Overview
PRIVATE CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Walk the castle town with a local guide,
and savor the beauty passed down in Zeze.
Zeze flourished as a key point on the Tokaido. Even today, along the lakeshore, you can still feel the legacy of Zeze Castle, Zeze ware passed down as tea ceramics, and the culture connected to the Nihonga painter Shunkyo Yamamoto.
In this experience, you’ll walk the old Tokaido and castle sites with a local guide who knows Zeze’s history inside out. You’ll also enjoy matcha and Japanese sweets in Zeze ware tea bowls, and visit Rokasensuiso, the villa of Shunkyo Yamamoto. Through the castle town, crafts, and architecture, you’ll encounter the culture that has been passed down in Zeze.
ZEZE CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Trace the castle town, tea ceramics, and landmark architecture as a single story
THE EXPERIENCE
Read the former castle town from today’s streetscape.
Today, almost nothing remains of Zeze Castle. However, by tracing the route of the old Tokaido road, the castle ruins, and the traces left in the town along with the stories of a local guide, you can begin to see the castle and castle town that once spread along the lake shore.
THREE WAYS TO EXPERIENCE ZEZE
01 | Walk the castle town with a guide
Tour the old Tokaido and Zeze Castle sites with a local guide, tracing the remnants of the castle town still found in today’s streets.
02 | Taste it with Zeze ware
Zeze ware has been passed down as tea ceramics. You’ll hold the vessels in your hands and enjoy matcha and Japanese sweets.
03 | Visit Rokasensuiso
Visit the lakeside villa built in Zeze, the hometown of the Nihonga painter Shunkyo Yamamoto. Explore the Important Cultural Property building and the designated scenic garden, and savor a space infused with Shunkyo’s sense of beauty.
A RARE VISIT
Visit Rokasensuiso, the lakeside villa of Shunkyo Yamamoto, visited by architecture fans from across Japan.
Rokasensuiso is a villa built on the lakeshore of Zeze by the Nihonga painter Shunkyo Yamamoto. The building is designated as an Important Cultural Property, and the garden is a designated Scenic Spot of Otsu City. In the unified space of architecture, garden, and interior design, Shunkyo’s distinctive sense of beauty lives on in every detail.
Visits require advance reservations, and its architectural appeal draws architecture fans and culture lovers from all over Japan. You can take your time exploring one of Zeze’s signature cultural spaces—something not easily encountered on a typical sightseeing trip.
EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS
Walk the castle town with a local guide | Follow the old Tokaido and castle sites as you’re guided through the story of Zeze Castle and its castle town
Taste it with Zeze ware | Enjoy matcha and Japanese sweets in Zeze ware tea bowls and experience the culture of tea ceramics
Visit Rokasensuiso | Tour an Important Cultural Property villa and scenic garden visited by architecture fans from across Japan
A trip keepsake | Includes a “Zeze Castle stamp”
EXPERIENCE MAP
A route through the history and culture of Zeze, a castle town
Basic Information
- Tour Dates
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Weekly: Wed–Sun *Excludes Mon/Tue, the 3rd Sunday, year-end/New Year holidays, and certain dates (festivals/events).
*This tour is request-based (On request). After you apply, we will contact you within 3 business days to confirm whether it can be arranged. Please note we may not be able to accommodate your preferred date. - Time
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9:30–12:30
13:00–16:00
[Duration: approx. 3 hours] - Capacity
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10 people (minimum 2)
- Price
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¥4,900 (when joining with 2+ people) / ¥6,900 (solo departure)
[Includes] Admission fees, food and drink, guide expenses, etc.
*The minimum number of participants for this tour is 2. If you would like the tour to run with 1 person, please apply using the solo rate. If additional participants join and the total reaches the minimum (2+), we will refund the difference.
Itinerary
JR Ishiyama Station Tourist Information Center / Meet, check-in, depart with local guide → Tokaido: Awazu no Seiran / Pine-lined road → Zeze Castle: Seta-guchi Main Gate Site → Rokasensuiso (Kion-ji Temple) / Visit (approx. 45 min) → Zeze Ware Museum / Visit & tea service (approx. 30 min) → Lakeside Walking Path / Ninomaru–Sannomaru sites → Zeze Castle Ruins Park / Honmaru site (approx. 10 min) → Zeze Castle Reconstruction Model / Otsu City Lifelong Learning Center (approx. 20 min) → Zeze Shrine / Zeze Castle gate → Keihan Railway Zeze-Honmachi Station / Tour ends
Additional Details
DISCOVER ZEZE
Walk with a guide to trace the history and beauty of Zeze, a castle town
LOCAL GUIDE EXPERIENCE
Read the castle town’s past through traces still found around the town.
The old Tokaido, former gate sites, the Ninomaru and Sannomaru remains along the lakeshore, the Honmaru site, and a relocated castle gate—follow the traces of Zeze Castle scattered through today’s streets with commentary from a local guide. As you look more closely at places you might otherwise pass by, you’ll piece together the form of the lakeside castle and the castle town that once spread around it.
A Zeze Castle gate relocated to Zeze Shrine and still standing today
CASTLE TOWN WALK
Walk the Tokaido and Zeze castle town with a local guide
From Tokaido: Awazu no Seiran to the Seta-guchi Main Gate Site—once the entrance to the castle town. Listening to your local guide, you’ll trace Zeze’s history where the highway and castle intersected, and the lingering atmosphere of the castle town in today’s streets. Near the end of the tour, you’ll also visit the Zeze Castle gate relocated to Zeze Shrine and still standing today.
A RARE VISIT
Rokasensuiso, a destination for architecture fans from across Japan
Rokasensuiso is a villa built on the lakeshore of Zeze by the Nihonga painter Shunkyo Yamamoto. The building is an Important Cultural Property, and the garden is a designated Scenic Spot of Otsu City. In the unified space of architecture, garden, and interior design, Shunkyo’s distinctive sense of beauty lives on in every detail.
Its architectural and cultural appeal continues to draw architecture fans and culture lovers from all over Japan. Unlike typical tourist facilities, visits require advance reservations. You’ll take about 45 minutes to view it carefully, down to the finest details.
Visit: approx. 45 min
ZEZE WARE & TEA
Learn about Zeze ware, then enjoy matcha in Zeze ware tea bowls
Zeze ware was discovered by tea master Enshu Kobori and counted among the “Enshu Seven Kilns.” After exploring its history and works at the Zeze Ware Museum, you’ll hold Zeze ware in your hands and enjoy matcha and Japanese sweets.
Includes matcha Japanese sweets / Visit tea service: approx. 30 min
ART CRAFT
A story that connects Shunkyo Yamamoto and Zeze ware
Shunkyo Yamamoto contributed not only to Nihonga painting, but also to the revival of Zeze ware. At the Zeze Ware Museum, you’ll trace the connection between the world of Nihonga encountered at Rokasensuiso and the craft culture passed down in Zeze, through vessels painted by Shunkyo and related materials.
ZEZE CASTLE SITE
Walk the lakeshore and trace the layout of Zeze Castle
From the Zeze Ware Museum, head to the lakeshore. Walking along the Ninomaru and Sannomaru sites, you’ll make your way to Zeze Castle Ruins Park, where the Honmaru once stood. Your local guide will help you picture the former Zeze Castle, built as if jutting out into Lake Biwa, by overlaying it with today’s lakeside scenery.
HONMARU SITE
To the Honmaru site of Zeze Castle, facing Lake Biwa
The current Zeze Castle Ruins Park is located where the main keep of Zeze Castle once stood. Standing on the lake shore, you can trace the castle’s past with a local guide while experiencing the actual landscape of the castle that was built to jut out into Lake Biwa.
Honmaru site / Visit: approx. 10 min
ZEZE CASTLE MODEL
See Zeze Castle as it once was through a reconstruction model
At the Otsu City Lifelong Learning Center, you’ll view the “Zeze Castle Reconstruction Model.” By checking the relationships between the Honmaru, Ninomaru, Sannomaru, and the castle town you’ve just walked through, the former Zeze Castle—built facing Lake Biwa—comes into clearer, three-dimensional view.
Visit: approx. 20 min
CASTLE GATE
A Zeze Castle gate preserved at Zeze Shrine
Near the end of the walk, you’ll head to Zeze Shrine and visit the Zeze Castle gate that was relocated to the grounds and still remains today. By connecting the ruins, the reconstruction model, and the surviving gate, you can feel the lost Zeze Castle more vividly.
TOUR GIFT
A “Zeze Castle stamp” as a trip keepsake
As a memento of joining the tour, we provide a “Zeze Castle stamp.” Please take it home as a keepsake of your journey walking the castle town with a local guide and experiencing Zeze’s history and culture.
Includes a Zeze Castle stamp
PRIVATE REQUEST
A request-based cultural experience in Zeze
This is a request-based tour arranged around your preferred date, including Rokasensuiso, the Zeze Ware Museum, and a local guide. After confirming availability at each facility, we will contact you to let you know whether it can be arranged.
INFORMATION
Please check before booking/participating
About booking
This tour is request-based (On request). After you apply, we will confirm arrangements for facilities, the guide, etc., and contact you to let you know whether it can be arranged. Please note we may not be able to accommodate your preferred date.
About the guide
A local guide with deep knowledge of Zeze Castle, the old Tokaido, and the area’s history and culture will accompany you from start to finish.
About Rokasensuiso
Visits to Rokasensuiso are by advance reservation. Depending on the facility’s circumstances, it may not be possible to visit on your preferred date.
About walking
This tour involves walking about 3.3 km. Please wear comfortable clothing and shoes.
Preparing for heat and weather
Please bring a drink to stay hydrated. Also, prepare a hat, parasol, rain gear, etc., depending on the weather.
About the Zeze Castle stamp
If you join with 2+ people, you can change the “Zeze Castle stamp” to another castle stamp upon request. If you would like to change it, please let us know on the day.
About the itinerary
Depending on facility closures, events, weather, etc., we may change some stops, the itinerary, or parts of the experience.
Information for the day
We do not mail travel documents or the final itinerary for this tour. Please check the day-of information (final itinerary) under “Reservation Details” in your booking confirmation email.
Tour Operator
Registered Travel Agency with the Governor of Shiga Prefecture: No. 2-243
Full Member of All Nippon Travel Agents Association (ANTA)
Biwako Otsu Tourism Association
Civic Cultural Center 2F, 2-3 Goryo-cho, Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture
