Sakata / Tsuruoka

Top Things to do

• National Treasure-designated Five-Storied Pagoda of Mt. Haguro

  4.5

  215 Reviews

  Yamagata Tsuruoka-shi Haguromachi Hagurosan Chinai

  The five-storied pagoda at Mt. Haguro, one of the three sacred mountains of Dewa where Shugendo (a mountain asceticism incorporating Shintoist and Buddhist ideas) was practiced until the Meiji period, has been designated as a national treasure. The current tower is thought to have been reconstructed by Masauji Muto, a head administrator of Mt. Haguro and lord of Shonai in the time of Emperor Chokei of the Bunchu period. It has an elegant appearance nestling within the cedar trees.

• Ken Domon Museum of Photography

  4.5

  90 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Sakatashi Imoriyama 2-13 Inside Iimoriyama Park

  The Ken Domon Museum of Photography is a specialized museum located in Iimoriyama Park along Prefectural Route 355 in the Iimoriyama area of the city of Sakata. Photographer Ken Domon was a native of the area, and the museum contains his entire life's work, about 70,000 photos. The exhibits are changed on a three-month cycle, with each cycle having own theme, so that all the photos are displayed in turn. The museum also contains sculptures and gardens created by artists who were associates of Domon, especially the sculptor Isamu Noguchi.

• Tsuruoka Park (Tsurugaoka Castle ruins)

  4.0

  93 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Tsuruokashi Babachou 4

  Built around the ruins of Tsurugaoka Castle, Tsuruoka Park, sprawling in the center of Tsuruoka City, is a renowned destination for cherry blossom viewing in spring. 730 cherry trees grow on the park’s ground, particularly around the castle’s moat, and in spring the tree’s petals cover the waters of the moat. Also selected as one of the 100 best places in Japan for cherry blossom viewing, each year around April the park bustles with great numbers of visitors come to enjoy the flowers. Shonai-jinja Shrine stands on the site where the tower of Tsurugaoka Castle once stood, and the shrine’s treasure house displays various items connected with the lords who once ruled the domain from here. Some of the park’s many other highlights include an ancient Japanese cedar several hundred years old, and a museum dedicated to Tsuruoka-born author Shuhei Fujioka.

• Tsuruoka City Kamo Aquarium

  3.5

  3 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Tsuruokashi Imaizumi Okubo 657-1

  This is an aquarium in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, the prefecture’s only one, with the nickname “Jellyfish Dream Hall.” It is known for displaying over 50 kinds of jellyfish and holds a Guinness World Record in this field. The biggest highlight is about 2,000 moon jellyfish swimming in a large water tank five meters in diameter. An exhibition corner of Shonai’s freshwater and saltwater fish, a sea lion show, and the black-tail gull feeding are all popular. There is also a complete exhibition area for children.

• Roadside Station Chokai Furatto

  4.0

  34 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Akumigunyuzamachi Sugasato Sugano 308-1

  A roadside station located along National Route 7 in Sugano Sugasato, Yuza Town, Akumi County. The facility hosts a farm fresh shop selling local agricultural products and fresh seafood; a shop selling local specialty products; a café serving seafood rice bowls, curry, and set meals; a light meal corner; ramen corner; and bakery. You can also take sashimi and grilled fish bought at the farm fresh shop to the cafeteria and enjoy it there as a set with rice.

• Koiwai Farm's solitary cherry tree

  4.5

  68 Reviews

  Yamagata Sakata-shi Hiyoshicho 1-2-20

  This is an entertainment complex in 1 Chome Hiyoshi-cho, Sakata City. Built in the remodeled Soma-ya, a famed Sakata restaurant, the 1st floor features Teahouse Kutsurogi Dokoro, and the second floor has a dining theater where you can watch Maiko dances while you dine, as well as the Takehisa Yumeji Art Museum. The main Soma-ya manor was destroyed in the Shonai earthquake of 1894, but was soon rebuilt and is now designated a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.

• Former Main Residence of Homma Family and Villa “O-tana”

  4.0

  72 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Sakatashi Nibanchou 12-13

  This samurai-style villa built in 1768 by Mitsuoka Homma—the third landlord of Homma Family, wealthy merchant family of Dewa—served as lodgings for the Shogun’s inspection envoys. Featuring a combination of samurai-style and merchant-style construction, this building would be unusual anywhere in the country. The red pines are also wonderful, and are said to live over 400 years.

• Homma Museum of Art

  4.0

  67 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Sakatashi Onarichou 7-7

  A garden and art museum a five minute walk from Sakata Station. Built as a garden and villa for the Homma family of wealthy merchants and landowners, the facility was opened to the public as a private art museum in 1947. The museum’s collection consists primarily of works of art passed down for generations in the Homma family, and the museum is filled with ancient writings, antiques, paintings, and other valuable artwork. Other highlights include the Seienkaku, a beautiful wood villa built in the Kyoto style; and the Kakubuen, a traditional garden built around a central pond celebrated as one of the best Japanese gardens in the country and renowned for the beauty of its fall foliage.

• Chidokan Shonai Domain School

  4.0

  67 Reviews

  Yamagata Pref. Tsuruokashi Babachou 11-45

  Sakai Tadaari, the ninth lord of Tsuruoka Domain, established this domain school in 1805 with the aim of reforming samurai customs and cultivating surpassing individuals. The school’s educational policy focused on further strengthening each student’s innate talents. Today, the school is a designated National Historic Site and is open to the general public; facilities such as front Mikado gate, Confucian temple, and lecture hall remain intact. This facility is the only domain school still in existence in the Tohoku region.