Atsuta Jingu and the Kusanagi-kan sword museum
1 / 9Atsuta Jingu and the Kusanagi-kan sword museumPhoto: Bariston / CC BY-SA 4.0
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The shrine grounds are free; no official opening hours are published. The Treasure Hall and the Kusanagi-kan sword museum are ¥500 each, or ¥800 together (sold until 15:30), both 9:00–16:30 with last entry 16:00. The Treasure Hall closes on the last Thursday of the month and the day before, which in November 2026 is 25–26 November; a display of contemporary Tokai swordsmiths runs 30 October–24 November. Miya Kishimen, inside the grounds, serves kishimen noodles 9:00–16:30 every day.
- Our number 2 for Nagoya, out of ten. It is the first thing we would spend the hours on.
- Reachable on foot from the berth, so no timetable can strand you.
- Grounds free; ¥500 each museum, ¥800 for both to visit — adults. the combined ticket for the treasure hall and the kusanagi-kan is sold until 15:30.
- On a 4–6h ashore call our verdict is "Yes" — rail in, the grounds and the kusanagi-kan, kishimen or hitsumabushi for lunch, rail back.
- Grounds: not published. Museums 9:00–16:30, last entry 16:00 — treasure hall closed the last thursday of the month and the day before (25–26 nov 2026) and 25–31 dec; the kusanagi-kan as a rule closes the day before the treasure hall's closing day. both open on 10, 14 and 28 nov by those rules.
- 3 hr 30 min door to door means a 2–3 hour stop ashore cannot hold it. Pick something closer instead.
Why Atsuta Jingu and the Kusanagi-kan sword museum is famous
A shrine built around one of the three imperial treasures, and a museum of the swords you can see
Atsuta Jingu keeps two museums: the Treasure Hall and the Kusanagi-kan, a museum of swords. A combined ticket is ¥800, sold until 15:30. From 30 October to 24 November 2026 the Treasure Hall shows the work of contemporary swordsmiths from the Tokai region, and a corner exhibition follows from 27 November. The grounds are free and publish no hours. The subway station once called Jingu-nishi is now Atsuta Jingu Nishi.
One of the three sacred treasures of the Japanese throne is held at a shrine about 14 km by road from the berth. It is not on display. The new museum next door holds about 450 other swords.
Atsuta Jingu holds the Kusanagi, the sacred sword that is one of the three treasures of the imperial throne. The sword is not shown. What you see is a forest shrine in the middle of the city: a long approach under the trees, the Nobunaga wall Oda Nobunaga gave after Okehazama in 1560, and a camphor tree said to be more than 1,000 years old.
The Kusanagi-kan, opened in 2021, holds about 450 swords offered to the shrine, in glass cases you can walk around, with two huge odachi on permanent display. From 30 October to 24 November the Treasure Hall shows contemporary Tokai swordsmiths. With a kishimen lunch in the grounds, this is the most compact half day in Nagoya.
The shrine's date for the Kusanagi coming to Atsuta, after Yamato Takeru's death
The Nihon Shoki records the theft by a monk from Silla named Dogyo
The sword comes back to Atsuta; the 4 and 5 May rites remember it
Oda Nobunaga gives an earthen wall in thanks for Okehazama
Aonami Line to Nagoya, Meitetsu to Jingu-mae, three minutes on foot. Allow an hour and a half for the grounds and the Kusanagi-kan, and lunch on kishimen inside. Both museums are open on all three Jade calls.
Things worth knowing
- On Tuesday 10 November, Atsuta Horaiken's Jingu-ten by the south gate is closed. Its Honten is open on Tuesdays; lunch last order is 14:00.
- The subway stop once called Jingu-nishi is now Atsuta Jingu Nishi. Meitetsu's Jingu-mae is the closest station, 3 minutes away.
- Buy the ¥800 combined ticket before 15:30 if you want both the Kusanagi-kan and the Treasure Hall.
- On Saturday 28 November the Treasure Hall has a new corner exhibition from 27 November, and Shirotori Garden nearby (¥300) stays open to 20:00 for its autumn light-up. The ship sails at 19:00, so the light-up is only a stretch.
- Kusanagi-no-tsurugi草薙神剣 — The sacred sword held at Atsuta, one of the three treasures of the imperial throne. It is not on display.
- Sanshu no jingi三種の神器 — The three sacred treasures: a sword, a mirror and a jewel.
Atsuta Jingu and the Kusanagi-kan sword museum and your ship
Both pins on one map, so the distance is a fact rather than a feeling.
Where the 3 hr 30 min goes
Counted from the moment you step off the gangway. The hour before all-aboard is not in this bar; it is already set aside.
16 minutes each way is the measured figure for walk 15–17 min to kinjo-futo (our estimate), aonami line to nagoya 24 min, then meitetsu to jingu-mae, about 8 min by limited express (journey planner), and 3 min on foot. taxi 13.9 km, about ¥6,200 each way, our estimate, not the optimistic one. If your ship is late, cut the 2 hr 58 min in the middle. Never cut the hour at the end.
Questions people send us
Can you see the Kusanagi sword at Atsuta Jingu?
No. The sword is the sacred object of the shrine and is not displayed. The Kusanagi-kan shows about 450 swords offered to the shrine, and the Treasure Hall holds more than 6,000 items.
How much is Atsuta Jingu?
The grounds are free. The Treasure Hall and the Kusanagi-kan cost ¥500 each for adults, or ¥800 for both, sold until 15:30. Both open 9:00–16:30, last entry 16:00.
How do I get to Atsuta Jingu from Kinjo Pier?
Aonami Line to Nagoya (24 min, ¥360), then Meitetsu to Jingu-mae, about 8 minutes by limited express in a route planner, and 3 minutes on foot. A taxi from the berth is about 13.9 km, roughly ¥6,200 by our estimate.
Routes that already include it
Each one is a finished day we have walked and timed, with this stop in it. Read the route rather than assembling it yourself.
What to put beside it
Each of these still lands you back aboard with the hour to spare.
See · ~4hNagoya Castle and the Hommaru Palace
The main keep is closed, so the visit is the Hommaru Palace, about 10 minutes on foot from the Main or East Gate, and the grounds.
See the detail →
Eat · ~3.5hHitsumabushi at Atsuta Horaiken
Hitsumabushi is grilled eel on rice, and Atsuta Horaiken is the name for it.
See the detail →
See · ~3.5hOsu Kannon and the Osu shopping streets
Osu Kannon’s main hall is open 6:00–19:00, free, with no closing days, right outside exit 2 of Osu Kannon station.
See the detail →