Gifu City: Cormorant Fishing & the Blades of Seki — 2 Days

A temple near Mount Kinka housing the Gifu Great Buddha, a 13.7-metre seated Shakyamuni counted among the 'three great Buddhas' of Japan and unlike any other: it was built in the early nineteenth century around a wooden lattice frame wrapped in clay, then covered in paper sutras and finished in lacquer and gold leaf, making it the country's largest dry-lacquer Buddha. Sitting inside a tall, slightly faded wooden hall, it has a quiet, hand-made grandeur that the famous bronze Buddhas lack. A strong, atmospheric first stop.

Open daily ~09:00-17:00; adult ~¥200 (approx., 2026). A few minutes' walk from Gifu Park at the foot of Mount Kinka, reached by bus from JR/Meitetsu Gifu stations. Photography is generally permitted.

A green park at the base of Mount Kinka on the site of the riverside residence of Oda Nobunaga, the warlord who made Gifu his power base in the sixteenth century and is said to have coined the city's name. Today it gathers ponds, gardens, a history museum and the ropeway station, with reconstructed gateways evoking Nobunaga's palace. With the hilltop castle keep closed for renovation, the park and its Nobunaga story make the natural cultural anchor at the mountain's foot.

Open grounds, free; individual facilities (the history museum, the Nobunaga residence ruins) keep their own hours and small fees. At the foot of Mount Kinka by the ropeway base station. A pleasant 45 minutes before riding up.

A cable car that climbs Mount Kinka from Gifu Park to near the 329-metre summit in a few minutes, opening up a wide panorama over the Nagara River winding through the Nobi plain to the mountains beyond. The summit has walking paths, a squirrel village and the grounds where Gifu Castle stands. Important for 2026: the reconstructed castle keep is closed for seismic reinforcement from May 2026 until late 2027, so this is a ride for the ropeway and the summit views rather than entering the keep.

Runs daily ~09:30-17:30 (to ~16:30 in winter); round trip adult ~¥1,300, child ~¥650 (approx., 2026). The castle keep is closed for renovation into late 2027 — confirm before going if the keep matters to you; the summit views and trails remain open. Last cars down are in the late afternoon.

A long-established ayu-sweetfish specialist, founded in 1869, in the Kawaramachi row of dark-timbered merchant houses beside the Nagara River. Ayu — the slender, faintly melon-scented river fish that the cormorants catch — is the dish of the Nagara, served here salt-grilled whole on a skewer, simmered, or in rice. Eating it within sight of the river you'll watch the cormorants work that evening ties the day together. A characterful, historic lunch in the prettiest part of old Gifu.

Open for lunch in the ukai season ~11:30-14:30; roughly ¥3,000-6,000 (approx., 2026). Closed Wednesdays (and some alternate Thursdays); no closing day in July-August; closed in February. Reservation strongly advised. On the Kawaramachi street near Gifu Park. The Hida-beef restaurant Hanazakuro on the same row is an alternative.

A riverside ryokan founded in 1860 on the bank of the Nagara, its name ('eighteen storeys') a poet's praise of the eighteen scenes seen from its upper floors. It has indoor and open-air hot-spring baths looking onto the river, rooms with water views, and a position so close to the action that the cormorant boats pass below in season. The old kura storehouse has been turned into a lounge and café. Staying here puts the river, the bath and the fishing all within a few steps.

Rates vary by season and room (2026) — confirm directly. On the Nagara riverbank by the Kawaramachi old town, a short taxi from JR/Meitetsu Gifu. Ask about ukai-viewing plans in season (the ryokan can arrange boat boarding) and river-view rooms.

After dark, board a roofed viewing boat to watch ukai, cormorant fishing as it has been practised on the Nagara for some 1,300 years and held under the protection of the Imperial Household Agency. Master fishermen — usho — in straw skirts and black robes stand at the prow of firelit boats handling up to a dozen cormorants on cords; the birds dive for ayu in the glow of hanging braziers. The climax, when all the boats sweep downriver abreast driving the fish, is unforgettable. A genuinely ancient, living spectacle few foreign visitors ever see.

Season runs May 11-October 15, 2026; boats board around 18:15-19:15 and return ~20:30-21:00. Normal fares adult ~¥4,200, child ~¥2,100; peak nights more (approx., 2026). Reservation required (tel 058-262-0104); cancelled on the harvest-moon night and when the river runs high. Outside the season, this is not available — lean on the craft and old town instead.

The museum of Seki's sword-making heritage, in a town that has forged blades since the Kamakura period and was famous in the age of the samurai for swords that 'will not break, will not bend, and cut well'. Displays trace the five traditional forging steps and show historic blades, while a smithy on site holds live forging demonstrations on set dates — master smiths heating, hammering and folding steel in the old way. The clearest place to understand why Seki ranks with Solingen and Sheffield as a world blade capital.

Open ~09:00-16:30, closed Tuesdays and the day after national holidays; adult ~¥300 (approx., 2026). In central Seki, about 30-40 minutes from Gifu City by train or car. Live forging demonstrations run only on certain dates — check the schedule if you want to see one.

A cutlery showroom and small museum where Seki's seven-hundred-year metallurgy turns up as everyday objects: chef's knives, scissors, razors and pocket knives, many made by local workshops. You can handle and compare blades, see how a kitchen knife is ground and finished, and — by reservation — try a hands-on blade-sharpening or knife-assembly experience. It is the living, commercial end of the sword tradition, and the place to buy a genuinely good Seki knife to take home.

Open daytime; entry generally free, hands-on experiences extra and by reservation (approx., 2026). In Seki, a short hop from the swordsmith museum. Knife purchases can be engraved; international visitors should keep blades in checked luggage when flying.

Back by the Nagara River in the Kawaramachi old town, a refined restaurant serving premium Hida beef grilled over binchotan charcoal — steak and sukiyaki-style courses of the marbled local wagyu, in a calm townhouse setting. It is the more luxurious counterpoint to yesterday's river fish, and a fitting last meal before leaving Gifu: the prefecture's signature beef, cooked simply and well, a few steps from where the cormorant boats moor.

Lunch generally ~11:30-14:00 (last order ~13:30); roughly ¥3,000-6,000 (approx., 2026). On the Kawaramachi row near Gifu Park, about 30 minutes back from Seki. Reservation advised for lunch. A relaxed end before an afternoon train.