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Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) I finally feel that I have done Akashi Castle properly after four visits. It was third time lucky last month before I was able to get inside one of the original yaguras (turrets). Tatsumi Yagura is open to the public on weekends in April, June, and October. I had to come back today to get inside Hitsujisaru Yagura, which is open to the public on weekends in March, May, September, and November. The volunteers who work there told us the other months are either too cold or hot to keep the turrets open. Given they sit outside the turrets, that is completely understandable. Inside the Hitsujisaru Yagura is a model of Akashi Castle and its surrounding castle town during the Edo Period. From the front as seen from JR Akashi Station, both Tatsumi Yagura and Hitsujisaru Yagura look roughly about the same size, but Hitsujisaru Yagura is actually a little larger and wider if seen from its north-south profile. It is roughly 1.5 times wider according to the volunteer guide at the Tatsumi Yagura last month. The volunteer guide today at the Hitsujisaru Yagura told us that Akashi Castle originally had 20 yaguras with four three-storey yaguras. According to one of the castle books that I have, some of these yaguras were built with materials taken from other castles such Funage Castle (Tatsumi Yagura), Fushimi Castle (Hitsujisaru Yagura), Takasago Castle, and Edayoshi Castle. There is also a Yakuimon-style gate from Fushimi Castle, which was first relocated to Akashi Castle before it was moved to Geshouji Temple in 1874. Having been inside both the original yaguras now, which are simple mini-museums with exhibits of original tiles (in the Hitsujisaru Yagura), explanations about the history of the castle (in both yaguras), and some replica castle maps, this castle site certainly deserves a solid 3.5 stars. If the upper floors of the yaguras were open to the public and there was an English pamphlet available (for purchase), then this could be bumped up to a four star site. Yes, from the train station, it does not look that special, but it does have lots of impressive stone walls, moats, and two original yaguras. Both the yaguras are constructed mainly from pine, and the volunteer guides are friendly and knowledgeable.

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Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) I went to this castle in early March. It has been around two years since my last visit. More walls have been reconstructed. The local government is quite serious about restoring this castle with current building work focusing on fully reconstructing the Ninomaru Gardens. With work in progress, a visitor to the Ninomaru (Second Bailey) area can see a clear cross-section of how ishigaki (a Japanese stone wall) is constructed. It wasn't the best day for taking piccies, but it was nice to walk around this quiet castle ruin. Thank goodness I finished my visit before two busloads of tourists arrived at the site.

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Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) There are some reconstructed walls at this castle ruin site, but there was no sign explaining the historical significance of the site. Also, too much of the site is fenced off and inaccessible. I would not recommend castle fans to visit this site unless you happen to be in Amagasaki. Zero stars for this site.

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Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) For a Top 100 castle site, this is a huge disappointment. While the earthen ramparts and water moat enclosing the main bailey of this site remain intact with four extant gates (built or rebuilt in the15th to 16th century) make this a decent fortified ruin to visit, it should not be rated as a Top 100 castle. Instead, it would have been more appropriately placed on the Top 100 temple list. I have been to other similar castle ruins with roughly the equivalent amount of ruins, and they are not inscribed in the Top 100 castle list. There is very little that actually relates to the original fortified Ashigakashi Residence. Instead, it is more about Kongozanbanna Temple, and the numerous historic buildings related to this temple complex found on the grounds. There just isn't enough castle-related features like a castle / local history museum, extant or restored fortifications, a reconstructed palace or widespread and signposted ruins (not just the main bailey) to merit this site being in the Top 100 castle. Other more extensive castle ruins such as Naegi Castle or Tamaru Castle, which are not listed in the Top 100 castle list, have so much more to see and are much better signposted for castle-related features than Ashikagashi Yakata.

Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) I went to Azuchi Castle Ruin first before making it over to Kannonji Castle Ruin on the last weekend of February. This is my fourth visit to this castle ruin, so I decided just to ride around the base of the hill and suss out the parts that I have not seen nor are regularly visited. If you are going to rent a bicycle, ride around the area a little, and you will see some of the canals lined with ishigaki created in the days of Oda Nobunaga. Also, go past the big Azuchi Castle sign on the main road heading towards Hikone. First, you will see the remnants of some kind of water moat (more like a pond now) and a bit of ishigaki. Go a bit further, and you will see an open space and a set of steps leading into the bush. Go up the steps, and you will find some ishigaki of some of the lower eastern baileys. They are heavily overgrown with bamboo and other trees.

Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) I went to this castle in the afternoon after going to Kinojo Castle earlier in the day. You can get in both Kinojo and Bitchu-Matsuyama Castle in one day, but you will have to either have a folding bike or use the taxi. Bitchu-Matsuyama Castle is a very nice castle to visit. It's remote location and a lack of visitor means that you can really enjoy this little original castle in peace and quiet. When I went in March, part of the back section was still closed and so was the trail up to the Ohmatsu Castle Ruin a further 500m or so up the trail.

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Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) If I weren't passing through Chiba City on my way back to Tokyo from Sakura Castle, I would not have bothered with this castle site. It is quite disappointing. Having sussed out what others have said, I was mentally prepared for a fake concrete reconstruction where that was no such castle keep in its day. However, they could have had a much better museum inside this fairly big reconstructed castle keep. There was hardly anything in the castle museum about its design and history. No wonder it cost only 60 yen to get in. This is barely a one-star castle site for me.

Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) I visited this castle in mid-August. This castle exceeded my expectations. Prior to going, I had just expected a typical reconstructed concrete castle keep with very little to see in Echizen-Ono. While the castle is a concrete construction, the museum within was fairly informative about the castle and the surrounding castle town's history. As mentioned by another J Castle user below, the view from top of the castle is superb with a 360 degree view of all the surrounding mountains including several Top 100 mountains in Japan. The ishigaki (stone wall) foundation on which the castle was built is quite extensive for a medium-sized castle, actually bigger than its more highly rated Fukui cousin, Maruoka Castle. Some of the ishigaki around the main bailey have also been preserved. Unfortunately, there are no other original structures left, but two gates have been reconstructed, one at the bottom of the hill and the other one on the southern side of the Honmaru near a small stone-lined pond. There are a couple of samurai residences at the base of the hill, and this added to the experience of visiting Echizen-Ono Castle. My wife and I only had time to visit one of them, the Uchiyama Residence, located in the Third Bailey, which has been mostly built over. I have only been to a handful of samurai residences, but this is the best one that we have seen so far. Within the walled compound, there are two original houses, a garden, and three storehouses. The original wooden tiles of the Old House have been replaced by glazed tiles, but apart from that, it pretty much feels like it was from the late Edo Period / early Meiji Period. It was definitely the property of a rich and high ranking samurai. Entry to the Uchiyama Residence is only 200yen. There is also a temple quarter in this castle town for those interesting in sussing out temples. My wife and I went to Echizen-Ono by train. There are only a few trains a day from JR Fukui Station, so plan accordingly if you are going to go there using public transport. Buses are also another possibility to get to Echizen-Ono, but I never considered them because we used JR Seishun-18 tickets for this trip.

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Castle		Date (optional)		Comment (optional) I finally made it inside this castle. My first visit here, a couple of years ago, was on a day when it was closed. Visitors beware. This castle is closed on Tuesdays or if the Tuesday is a public holiday, it will open and then close on the following day. The staff was pretty stoked when they found that a foreigner came all the way up to northern Kyoto to visit their reconstructed castle. This is quite a nice castle to visit with an okay museum. Of course, a working knowledge of Japanese is a must if you want to understand the displays. No photography is allowed inside the museum except for one small tatami room where you may put on the fake samurai helmets there. There were three helmets when I went. Entry into the castle museum cost 210yen.

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