Ichinomiya

Ichinomiya (一宮市) is a city of 380,000 people (2019) in Aichi prefecture.

Understand
After expansion in 2005 to include nearby Bisai and Kisogawa, it is the 4th largest city in the prefecture. Ichinomiya is historically a center for woolen textiles, and many aspects of textile production still flourish in the city, such as world-famous yarn manufacturer Eisaku Noro.

Tourist information site
The local tourist association has a multilingual guide site, Ichinomiya Navi.

Get in
Ichinomiya is roughly halfway between Nagoya and Gifu. By rail, take the JR Tokaido line from Nagoya to Owari-Ichinomiya (9 min, ¥290), or the Meitetsu Nagoya or Bisai lines. By road, Ichinomiya is accessible from the Toumei, Meishin, and Tokai-Hokoriku expressways.

See




Do



 * Bisai fireworks festival - held in August as part of Bisai summer festival, some 5000 fireworks (including some with blooms of up to 500 m) are released on the banks of the Kiso river. If you can't get a spot at the site, a popular and convenient place to see the show is from the rooftop carpark of Diamond City Kirio mall (10 min walk from JR Kisogawa).
 * Bisai fireworks festival - held in August as part of Bisai summer festival, some 5000 fireworks (including some with blooms of up to 500 m) are released on the banks of the Kiso river. If you can't get a spot at the site, a popular and convenient place to see the show is from the rooftop carpark of Diamond City Kirio mall (10 min walk from JR Kisogawa).

Buy
If you knit or sew, then Ichinomiya is a must-visit on your Japanese travels. The side-streets surrounding Masumida Shrine are a treasure-house of locally-produced yarns and fabrics.


 * Particularly of note is Ishii Shoten, a small yarn store to the right of the main gate of Masumida shrine. The store stocks an extensive range of current and vintage Eisaku Noro yarns, often at a discount, and many other beautiful local yarns at reasonable prices. The owner does not speak English, but is extremely friendly (without being pushy - if you just want to browse that's fine) and will help you find what you want.
 * May or early June see a large craft fair based around Masumida, with over 100 stalls selling handcrafted articles and craft materials, plus food, live music, and hands-on workshops where you can try various crafts such as leatherwork, spinning, weaving and dyeing.

Sleep
Accommodation is mostly in the form of business hotels, and several chains (Toyoko Inn, Route-Inn, City Hotel, Green Hotel) have branches near the station.

If you drive, there are also large belts of love-hotels off the highway, at both ends of the city limits!

Go next

 * Nagoya - The main center of Aichi Prefecture, is just a short ride to the south by train.
 * Gifu - Home to one of Oda Nobunaga's famous castles
 * Inazawa
 * Hashima
 * Tsushima
 * Kiyosu
 * Anpachi
 * Kakamigahara
 * Toyokawa