Kanazawa is not a household name to travelers outside of Japan, but for those willing to take a detour, Kanazawa offers well-preserved, classical Japanese sights without the crowds. It is a city steeped in culture and tradition, so much so that it has been dubbed “Little Kyoto”. Don’t let that nickname mislead you though. Even if you have been to Kyoto before, it is still worth the trip to visit Kanazawa.
The easiest way to get to Kanazawa is via a Shinkansen ride. Kanazawa station is a relatively new addition to the high speed rail system (added in 2015), which probably also explains why the foreign crowd hasn't quite caught on yet. Both Tokyo and Kyoto would be a good starting point to catch the train, but it's also quite easy to chain all three cities together as we did for our trip. We traveled in the morning from Tokyo to Kanazawa, stayed a night, and then continued on to Kyoto the second day. For the majority of our time spent in Kanazawa the sky was overcast with the occasional rain shower. This put a little damper in our plans, but didn't stop us from exploring everything we wanted to explore.
The first stop for us was Kanazawa Castle. The castle park grounds were quite spacious and it was a joy to walk through. Although the sky was drab the entire time, there were plenty of chances to see the autumn foliage inside the park. Overall, the castle itself didn't feel as grand or ornate as the more popular Himeji Castle or Osaka Castle, which we have visited on a prior trip. But if this is your first Japanese castle, you might walk away with a better impression.
Once we reached one end of the castle grounds, we made our way to the adjacent Kenroku-en, one of Japan's "three great gardens". With that distinction attached to this garden, we had high expectations- and it did not disappoint. This was definitely the highlight of the trip. There were many different points of interest within the garden, but you'll find beauty everywhere you look because of how meticulously the landscape has been arranged. Also, as we were there during autumn, the massive swaths of yellow, orange, and red leaves added much vibrancy to the scenery.
The second location we visited during this short trip was the Higashi Chaya District. The main attraction is a wide street with traditional wooden houses (Machiya) on both sides. You may see this style of architecture kept alive in other parts of Japan, but it's rare to be able to see an entire street filled with these structures. Although most of these buildings have now converted to cater to the tourist crowd in the form of cafes and souvenir shops selling gold-themed crafts (something Kanazawa is known for), the outward appearance of this street is still able to evoke a unique atmosphere that brings visitors to a time when samurai and geisha still roamed this entertainment district.
Guess what? With the admission fee of Kenroku-en being so cheap, we ended up visiting again the next morning, in hopes of a sunnier backdrop this time.
One last thing that you shouldn't miss in Kanazawa is the Omicho Fish Market. Kanazawa is known for its seafood, and this market offers a great way for visitors to both see and taste fresh seafood. While we were impressed by the sight of rows upon rows of fresh snow crab, our mission in the market was to try the kaisen-don, a bowl of rice topped with sashimi. If you are a fan of poke or chirashi, this is a must-try meal here.
Since Kanazawa is a small city and its attractions are so close to one another that you could pretty much walk from one to the next, the one night trip was perfect. We definitely did not explore everything Kanazawa had to offer, but we were quite happy with how the detour turned out. It is not so out of the way that it is inaccessible to foreigners, and it does offer a breath of fresh air and charm for people who want to escape the crowds.