About Japanese Castles DB

Japanese Castles DB is a reference site covering 200 Japanese castles, designed primarily for international visitors planning trips to Japan. Our goal is to go beyond simple listings — to give travellers the context, scoring, and practical detail they need to make informed decisions about which castles to visit and what to look for when they get there.

Tourism Score

The Tourism Score (out of 100) evaluates each castle as a visitor experience for an international traveller. It is not a measure of historical importance, size, or fame — it reflects how good the actual experience of visiting is likely to be for someone arriving from abroad. The score is composed of five equally-weighted sub-scores of 20 points each:

Accessibility (0–20)

How easy is it to reach this castle without a rental car? This sub-score considers proximity to train stations, the availability of direct bus services, the walking distance from the nearest major station, and whether the site is accessible on a JR Pass.

Foreign-Visitor Friendliness (0–20)

Does this castle cater to non-Japanese visitors? We assess the availability of English-language signage, audio guides in multiple languages, English-speaking staff or guides, and multilingual printed materials. Castles with nothing in English score low regardless of how impressive they are historically.

Historical & Cultural Value (0–20)

How significant is this castle in Japanese history, and how much of that original significance is still tangible? Castles with original structures, National Treasure or UNESCO designations, and direct connections to key historical events score highest. Concrete reconstructions built in the 1960s on historically unverified sites score lower even if they look impressive.

Visual Impact (0–20)

How striking is the castle visually? This is necessarily somewhat subjective but is based on factors including the prominence of the keep's silhouette, the quality of the surrounding grounds, dramatic seasonal features (cherry blossoms, autumn foliage, snow), and the overall photogenic quality of the site.

Facilities (0–20)

Are there adequate facilities to support a comfortable visit? We consider restrooms, museum exhibits, a gift shop, food and drink options on or near the grounds, and the availability of guided tours. Remote ruins with no facilities score low on this sub-score.

Defense Score

The Defense Score (out of 100) evaluates each castle as a military fortification, independent of its current state of preservation. A ruined castle that was once impregnable can score just as high as a well-preserved one. The score assesses five dimensions of defensive capability:

Natural Position (0–20)

How much does the terrain work in the defender's favour? Cliffs, rivers, high elevation, and water barriers that cannot be easily circumvented contribute to this score. A castle on a flat plain with no natural obstacles scores low; one on a sea cliff or mountain summit scores high.

Wall Complexity (0–20)

How extensive and sophisticated are the stone walls (ishigaki)? This sub-score considers wall height, the total perimeter of stone walling, the quality of construction, and the presence of reinforcing features like the flared musha-gaeshi base or angled corners designed to deflect projectiles.

Layout Strategy (0–20)

How well does the arrangement of compounds (kuruwa), gates, and corridors serve the defender? We assess whether attackers are funnelled into kill zones, whether defenders can fire from multiple angles into a single point, and how many independent defensive lines must be breached to reach the inner keep.

Approach Difficulty (0–20)

How hard is it to even reach the castle gates? This considers the number of gate complexes, the presence of masugata (right-angle enclosures), spiralling or doubling-back paths, the number of gates that must be breached, and the degree to which every metre of approach is under defensive fire.

Siege Resistance (0–20)

Could the castle hold out in a prolonged siege? We assess the presence and capacity of water wells within the castle, the scale of storage facilities for food and supplies, the thickness of walls against cannon fire, and the historical record — castles that actually withstood major sieges receive extra weight here.

Data Sources

Castle data is compiled from multiple primary and secondary sources and is reviewed by the editorial team. Key sources include:

  • Official castle and park management websites (linked on individual castle pages)
  • The Agency for Cultural Affairs (文化庁) database of designated cultural properties
  • Japan Tourism Agency visitor facility data
  • The Japan Castle Tower Research Group (日本城郭研究センター) publications
  • On-site verification visits and updated signage cross-referencing
  • Japanese-language academic and archaeological literature on individual castle sites

Admission fees, opening hours, and access information are updated periodically. Prices and hours change — always verify with the official castle website before visiting. Each castle page shows the date the data was last verified.

Operator

Operator: SHOYA KIHARA

Contact: contact@matrix-db.com

Address: 7F Tenjin First Building, 4-6-28 Tenjin, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka 810-0001, Japan

Japanese Castles DB is part of the Matrix DB family of reference databases.