2024 Sakata Travel Guide: Must-see attractions, popular food, hotels, transportation routes (updated in October)

The Hidden Hiyoriyama Park

Address: 1 Chome-10 Minamishinmachi, Sakata, Yamagata 998-0063, Japan Getting there: The park is about a half an hour walk or a short taxi ride from Ishinomaki Station. Highlights: The Hiyoriyama Park is a hilltop park in central Ishinomaki City. The park enjoys commanding views out over the city including the Kitakami River Estuary and the waterfront districts along the coast of the Pacific Ocean. At the entrance to the park is Kashima Shrine where merchants would visit to pray for safety before heading out to sea. rom there a small network of walking paths lead around the grounds to several viewpoints, green spaces, and two long stairways that lead down the hillside to the lower city districts below. 😁 #gooutside #traveljapan #park #chilling

#100waysoftravel

Sankyo Soko: Edo Period Warehouses and Ancient Beech Forest in Tohoku, Japan

Sakata City in Yamagata Prefecture, Tohoku, Japan 🇯🇵, is home to an important historical landmark from the Edo period—the Sankyo Soko. During the Edo period, Sakata City relied on the westbound shipping routes of the Sea of Japan ⚓️, becoming a crucial rice port. The design and construction of the warehouses reflect the commercial wisdom of the time, utilizing the local natural environment to maintain stable temperatures inside the warehouses, ensuring the safe storage of rice. Surrounding the Sankyo Soko is an ancient beech forest 🌳, with trees over 150 years old providing a natural barrier against the strong winds from the Sea of Japan. Walking along the path, 36 beech trees line both sides, each showcasing its own beauty 😍. Near the Sankyo Soko, the 'Sakata Yume no Kura' offers many unique souvenirs 🛍️ from Yamagata, each item brimming with local charm. 📸 Attraction: Sankyo Soko 📍 Address: 1-1-20 Sankyo-cho, Sakata City, Yamagata Prefecture 🚝 Access: From Sakata Station, take the Shonai Kotsu Bus to the Sankyo Soko-mae Bus Stop, about a 10-minute ride, then a short walk to Sankyo Soko.

A unique experience for just 2,500 yen, right in Yamagata's Sakata City!

What can you do with 2,500 yen? Have a seafood donburi? Travel from Tokyo Station to Narita Airport? Would you believe that for 2,500 yen, you can also enjoy a 'dance performance' by the lovely maiko ladies, and even take a photo with them! In Sakata City, near the Sea of Japan in Yamagata Prefecture, there are many old ryotei that were once flourishing. Soma-ro is one of them, and now it has been converted into a tourist facility where you can enjoy maiko performances. The admission fee for the museum and the performance is over 2,000 yen, but you need to make a reservation in advance. You can visit the rooms inside the building, including the 'Takehisa Yumeji Art Museum', and finally enjoy the beautiful performance of the maiko in the 'large hall' on the second floor. Unlike the geisha of Kyoto, the maiko here are very down-to-earth. You can even take a photo with them! Address: 1-2-20 Hiyoshi-cho, Sakata City, Yamagata Prefecture

Harbour town Sakata ⚓️🛶

#timetotravel Sakata is a gorgeous harbour town in Yamagata, Northeast Japan. Located along the coast of the Sea of Japan, it’s only an hour away from Tokyo by plane, and it’s rich in nature, culture and tradition. During the Edo period, many ascetic mountain monks sought to go under a strict training consisting of meditation and gradual self-starvation, which was meant to lead to self-mummification. This practice is known as ‘sokushinbutsu.’ There is now over a dozen sokushinbutsu left in Japan, and 6 of them are in Shonai (the area of Sakata), which is more than any other region.