Nagoya (Japanese: 名古屋市) is the third biggest incorporated city within the fourth most populous urban area in Japan. There are 2.2 million people living in Nagoya, within the Chukyo Metropolitan Area, which has over 8.7 million inhabitants. Nagoya is also the capital of Aichi Prefecture. It was the base for the powerful Japanese warlord Oda Nobunaga and his successors, the famous shoguns Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Tokugawa Ieyasu put Nagoya on the map when he moved his base there in 1610, constructing Nagoya Castle using materials taken from Kiyosu Castle. The townspeople of Kiyosu were systematically relocated to Nagoya, over 60,000 of them, and with their arrival, temples and shrines were rapidly put up. The ancient Atsuta Shrine was designated a way station of the Tokaido route, the road linking Kyoto to present-day Tokyo. Nagoya Castle and Atsuta Shrine are two of the famous tourist attractions in Nagoya today.
By the beginning of the 20th century, Nagoya became a manufacturing hub of Japan. It is the base for many multinationals such as Toyota (headquartered in nearby Toyota, to the east of Nagoya) and Mitsubishi Motors.
The warmest months in Nagoya are July and August, when the average high temperate may exceed 30.5°C (87°F). Coldest months are January and February, with average low temperature reaching 1°C (34°F). June and July are the wettest months, with precipitation of over 201.5 mm (7.93 inches), while the driest are December and January, with precipitation of 43.2 mm (1.7 inches) or less.
Nagoya, Japan
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nagoya_dome_from_Midland_Square.JPG Author: Chris 73
Nagoya Castle
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nagoya_csl_snow_piled_up.jpg Author: NNE
Planning your trip to Nagoya
By Plane
Nagoya is served by the Chubu Centrair International Airport (NGO), a new airport which opened in 2005. The Meitetsu Airport Line connects the airport to downtown Nagoya. The trains are called the μSky (pronounced meu-sukai), which makes the journey in 28 minutes at a cost of ¥1200. Note that the ride is not free for JR Railpass holders.
By Train
You can also reach Nagoya by train. The Shinkansen going between Tokyo and Osaka stops there. A ride from Tokyo takes an hour 40 minutes on the Nozomi bullet train, and costs ¥10,780, while the Hikari bullet train takes between 1 hour 45 minutes to two hours, and costs ¥10,580.
On the opposite direction, Nagoya is 53 minutes from the Shin-Osaka Station in Osaka on the Nazomi (fare ¥6,380) and between 53 to 70 minutes on the Hikari or Kodama (fare ¥6,180).
Planning your travel within Nagoya
To be honest, it is more practical to explore Nagoya by car than by public transport. It does have a subway system with tour lines. The red Sakuradori Lne heads southwest, the purple Meijo Line loops aroound the eastern side of Nagoya, the yello Higashiyama Line links Nagoya with Fushimi, Sakae and Fujigaoka, and the blue Tsurumai Line links it with Fushimi and Osu Kannon, heading south.
If you plan to use the subway extensively, get the one-day pass for unlimited rides for ¥600.
The 36-storey 170-meter Mode Gakuen Spiral Towers in Nagoya
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mode_Gakuen_Spiral_Towers Author: Kansai explorer
Places of Interest in Nagoya
Nagoya Castle The famous landmark of Nagoya built by Oda Nobunaga, the famous Japanese warload.
Atsuta Shrine The second most sacred Shinto shrine in Japan after the Ise Shrine.
Tokugawa Art Museum Museum housing superb Edo-era treasures.
Koshoji Temple 17th century temple established by the Tokugawa Family that holds the annual 1000 Lantern Festival.
Toganji Temple Temple with a seated Buddha, with ties to Hinduism, honoring among others the Hindu goddess Saraswati.
Arako Kannon Temple The oldest building in Nagoya, with the original constructed in the 8th century.
Osu Kannon Temple Originally founded in Kamakura, it was moved here by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1612. The present main building dates to 1970.
Shiroyama Hakusan Shrine Shrine that holds festivals featuring Japanese dance and music.
Nittaiji Temple Temple with the 15-meter Gandala-style Taian Pagoda, and also housing relics presented by the King of Thailand.
Toyota Automobile Museum Museum with a large collection of cars from many countries and manufacturers.
Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology Museum located on the site of the original Toyota loom factories, that tells the story of the Toyota Corporation, from loom manufacturer to the world's largest car maker.
Nagoya Boston Museum of Fine Arts Museum showcasing some of the artworks of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Nagoya Tower The oldest TV tower in Japan standing at a height of 100 meters.
Hisaya-Odori Park Public park with view of Nagoya Tower.
Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art Museum with work by 20th century Japanese artists as well as others.
Let me take you to explore and discover Penang through my series of walking tours on YouTube. You may use these videos as your virtual tour guide. At the beginning of each video, I provide the starting point coordinates which you may key into your GPS, Google Maps or Waze, to be navigated to where I start the walk, and use the video as your virtual tour guide.
Disclaimer
Please use the information on this page as guidance only. The author endeavours to update the information on this page from time to time, but regrets any inaccuracies if there be any.
Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.