It would be difficult to visit all three areas in just an afternoon, so please feel free to arrange your trip however you like. (If you want to visit all three areas, we recommend a 3-day, 2-night plan!)
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Ai Nishimura
Administrator of the blog "My Diary," which began in 2004. A writer who has traveled to all 47 prefectures and loves local culture and history.
Author of Shimane's "Geography, Place Names, and Maps" Mysteries (Jitsugyo no Nihonsha), My Town is the "Number One in Japan" Dictionary (PHP Institute), and Prefectures Explained in Neko Neko Japanese History (Jitsugyo no Nihonsha). Official blogger for Suntory Gourmet Guide, official top user for Retty, and official platinum blogger for Excite.
Yokokan Garden: A comfortable place you can stay for hours
It was my first visit to Fukui in over a decade, and I wanted to visit Yokokan again. It is a villa of the Echizen Matsudaira family, and is a quiet garden in the city. It is affectionately known to the locals as "Osen-sui."
Water is drawn into the garden, and the garden and villa are built around the pond. You can enjoy the scenery and greenery reflected on the calm water's surface, and a cool breeze blows in through the open shoji windows, allowing you to spend a peaceful and relaxing time.
While feeling a sense of being one with nature, I gaze upon the garden stones, stone tower, and small gazebo "Seiren." There is a bathhouse in the tatami room, and a steam bath for the lord is installed. In modern terms, it is a spa with a terrace! Perhaps the lord would have cooled off after his bath while admiring this garden. In times past, this is a lord's home that a commoner like me would never have been able to enter. It is fun to experience the feeling of being a lord for a while in this elegant villa, which is studded with artisanal techniques such as mother-of-pearl and kumiko.
If I ever go to Fukui again, I'll definitely stop by Yokokan Garden. The floating tatami room in the pond is the villa of the Matsudaira family, feudal lords of Fukui.
All the shoji doors are open, allowing you to relax in a well-ventilated tatami room.
There was a bath for the lord. The photo shows a steam bath, which is a sauna!
The pond as seen from "Kushigatano-ma." Currently, the pond is pumped up and circulated, but at the time, it was filled with plenty of fresh water from the Shibahara Aqueduct.
There is a stone edge under the veranda. Carp swimming in the pond are very relaxing.
However, the carp seemed to be quite hungry... (^^;
I don't know if people would come here for a drink after taking a bath, but perhaps the lord also came to cool off.
Even Raptor, the official mascot of Fukui Prefecture, says it's cool.
The design makes extensive use of straight lines, with curved lines exquisitely inserted into the design, making it interesting just to look at the details.
Kumiko used in the "Goza-no-ma" room.
The cloud-shaped Zelkova panel of the "Moon Viewing Room" is a stylish window through which the moon can be viewed.
Tasting sake from Fukui at the historic liquor store "Hamamachi Ambun Sake Shop"
From Yokokan, where I ended up spending too much time relaxing, I strolled towards the station and headed towards Hamacho. Hamacho is a district of traditional Japanese restaurants, and is just a stone's throw away from the cherry blossom-lined Asuwa River, which has been selected as one of Japan's 100 best cherry blossom viewing spots. It is a place that still retains its charming streetscape.
We stopped by Hamamachi Yasubun Sake Shop, which offers sake tastings. Fukui is a well-known rice-producing region. It is also the birthplace of the famous Koshihikari rice, and is a city with many fine sakes. Hamamachi Yasubun Sake Shop has its roots in "Yasudamura no Bunzaemon," and has been operating a liquor store here for a long time, inheriting the shop name "Yabun." As a car-oriented society, Fukui is not a place where people drink in the daytime. Moreover, I think it is rare for a liquor store that is more of a local business to offer a tasting service for tourists.
The fourth-generation owner, Suesada Noboru, is opening up his shop in between his busy schedule to try out this initiative, so that more people can learn about Fukui sake. It's great fun to not only drink but also compare several types, and above all, listening to the store owner explain the particularities of each brewery can lead to discovering new tastes for yourself! Fukui sake is a perfect match for me, and I ended up drinking too much.
Hamacho is a fashionable town where the old and the new mix together. It's a quiet town that's just the right size for a stroll while taking photos of the townscape to sober up.
The entrance to Hamamachi Amami Liquor Store. The liquor store used to be located here, but has since been remodeled into a modern building.
There is an array of famous brands that symbolize Fukui as a sake producing region.
Five types on this day. With careful instruction, we tasted everything from unique to mild-tasting sake. The cost was 500 yen. (The selection changes daily.)
They will also give you advice on which alcohol to choose based on your tastes! Local delivery is also available. Please stop by.
Enjoy the local gourmet dish "Sauce Katsudon" and stroll around the area in front of the station
In Fukui city, the city tram "Fukubu Line" runs, affectionately known to the locals as Fukutetsu. I walked around the area in front of the station, glancing at the tram, which somehow evokes a sense of travel.
There are bicycle rentals in Fukui City, but this time I walked everywhere. It was a comfortable distance to walk from the station to the prefectural office.
In Junka, an area lined with restaurants, I ate the "Sauce Katsudon" at Europa-ken. The local gourmet dish Sauce Katsudon from Fukui City is a rice bowl of thin fried cutlets covered in fine breadcrumbs and dipped in a special sauce. The sauce has a good balance of spicy, sweet and sour, and is delicious! It's affordable at 880 yen and will fill you up.
For history buffs, we recommend a visit to Shibata Shrine. Built on the remains of the Kitanosho Castle tower, the shrine enshrines Lord Shibata Katsuie and his wife Oichi. For this reason, it is said to bring good fortune in terms of marital and family ties.
The shrine is located in a busy area with fashion and shopping districts, and is close to the station.
The tram connects the cities of Fukui, Sabae, and Echizen. It was a very useful landmark when walking around the city.
Europaken Main Branch. A Western-style restaurant, but the specialty is katsudon.
The original sauce katsudon, a Fukui specialty, comes with three thinly pounded pork cutlets on top.
The spiciness is so delicious you can't stop eating it! It is said to have originated from Weiner Schnitzel (Viennese pork cutlet).
Shibata Shrine is associated with Lord Shibata Katsuie. It is located in the center of the city and not far from the station, making it an easy spot to stop by.
There was a first torii gate in the middle of the downtown area. It's strange to think that a castle once stood here.
The central area of Fukui City, where Shibata Shrine is located, is a place lined with fashionable cafes.
The contents published are accurate at the time of publication and are subject to change.
