Ishikawa · City
Kaga
加賀市かがしKaga-shiHot springs, porcelain and lacquer in southern Kaga
Kaga is a city in the south-west of Ishikawa Prefecture, home to three of the four hot-spring towns of Kaga Onsen-kyō: Yamanaka, Yamashiro and Katayamazu. It is also the birthplace of Kutani porcelain and of Yamanaka lacquerware, and its coast preserves the villages of the kitamaebune shipowners.
Overview
Kaga occupies the south-western corner of Ishikawa Prefecture, from the dunes and lagoons of the Sea of Japan coast up the Daishōji River into the hills on the Fukui border. It is not the historic capital of Kaga province, which lay near Komatsu, but it carries the province's name and much of its spa and craft tradition.
The city's hot springs are among the best known in Hokuriku. Yamanaka, set above the wooded Kakusenkei gorge, was praised by the poet Bashō; Yamashiro grew around a communal bath at its centre; and Katayamazu stands on the shore of Lake Shibayamagata with views of Hakusan. Together with Awazu in neighbouring Komatsu they form Kaga Onsen-kyō.
In the hills above Yamanaka lies Kutani, the village where Kutani porcelain was first fired in the seventeenth century, and Yamanaka remains Japan's leading centre of lathe-turned lacquer bases. On the coast, Hashidate was one of the home ports of the kitamaebune merchant ships, whose owners built the substantial houses that still line its streets.
Landmarks
Kakusenkei gorge
鶴仙渓KakusenkeiRiverside path through the gorge of the Daishōji River below Yamanaka onsen.
Kōrogi Bridge
こおろぎ橋Kōrogi-bashiCypress-wood footbridge across the Kakusenkei gorge.
Yamashiro Kosōyu
古総湯KosōyuReconstruction of Yamashiro's Meiji-era public bath with stained-glass windows.
Kutani Kiln Site
九谷磁器窯跡Kutani jiki kamaatoNational Historic Site of the original seventeenth-century kilns in the upper Daishōji valley.
Kutani-yaki Art Museum
石川県九谷焼美術館Ishikawa-ken Kutani-yaki BijutsukanPrefectural museum in Daishōji devoted to the styles of Kutani porcelain.
Kitamaebune Museum
北前船の里資料館Kitamaebune no Sato ShiryōkanShipowner's house in Hashidate displaying the history of the coastal trade.
Rosanjin's Residence Iroha-sō
魯山人寓居跡 いろは草庵Rosanjin gūkyo-ato Iroha SōanHouse in Yamashiro where Kitaōji Rosanjin lived and learned ceramics from a Kutani potter.
Districts
Yamanaka onsen
山中温泉Yamanaka onsenMountain spa town with lacquer workshops and a central public bath.
Yamashiro onsen
山代温泉Yamashiro onsenSpa town laid out around its public baths, known as the yu-no-gawa.
Katayamazu onsen
片山津温泉Katayamazu onsenLakeside spa on Lake Shibayamagata.
Daishōji
大聖寺DaishōjiFormer castle town of the Daishōji domain with a temple street and the city offices.
Hashidate
橋立HashidateShipowners' village of red-tiled houses, a preserved historic district.
History
In the Edo period the area formed the Daishōji domain, created in 1639 for a branch of the Maeda family, with its castle town at Daishōji. The domain sponsored the first Kutani kilns in the 1650s; these closed around the start of the eighteenth century, and the style known today as Ko-Kutani (Old Kutani) was revived in the nineteenth century at kilns across southern Kaga.
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the villages of Hashidate and Shiose grew rich on the kitamaebune trade between Osaka and Hokkaido. Kaga City was formed by merger in 1958 and joined with the town of Yamanaka in 2005. Kaga Onsen Station opened on the Hokuriku Shinkansen in 2024.
1639
The Daishōji domain is established for a Maeda branch family.
1650s
The first Kutani porcelain kilns are opened in the mountain village of Kutani.
1689
Matsuo Bashō stays at Yamanaka onsen on his Oku no Hosomichi journey.
1824
The Yoshidaya kiln revives Kutani porcelain in the Old Kutani style.
1958
Kaga City is formed by the merger of Daishōji and neighbouring towns and villages.
2005
Kaga merges with the town of Yamanaka.
2024
Kaga Onsen Station opens on the Hokuriku Shinkansen.
Culture
Kaga's culture is that of spa towns and crafts. The Yamanaka-bushi folk song, sung by the town's geisha, is one of Ishikawa's best-known folk songs. Workshops in Yamanaka turn and lacquer wooden bowls, while Kutani potters work in Yamashiro and around Daishōji. Duck hunting with the sakaami, a large Y-shaped net thrown into the air at dusk, has been practised at the Katano Kamoike pond, a Ramsar wetland, since the Edo period.
Festivals
Yamanaka Onsen Kōrogi Festival
山中温泉こおろぎ祭Yamanaka Onsen Kōrogi MatsuriAutumn festival in Yamanaka with Yamanaka-bushi dancing through the streets.
Food
Kaga crab
加能ガニkanō-ganiSnow crab landed at Hashidate port in winter under the Ishikawa brand name.
Kamonabe and duck
鴨料理kamo ryōriWild duck from Katano Kamoike, taken by the traditional sakaami net method, served in local restaurants.
Spa-town sweets
温泉菓子onsen-gashiSpa-town confectionery sold along Yamanaka's Yuge Kaidō street.
Getting around
- Kaga Onsen Station is on the Hokuriku Shinkansen, about 20 minutes from Kanazawa and half an hour from Tsuruga; local trains of the IR Ishikawa Railway also stop here.
- The CANBUS loop bus links Kaga Onsen Station with Yamanaka, Yamashiro, Katayamazu, Hashidate and the Kutani sites.
- Komatsu Airport, in the neighbouring city, is about 30 minutes away by road.
Day trips
- 金沢Kanazawa
The prefectural capital with Kenroku-en and its chaya districts.
- 東尋坊Tōjinbō
Columnar andesite sea cliffs in Fukui, just across the prefectural border.
Natadera
那谷寺NataderaTemple of weathered rock faces and autumn maples in Komatsu, visited by Bashō.
- 永平寺Eihei-ji
Head temple of Sōtō Zen and the dinosaur museum at Katsuyama.
Other cities in the prefecture
Frequently asked questions
Which is the best of the Kaga hot springs?
Yamanaka suits those who want a gorge walk and crafts, Yamashiro a lively town around its public baths, and Katayamazu lakeside views; all three are linked by the CANBUS loop.
Where does Kutani porcelain come from?
It takes its name from the village of Kutani in the hills of present-day Kaga, where the first kilns were opened in the 1650s; today it is made across southern Ishikawa, especially in Nomi and Kaga.
How do I get to Kaga Onsen?
By Hokuriku Shinkansen to Kaga Onsen Station, about 20 minutes from Kanazawa, then by loop bus or taxi to the spa towns.
What did Bashō write about Yamanaka?
On his journey of 1689 he stayed several days at Yamanaka and wrote that one need not pick chrysanthemums for long life, as the fragrance of the hot spring was enough.
Related
Sources
- 1.令和2年国勢調査 (opens in a new tab) — Statistics Bureau of Japan
- 2.加賀市ホームページ (opens in a new tab) — 加賀市
- 3.Japan National Tourism Organization (opens in a new tab) — Japan National Tourism Organization