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The garden core, Kanazawa

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For a 7.5-hour call · Kanazawa

The garden core

Kenroku-en and its neighbors — the reason you docked. Timed from the gangway and back.

5 hr 30 min door to door6 stopsNeeds a 7.5-hour call
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Photo: Lorenzo Castellino / Pexels
Door to door
5 hr 30 min
From the gangway and back
Best for
A 7.5-hour call or longer
Kenroku-en and its neighbors — the reason you docked
Room to spare
None
Fits a 7.5-hour stop with nothing to add (off the ship 30 minutes after arrival, back at the gangway an hour before all-aboard). A longer call gives you the extra time; on this one, do not add a stop.
What it costs
¥3,700
For the taxi in (per car), then ¥220 Loop Bus and ¥310 bus 04 back. Kenroku-en ¥320 (free at 65+ with ID).
Booking
Nothing
Every stop here takes walk-ups

Timed from the gangway with the port's official timetables · updated · Takumi Yamada

Numbers follow the route below. Pins are the places themselves; walking lines are not drawn because the best way between two stops can change with the tram, the tide or the weather.

The route

How the day runs

Times are from the moment you step off, not from the scheduled arrival. Everything shifts if your ship is late; the order does not.

  1. +0:00
    Taxi to Kenroku-en (15–20 min, about ¥3,700)

    Or bus 04 to Kanazawa Station, then the Loop Bus: about 1 hour. No weekday bus leaves the port 07:25–10:10. If your ship runs a shuttle, check its return times

    What you will see hereFull guide: Kenroku-en
  2. +0:40
    Kenroku-en — one of the three perfect gardens

    The two-legged lantern is left of the pond

    What you will see hereFull guide: Kenroku-en
  3. +2:10
    Kanazawa Castle Park through the gate

    Free lawns, lead-tiled roofs

    What you will see hereFull guide: Kanazawa Castle Park
    Kanazawa Castle Park, Kanazawa
    Photo: Benh LIEU SONG from Torcy, France / CC BY-SA 2.0
  4. +3:00
    Omicho Market — the quick seafood bowl

    Stand-up counters beat the queue

    What you will see hereFull guide: Omicho Market
    Seafood bowl at Omicho, Kanazawa
    Photo: 経済特区 / CC BY-SA 4.0
  5. +4:00
    Bus 04 back from Kanazawa Station West, stop 6 (about 25–35 min, ¥310)

    Omicho to the station is a 15-min walk. Weekdays: 12:15, 13:00, 14:10, 15:00, 15:25, then none until 17:15. Weekends and holidays: 12:20, 14:20, 15:00, 15:45 (last). Missed it? Taxi, about ¥2,600

    What you will see here
    Omicho Market, Kanazawa
    Photo: Adrian / CC BY 2.0
  6. +4:45
    Back at the gangway
Would rather have it arranged?Explore Kanazawa Half Day Private Tour with Local NurseSame garden-castle-market core, guided and unhurried · from US$227 · 5.0★ — why we list it
The margin is not optional. This route ends an hour before all-aboard on purpose. If you are running late, drop the last stop, not the hour.
What the day looks like

Kanazawa, along this route

Real photographs of the places above and the streets between them. Every one is credited.

Earthen walls along a lane in the Nagamachi samurai district, Kanazawa
Earthen walls along a lane in the Nagamachi samurai district, KanazawaPhoto: Andrea Schaffer from Sydney, Australia / CC BY 2.0
A sheet of Kanazawa gold leaf being laid by hand
A sheet of Kanazawa gold leaf being laid by handPhoto: jam_232 / CC BY 2.0
Kaga yuzen silk dyeing in Kanazawa
Kaga yuzen silk dyeing in KanazawaPhoto: Japanexperterna.se / CC BY-SA 2.0
Boiled snow crab, male and female, Kanazawa
Boiled snow crab, male and femalePhoto: Nishimuraya Kinosaki Onsen / CC BY 2.0
Higashi Chaya, Kanazawa
Higashi ChayaPhoto: Yoshihide Urushihara / CC BY-SA 2.0
21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
21st Century Museum of Contemporary ArtPhoto: 金沢市 / CC BY 2.1 jp
Different hours, different day

The other routes in Kanazawa

The rainy-day KanazawaA wet day · ~5hWet weather — and Kanazawa is wet, by designThe port-side secretNeeds a 4-hour call · ~2hShort calls — the realistic answer this far from downtownThe grand loopNeeds a 10-hour call · ~8hLong calls — garden, gold leaf, geisha lanes and the pool
Pick your own stops instead →Back to the Kanazawa guide
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