• A short distance outside of the city center of Kanazawa is Tsurugi, a small town often overlooked by tourists to the area. Tsurugi has 2,000 years of history as an important site for religious worship and two of the shrines in the city have been attested to being local centers since at least the 60s BC. The shrine approach to Shrayama-hime Shrine still maintains that mystical feel as you walk through the forested and moss covered stairs. Nearby is a gondola that takes you to the top of one of the local mountains and gives you a stunning view of the town beneath and as far as the Sea of Japan. The final stop of the day is to see the butterfly house with over 1,000 butterflies. The mix of history and nature so close to the city is epitome of what makes Japan so great.

Travel to Tsurugi. We will use the local trains to get out of the city and into the mountains. Arrive at Tsurugi and walk around the area near the station. Here you will see Kikengu Shrine and other traditional buildings. After getting a feel for the town, we will head out to the next spots. It is a nice walk near the river as we see the water systems and old train stations.