Higashichaya Old Town

Located at the Higashiyama area of Kanazawa and being close to Asano River, Higashichaya Old Town originated from the Edo Period (1603 - 1868) is the largest and the most popular district among three historical districts in Kanazawa, together with Nishichayagai and Kazuemachi. Preserving many ancient teahouses, Higashichaya Old Town has been recognized as the cultural asset of Japan by authority. This is also the largest geisha performance area in Kanazawa. In ancient times, geishas gave dance and song performances for entertaining wealthy nobility and rich merchants. Now, you can hear the sound of shamisen and drums from teahouses at night when geishas give a performance. If you want to get a close look at Japanese geisha performances, you must make reservations through their acquaintances because geishas only perform for familiar people.

Higashichaya Old Town Photos ( 26 )

What Can You Do There

Visiting Ancient Teahouses

You can wander and walk through the narrow lanes of Higashichaya Old Town, visiting the teahouses open to the public, such as Shima and Kaikaro where you can see interesting displays like kitchen, instruments and items used by geishas. 

Established in 1820, Shima remains its original appearance without any refinements and enjoy a high praise from the public for being the important cultural heritage of Japan, which is only allowed to enter with cameras of small size. Admission fee is 500 yen for adults and 300 yen for children aged under 16. Here you can enjoy Maccha (Japanese tea) and fresh sweets that cost 800 yen and Maccha and dry confectionery that cost 600 yen. The opening time of Shima is from 9:00 to 17:30 from March to November and to 17:00 from December to February. 

In Kaikaro, you can enjoy refreshments, seeing the marvelous building style and interior design including an entire staircase painted with red lacquer and traditional tatami rooms where geishas perform at night. The opening time of Kaikaro is from 9:00 to 17:00. Admission fee is 750 yen for adults, 500 yen for children aged from 6 to 18 and free for children aged under 6. 

Except for Shima and Kaikaro, many teahouses have been converted into cafes. You can go for a cup of coffee and have a rest. 

Experiencing Gold Leaf Craft

Gold leaf is the specialty of Kanazawa and there are several gold leaf galleries in Higashichaya Old Town, where you can have a hands-on experience by incorporating your own thoughts to gold leaf design. For instance, you can decorate wooden chopsticks, wooden boxes, or postcards with gold leaf. You must not miss the exhibitions in those gold leaf galleries, which is a very good opportunity to have a knowledge of the complete making process from raw material to gold leaf and have a deep impression on the most famous artifact of Kanazawa.

There is also Kanazawa Yasue Gold Leaf Museum that can be approached by 5 minutes’ walking from Higashichaya Old Town, displaying the collections of Komei Yasue who is a renowned gold leaf craftsmen, including tools used to make gold leaf, screens, Noh costumes, and Jiugu fired porcelain. 

Enjoying Geisha Performances

When coming to the Higashichaya Old Town, you must not miss the geisha performances. Geigi is a traditional art industry of Japan involving singing, dancing, music and other forms of performance. Once again, as geishas don’t perform for unknown people, you need to make a reservation in advance via their acquaintances.

How to Get There

You can take Kanazawa Flat Bus Konohana Route at Kanazawa station and get off at the Hashibachō bus stop that takes about 10 to 25 minutes and costs 210 yen. Then you can arrive at Higashichaya Old Town after walking for 5 minutes.

Nearby Attractions

Kenroku-en Garden is a Japanese style garden with marvelous scenery all year around and many scenic spots.

Kanazawa Castle is a restored historical area with three gates, three buildings and a garden.

Both are about 20 minutes’ walk from Higashichaya Old Town.