Sakurai

Sakurai (桜井) is a city in Nara, Japan.

Understand

Sakurai is an ancient city that was briefly capital of Japan in 457–479. It has numerous imperial burial mounds (kofun) and several ancient temples and shrines.

Get in

1 Sakurai station is the terminus of the JR Sakurai Line from Nara, about 40 minutes away. It can also be reached from Osaka's Namba station on the Kintetsu Osaka Line in about 1 hour.

Alternatively, the ancient Yamanobe-no-michi (山辺の道) trail from Tenri, halfway to Nara, traverses 11 km through the countryside to Sakurai. Both trailheads offer bicycle rental and are easily reached on the JR Sakurai line.

See

• 1 Hase-dera (長谷寺) (1 km north of Kintetsu Hasedera stn). Dating to 686, this temple is the headquarters of the Buzan sect of Shingon Buddhism and contains numerous National Treasures including the main hall and a wooden statue of Eleven-Faced Kannon nearly 10 meters tall. Particularly popular in spring, when the 700 peony trees are in bloom, and in fall, when the maples turn red. (updated Dec 2024)

• 2 Ōmiwa Shrine (大神神社) (JR Miwa stn). One of Japan's oldest shrines, dedicated to Mount Miwa, which it stands directly in front of. The shrine has a long connection to sake rice wine and sake dealers across Japan often hang a wooden cedar ball made at Ōmiwa Shrine as a talisman. The 32-meter torii gate in front of the shrine is the 2nd largest in Japan. (updated Dec 2024)