- Worth it
- Kenrokuen garden at opening time, the Higashi Chaya teahouse district, and sushi at Omicho Market.
- Skip
- Treating it as a small Kyoto and rushing it in half a day. It has its own pace.
- Eat
- Seafood bowls, and snow crab from November to March.
- Get there
- 2 h 30 from Tokyo on the Hokuriku shinkansen.
- Best time
- Winter for snow and crab, spring for blossom.
Don't miss
- Kenrokuen. One of Japan's three great gardens, with snow ropes on the pines in winter. 1 h 30Getting there: Loop bus 15 min from Kanazawa station, or 25 min on foot.
- Higashi Chaya. The old geisha teahouse district. Try the gold-leaf ice cream, a local quirk. 1 h
- Omicho Market. Kanazawa's fish market. Seafood bowls for lunch, crab in winter. 1 h
- 21st Century Museum. A round glass museum of contemporary art, famous for its swimming pool you can stand under. 1 h 30
- Samurai district. Earthen walls, canals and the restored Nomura samurai house with its tiny garden. 1 h
Plans that go through Kanazawa
Snow Monkey Week1 week: Tokyo 4, Snow monkeys 1, Kanazawa 2
Through the Alps10 days: Tokyo 3, Takayama 2, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 3
Snow Country10 days: Tokyo 4, Snow monkeys 1, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 3
Alps and Temples2 weeks: Tokyo 4, Takayama 2, Shirakawa-go 1, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 3, Osaka 2
Blossom Chase2 weeks: Tokyo 4, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 4, Hiroshima 2, Osaka 2
Autumn Mountains2 weeks: Tokyo 4, Kiso Valley 1, Takayama 2, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 4, Osaka 1
White Alps2 weeks: Tokyo 4, Snow monkeys 1, Takayama 2, Shirakawa-go 1, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 4
Everything, Once3 weeks: Tokyo 5, Nikko 1, Hakone 1, Takayama 2, Shirakawa-go 1, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 5, Osaka 2, Hiroshima 1, Miyajima 1
The Big Loop1 month: Tokyo 5, Nikko 1, Hakone 1, Matsumoto 1, Takayama 2, Shirakawa-go 1, Kanazawa 2, Kyoto 5, Nara 1, Koyasan 1, Osaka 2, Hiroshima 2, Miyajima 1, Fukuoka 1, Nagasaki 2, Kumamoto and Aso 2
Slow Japan1 month: Tokyo 8, Hakone 2, Kanazawa 3, Kyoto 8, Osaka 4, Hiroshima 3, Miyajima 2
Riding the Blossom1 month: Fukuoka 3, Hiroshima 3, Kyoto 6, Kanazawa 3, Tokyo 7, Matsushima 2, Hakodate 3, Sapporo 3
The Snow Month1 month: Sapporo 3, Tokyo 6, Nikko 2, Ginzan Onsen 2, Snow monkeys 2, Takayama 3, Shirakawa-go 1, Kanazawa 3, Kyoto 6, Osaka 2
Japan, End to End2 months: Sapporo 4, Furano and Biei 2, Hakodate 2, Matsushima 2, Ginzan Onsen 1, Tokyo 8, Nikko 2, Hakone 2, Matsumoto 2, Takayama 3, Shirakawa-go 1, Kanazawa 3, Kyoto 8, Nara 1, Osaka 3, Naoshima 2, Hiroshima 3, Fukuoka 2, Nagasaki 2, Kagoshima 2, Okinawa 5
The Long Stay2 months: Tokyo 14, Nikko 2, Hakone 2, Matsumoto 3, Kanazawa 4, Kyoto 15, Osaka 5, Naoshima 2, Hiroshima 4, Miyajima 1, Fukuoka 5, Nagasaki 3