Kiso Valley Nakasendo Route

The Nakasendo route connecting Edo and Kyoto served not only pilgrims but merchants and travelers. Included pilgrimages to Suwa faith sites in Shinshu and numerous shrines/temples in Mino Province. Historic post towns like Tsumago and Magome remain, allowing experience of Edo-period travel culture. Many still walk this route today, exemplifying the historical relationship between pilgrimage and travel in Japan.

One of the five major Edo-period highways, connecting Edo (Tokyo) to Kyoto over approximately 540 kilometers. Now developed as a 1,020-kilometer hiking course, with preserved post towns, particularly Tsumago and Magome in Nagano Prefecture. Attracting approximately 500,000 visitors annually, it is an important tourism route offering authentic Edo-period culture and landscapes.

Sixty-seven post towns flourished along the Nakasendo during the Edo period, connecting Edo and Kyoto. Historic settlements like Tsumago and Magome preserve traditional architecture and stone-paved streets. Once bustling with daimyo processions and pilgrims, the route is experiencing revival as a pilgrimage and heritage tourism destination.

The Kiso Valley section of the Nakasendo was a major Edo-period route with 11 station towns. Tsumago and Magome are exceptionally well-preserved, maintaining authentic Edo-era townscapes. The living culture of pilgrims and travelers continues, attracting over 1 million annual visitors.

Historic post towns on the Nakasendo road preserving Edo-period atmosphere in the Kiso Valley. Tsumago, Japan's first town to undertake streetscape preservation, and Magome with its beautiful stone-paved slopes are connected by a hiking route popular with international tourists.

A Nakasendo post town in Nagiso, Nagano Prefecture. The site of Japan's first townscape preservation movement, perfectly maintaining Edo-period atmosphere. The approximately 8km hiking course to neighboring Magome-juku is enormously popular with international trekkers, becoming a sacred destination for walking Japan's old roads.