Tsuwano castle. Today, a pair of foxes visited the shrine and presented the key to the shrine.

28/12/2025

The end of 2025 is approaching. Thank you so much for your attention and support for us.

●●●Notice for Hatsumode visitors●●●
Be ready for the cold weather. Tsuwano usually has some snow during the winter holiday season. There can be a long queue to the Inari Jinja Shrine.
Fill up your car before entering Tsuwano, and winter tyres are a must. The fuel stations in Tsuwano will be closed on the 1st and 2nd of January.

01/12/2025

Autumn colours at their peak and winter is gradually getting close.
We had recently had a sub-zero temperature night.
Wrap up yourselves and enjoy the misty morning walk!

The chairlift to the Tsuwano Castle Ruins will stop operating until spring, but the site remains accessible by footpath.