Gifu Castle (Mount Kinka)
岐阜城
The castle from which Oda Nobunaga proclaimed his ambition to 'unify the realm.' A cable car climbs Mount Kinka to the keep, which overlooks the Nagara River and the Nobi Plain.
Gifu Castle stands on the summit of Mount Kinka, 329 meters above sea level. In the Sengoku period it was the castle of Saito Dosan. After Oda Nobunaga captured it in 1567, he renamed the town of Inokuchi as Gifu, and from here he proclaimed his ambition to unify the realm, known as Tenka Fubu. The present keep was rebuilt in 1956 and houses a history museum. Its top-floor observation deck overlooks the Nagara River, the city of Gifu, distant Mount Ibuki and the skyscrapers of Nagoya. Keep admission is about 200 yen, and the Kinka Ropeway round trip costs about 1,300 yen (it operates at night in summer and some other seasons). At the foot of the mountain, Gifu Park contains the ruins of Nobunaga's residence. From JR Nagoya Station to JR Gifu Station takes about 20 minutes. From there, a bus takes about 15 minutes to the Gifu Park & History Museum stop.
Opening hours
Main keep 9:30 am–5:30 pm (seasonal changes); cable car 9:00 am–6:00 pm
Nearby sights
- Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River
- Mount Komaki (Komakiyama Castle)
- Kiyosu Castle
- Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology
- Noritake Garden
- Nagoya Castle
- Shikemichi Historic District
- Midland Square Sky Promenade