Model course

You can find many tourist pamphlets about the northern part of Okayama Prefecture here. Please feel free to ask about the sights, accommodation, and food, etc. in Tsuyama City.

One of the “Three Great Flatland Mountain Castles” which was also selected as one of “Japan’s Top 100 Cherry Blossom Viewing Sites”

Mori Tadamasa, the first lord of the Tsuyama Clan, spent 12 years building this “flatland mountain castle” which was completed in 1616. Although the buildings were completely destroyed after the 1873 ordinance abolishing castles, the largest watchtower in the castle, the “Bitchu yagura”, was reconstructed in 2005 complete with its characteristic palace-style tatami flooring. Also known as a place to view cherry blossoms, Kakuzan Park which includes the castle ruins was selected as one of “Japan’s Top 100 Cherry Blossom Viewing Sites”.

The eaves of the historical townhouses are lined up in this district which still has a strong feel of an ancient castle town. The Sakushu Joto Residence, the former residence of Mitsukuri Genpo, the Archives of Western Learning, and Joto’s old townhouses can be seen during a stroll around the area.

During the Meireki era in the middle of the 17th century, the second lord of the Tsuyama Clan, Mori Nagatsugu, invited a garden designer of the Kobori Enshu school to create this Daimyo garden that features a path around a pond. There are four islands in the pond on which are the four buildings named Geihinkan, Yohokaku, Seiryoken and Fugetsuken.