Nijō Castle 元離宮二条城

Must-seeWorld Heritage Sitecastle in Kyoto, Japan

早In 30 seconds

The Kyoto residence of the Tokugawa shoguns — a castle built to impress, not to fight. Its Ninomaru Palace survives in its original form, with painted sliding doors and "nightingale floors" that chirp as you walk. Here, in 1867, the last shogun gave power back to the emperor.

時Time neededAbout 2 hours
朝Best time of dayMorning on a weekday
季Best seasonCherry blossoms in the castle grounds in spring
券EntryPaid — see the official site

見Don't miss these 5

Karamon gate
The richly carved gate into the Ninomaru — a first taste of the shogun's wealth.
Ninomaru Palace
A National Treasure: connected buildings with more than 30 rooms, their walls and doors painted by the Kanō school. Rooms get grander the closer you are to the shogun.
The nightingale floors
伝 legend The corridor floors chirp under your feet. They are often called an alarm against intruders — but that is a popular story; the sound may simply come from how the boards are fixed.
Ninomaru Garden
A pond garden with carefully placed rocks, a Special Place of Scenic Beauty.
Honmaru and the moats
Walk to the inner ring and the stone walls of the lost keep for a view over the grounds. The Honmaru Palace needs a reservation.

史History in brief

1603
Tokugawa Ieyasu completes the castle as his base in Kyoto, the year he becomes shogun.
1867
In the Ninomaru Palace, the last shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, announces the return of power to the emperor — the end of samurai rule.
1939
After serving as an imperial palace, the castle is given to the city of Kyoto.
1994
Listed as part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto World Heritage Site.

備Before you go

撮
No photos inside the palaces. Shoes come off before you enter — the wooden floors are cold in winter, so wear socks.
休
The palace has some closing days of its own; check the official site before you go.

Checked on 2026-11-10 against these sources

伝 marks a legend or tradition, not a proven fact.

史About

Nijō Castle (二条城, Nijō-jō) is a flatland castle in Kyoto, Japan. The castle consists of two concentric rings (Kuruwa) of fortifications, the Ninomaru Palace, the ruins of the Honmaru Palace, various support buildings and several gardens. The surface area of the castle is 275,000 square metres (27.5 ha; 68 acres), of which 8,000 square metres (86,000 sq ft) is occupied by buildings.

It is one of the seventeen Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto which have been designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

Text from Wikipedia: Nijō Castle — CC BY-SA 4.0. Read more on Wikipedia →

要Quick facts

Type	Castle
Location	Nakagyō Ward, Kyoto
Founded	1601
Designations	National Treasure of Japan part of UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Site of Japan Special Place of Scenic Beauty
Official website	nijo-jocastle.city.kyoto.lg.jp/?lang=en
Nearest stations	Nijōjō-mae Station · 357 m Tōzai Line Nijō Station · 593 m Tōzai Line Marutamachi Station · 1.1 km Karasuma Line Distances are in a straight line; walking routes are longer.
Map	Open in Google Maps ↗