Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [175]
None of this marks Nagoya as a top-rank tourist destination, but since you’re likely to pass through (Nagoya’s a major transit hub), it’s worth a detour for its impressive castle, important shrine and temples, unique and accessible cuisine, attractive port, and urban amusement on a far more relaxed scale than Tokyo or Osaka. Locals and expats alike take pride in the hometown character of this friendly city.
Nagoya also makes a useful base for day trips. From factory visits to ceramic villages to cormorant fishing, there’s plenty in the region to keep you – need we say it? – busy.
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HISTORY
Nagoya did not become a unified city until 1889, but it had a strong influence for centuries before. It is the ancestral home of Japan’s ‘three heroes’: Oda Nobunaga, the first unifier of Japan, followed by the shōgun Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu, whose dictatorial reign from Edo also ushered in an era of peace, prosperity and the arts. Ieyasu ordered the construction of Nagoya-jō, which became an important outpost for 16 generations of the Tokugawa family in this region, known as the Owari clan.
Nagoya grew into a centre of commerce, finance, industry, transport and shipping; during WWII some 10,000 Zero fighter planes were produced here. Manufacturing prominence led to massive Allied bombing – citizens were evacuated and roughly one quarter of the city was obliterated. The resulting blank slate allowed officials to plan the city you see today: wide avenues, subways, gleaming skyscrapers and green space.
Today, Nagoya continues as a worldwide leader in automobiles, machinery, electronics and ceramics. One look at Nagoya’s many department stores shows the city’s thriving commercial sector, though it’s a mark of the severity of the current global economic downturn that even Nagoyans are tightening their belts.
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ORIENTATION
On the western edge of the city centre, JR Nagoya Station (known locally as Meieki) is a city in itself, with department stores, boutiques, restaurants, hotels and observation decks on skyscrapers. Several train lines converge here, including shinkansen and the private regional lines Meitetsu and Kintetsu, and there are also subway and bus stations. Nagoya Station is quite large and confusing, so don’t plan on a quick transfer.
From the east exit, Sakura-dōri runs towards the massive Eiffel Towerish TV tower, in the centre of the narrow Hisaya-ōdōri-kōen (Central Park). South and west of the TV tower are the Sakae and Nishiki districts, more atmospheric than Meieki and booming with shopping, dining and nightlife; the atmospheric Kakuōzan district is a few subway stops east of Sakae. The castle, Nagoya-jō, is just north of the city centre, while the Ōsu Kannon and, much further, Nagoya Port areas are to the south.
English-language signage and a convenient subway system make navigating Nagoya relatively easy.
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INFORMATION
Bookshops
The following shops carry English-language titles.
Kinokuniya Books (Map; 585-7526; 5th fl, 1-2-1 Meieki; 10am-8pm; Nagoya) In the Meitetsu Men’s-kan building, south of Nagoya Station.
Maruzen (Map; 261-2251; 3-2-7 Sakae; Sakae) On busy Hirokoji-dōri.
Emergency
Ambulance & fire (119)
Nagoya International Centre (Map; 581-0100; 1-47-1 Nagono; 9am-7pm Tue-Sun; Kokusai Centre) Provides information in English, including referrals.
Police (110)
Internet Access
Chikōraku (Map; 587-2528; 1-25-2 Meieki; 1st hr ¥490; 24hr; Nagoya) In the basement of the Meitetsu Lejac building.
FedEx Kinko’s (Map; 231-9211; 2-3-31 Sakae; 1st 10min ¥250, 1st hr ¥1250; 24hr; Fushimi)
Nagoya International