News & Events
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- Dedicate a “Wish Daruma” doll on Chikubushima Island!
- Chikubushima Island is found on Lake Biwa. Here’s the way to dedicate a traditional “Wish Daruma” doll to the goddess Benzaiten, who is believed to free people from suffering and lead them into happiness.
(1) Write your wish along with your name on a special piece of paper.
(2) After finishing writing on the paper, roll it up into a tube shape.
(3) Insert the paper into the hole on the bottom of the daruma doll.
(4) Have someone from the shrine office seal the wish inside using a special sticker.
(5) Dedicate the doll in the main hall, pay a prayer fee of 500 yen, and you are finished!
Please note that you cannot take the Wish Daruma doll home with you. However, if you make an additional donation along with your 500 yen prayer fee, you can receive a non-retail “Wish Daruma strap” to take home.
Here’s hoping that your wish comes true!
https://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/2472
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- Japanese Hatsumode in Shiga
- Hatsumode is the first visit made to a shrine or temple at the start of the year, to pray for happiness in the year ahead.
◆Taga Taisha Shrine
A shrine that has attracted worshippers since ancient times due to its connections to the god of long life, relationships and warding off disaster. The premiere shrine in Shiga, the god Izanagi and goddess Izanami, who were the parents of Amaterasu herself, are enshrined here.
Charge: Entry to the grounds is free (Okushoin Garden 300yen)
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/234
◆Hieizan Enryakuji Temple
A temple globally renowned for its 1200 years of history and tradition, in 1994 Enryakuji became a registered UNESCO World Heritage site. From New Year’s Eve to New Year’s Day both the Okuhiei and Hieizan Driveways remain open all night, allowing you to drive through from the city and see the first sunrise of the New Year from Hieizan.
One charge for admittance to the East Tower, West Tower and Yokawa: Adult 700yen, junior and high school student 500yen, elementary school student 300yen
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/112
◆Tsukubusuma-jinja Shrine (Chikubushima-jinja Shrine)
A shrine located on the mysterious Chikubushima Island, and known as one of the three major shrines in Japan enshrining Benzaiten. It is visited not only on the first day of the New Year but also throughout the year by many worshippers, and is popular as a spiritual power spot.
Charge: Free (Island entry charge: Adult 400yen, child 300yen)
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/285
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- Japanese Confections from Shiga
- An introduction to uniquely Japanese confections that have remained popular in Shiga for generations.
They also make excellent gifts!
■Watayo
Watayo's decchi yokan (thick jellied sweets made of red bean paste, agar, and sugar), for which Omi-Hachiman is famous, are a long-standing confection with ties to the land of the renowned Omi merchants. Their uiro mochi (steamed cake made of rice flour and sugar), made with delicious Shiga-grown Omi rice, is also very highly regarded for its perfectly sticky texture.
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/193
■Ubaga Mochi Main Store
Ubaga mochi is a local confection representative of Shiga, created using traditional methods that have been passed down for more than 400 years. These innately Japanese confections feature mochi made with locally grown Kusatsu rice, wrapped around a reservedly sweet bean-paste center and then topped with white bean and yam decorations.
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/30
■Miidera Chikara Mochi Honke
Miidera Chikara Mochi is a rice-based confection created using traditional methods passed down since the founding of the company in 1869, and is now one of the most famous confections hailing from Shiga. The mochi is served on skewers with a sweet sauce and soy flour unique to the store, meaning you can only get a taste of it right here!
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/77
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- Stay in Traditional Homes in Shiga
- There are probably many who don’t know of Shiga Prefecture, but in fact Otsu, the city where the Shiga Prefectural Office is located, is just two stations and 9 minutes from Kyoto Station.
Kyoto is so packed with tourists, and if you stay there and sightsee there, it may be difficult to achieve a true feeling of relaxation amid all the crowds of people.
If you want to see Kyoto, but are also looking for lodgings where you can really relax, why not stay in Shiga Prefecture?
Here’s an information-packed introduction to a selection of Shiga lodging facilities that have been created by refurbishing traditional homes.
Hotel Koo Otsuhyakucho
Lodgings created by refurbishing a number of old homes, and conveniently located close to JR Otsu Station. A nationally registered tangible cultural property. Stylish lodgings that fuse Japanese traditional culture with the modern.
http://hotel-koo.com/
Japanesque Villa Ichien
This is your chance to stay in a building that’s a nationally registered tangible cultural property. Take a relaxing break in a peaceful mountain village. Requires prior booking and only operates on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and during the spring and summer holiday periods.
https://www.ichienyashiki.jp/
Guesthouse Mio
A lodging facility created by refurbishing a house of around 100 years in the city of Omihachiman. The entire house is offered to just a single party at a time. You can watch the boats sailing the Hachiman Canals right from your window, and during the spring blossom season you can also enjoy the cherry blooming along the water.
https://guesthousemio.weebly.com/
Chojian
Lodgings in an old-time traditional Japanese house with a striking thatched roof, as though you’ve slipped back into history. The owners will also provide meals, made with the best seasonal ingredients and delicious rice.
http://chojian.com/
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- Experience the New Year’s Eve bells in Shiga
- A Buddhist ritual involving the ringing of the temple bell 108 times is an annual event which is performed on the New Year’s Eve, and there are numerous temples in Shiga too where the bells ring out during the middle of the night on December 31st. The following is an introduction to the temples were the public can also participate in the bell ringing.
Hieizan Enryakuji
https://www.hieizan.or.jp/
Tickets to ring the bell are distributed from 21:30, given to those who purchase an auspicious arrow (\1000).
Ishiyamadera
https://www.ishiyamadera.or.jp/
Gate opens at 00:00, and after the ringing by the monks the public may continue to ring the bell, in order of arrival, from 2:00. Stops at 108 rings. Admission to the temple is free for Jan 1 - 3.
Enman-in
https://enman-inn.com/en/
The bell is rung from 23:45. \100 is required for sweet sake.
Saikyo-ji
http://saikyoji.org/publics/index/19/
The bell is rung from 23:45, starting with the monks.
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- Lodgings in Shiga that welcome your beloved pet dog
- If you’re bringing the whole family to Shiga, surely you don’t want your pet pooch to miss out. The good news is, they don’t have to! Take a look at this introduction to lodging facilities were dogs are also welcome guests.
Dantokan Kikunoya
https://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/115
L' Hôtel Du Lac
https://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/273
Regina Resort Biwako Nagahama
https://www.regina-resorts.com/nagahama/withdogs/
Royal Oak Hotel Spa & Gardens
https://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/116
Note: Has a separate pet hotel on the grounds.
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- Dedicate a “Wish Daruma” doll on Chikubushima Island!
- Chikubushima Island is found on Lake Biwa. Here’s the way to dedicate a traditional “Wish Daruma” doll to the goddess Benzaiten, who is believed to free people from suffering and lead them into happiness.
(1) Write your wish along with your name on a special piece of paper.
(2) After finishing writing on the paper, roll it up into a tube shape.
(3) Insert the paper into the hole on the bottom of the daruma doll.
(4) Have someone from the shrine office seal the wish inside using a special sticker.
(5) Dedicate the doll in the main hall, pay a prayer fee of 500 yen, and you are finished!
Please note that you cannot take the Wish Daruma doll home with you. However, if you make an additional donation along with your 500 yen prayer fee, you can receive a non-retail “Wish Daruma strap” to take home.
Here’s hoping that your wish comes true!
https://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/2472
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- Biwaichi Cycling
- Biwaichi Cycling allows you to cycle around the circumference of Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan and the symbol of Shiga, while enjoying nature, history and sightseeing spots along the way.
A full circuit of the lake is approximately 200km in length, taking experienced cyclists a full day. Others often take two days with one night's lodgings, but a three days, two nights plan actually comes highly recommended!
There are lakeside spaces where you can enjoy varied and thrilling seasonal scenery, as well as many historical sites and famous spots along the shores, offering a whole range of fun things to do.
The appeal of Lake Biwa is inexhaustible! Grab as much of it as you can from the back of a bicycle!
Many of the stations and tourist facilities in Shiga offer renta-cycles, making it easy to get your wheels on the ground. How about sightseeing across Shiga from the back of a bicycle, proceeding entirely at your own leisurely pace?
◆Rent-a-Cycle MAP
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/search/rental/
◆Pamphlet download
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/pamphlet/
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- National Treasures and Cultural Assets of Shiga - Koto Area -
- Shiga Prefecture boasts a trove of cultural assets. So much so, in fact, that the region ranks third in Japan for the number of buildings designated as National Treasures or Important Cultural Assets. Here's an introduction to a castle and two temples in the Koto region.
■Hikone-jo Castle
Work started on Hikone-jo Castle in 1604, and took around 20 years to complete. The castle tower itself used materials brought from the five storey Otsu-jo Castle, and is said to have been completed in 1607. The tower is a designated National Treasure, with a combination of different roofing styles that is truly breathtaking.
URL: http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/212
■Saimyoji Temple
One of Shiga Prefecture's representative examples of Kamakura period (1192 to 1333) construction, the main temple is designated as the first National Treasure. Constructed in a stunningly beautiful, highly Japanese style, it features a low gradient cypress bark roof and highly decorative curved wooden supports on all the front-facing latticed shutters and the tops of pillars.
URL: http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/221
■Kongourinji Temple
"The elegant main temple was created during the Kamakura period (1192 to 1333) to commemorate victory in the Mongol invasions of Japan. It is a National Treasure, while the three storey pagoda in the upper left and the gate in front are Important Cultural Assets.
The ten pieces inside the main temple, including a standing statue of Acala, are all also from the Kamakura period (1192 to 1333) and are Important Cultural Assets, providing a wonderful opportunity to see real history up close."
URL:http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/205
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- Mount Ibuki Trekking
- Mount Ibuki is the tallest mountain in Shiga Prefecture, boasting a height of 1,377 meters. Located on the border with Gifu Prefecture, it is loved by the people of both regions as one of the 100 famous mountains of Japan. The peak has been known as a treasure-trove of medicinal and alpine plants since ancient times, with certain nationally protected endemic species also growing on its slopes.
The legendary prince Yamato Takeru, who appears in both the ancient texts of the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki, is also said to have climbed Mount Ibuki. When the mountain and numerous important shrines in the region - Ise Jingu, Kumano Hongu Taisha, Izanagi Jingu, and Motoise Geku Toyo’uke Omikami are connected by straight lines, they create a beautiful five-pointed star on the map. This star is considered to be a Japanese ley line, forming a barrier to protect the ancient capital of Heijo-kyo, and Mount Ibuki is therefore known as a highly spiritual place. You are sure to feel this incredible power as you walk its slopes.
https://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/260
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- Lake Biwa Great Fireworks Festival
- Enjoy 10,000 fireworks launched into the air over Lake Biwa, a stunning display of light that plays out in harmony with jets of fountain water. As 350,000 people throng the banks of the lake every year, incredible fireworks such as star mines are launched against a backdrop of verdant nature. The venue also offers paid seating, from which you can get the best possible view of all the action. If you wish to use them then you will need to purchase a Ticket for Paid Seating. Please see the website for more details. http://www.biwako-visitors.jp/hanabi/
Date : August 8 ,2019 7:30pm-8:30pm
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- Summertime Fun with the Kids in Shiga
- Shiga is a great place to spend your summer holidays! Here’s an introduction to sightseeing spots you can enjoy along with your kids.
Blumen Hugel
http://www.blumenooka.jp/
Yanmar Museum
You can also experience a simulator of Yanmar construction machinery.
https://www.yanmar.com/jp/museum/
Rosa & Berry Tawada
Ride a steam train and play with ponies, sheep for a full day of fun.
http://www.rb-tawada.com/
Planetarium “Digital Star Dome Hotaru”
Located inside the Lake Biwa Marriott Hotel. The Pocket Monster program is particularly popular.
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/maps/travel/osalb-lake-biwa-marriott-hotel/