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Gifu

Scenic Shirakawa-go and Gero's hot springs

About Gifu
Hilltop view over Shirakawa-go (Photo: Tom Roseveare / JT)

Top Attractions in Gifu

Gifu Top 10

Upcoming Gifu Events

Furukawa Festival 2024

Furukawa Festival 2024

Apr 19th - Apr 20th

The Furukawa Festival, or Furukawa Matsuri, is an annual event of Hida Furukawa’s Kata Wakamiya Shrine. During the two-day spe..

Free Entry
Slug Festival 2024

Slug Festival 2024

Early Jul

A festival in rural Nakatsugawa dedicated to a monk and a mystery of nature on the anniversary of a death connected to forbidden..

7 Free Entry

Where to eat in Gifu

Sugimura

Sugimura

Justin Dart

A cozy little handmade soba shop only five minutes from Nakatsugawa station by foot.

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Heianraku

Heianraku

Anne Lauenroth

Enjoy delicious Chinese, Japanese and vegetarian food at lovely Heianraku, a cozy restaurant in Takayama.

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Places to stay in Gifu

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About Gifu

Okinawa Nagasaki Fukuoka Saga Kumamoto Kagoshima Miyazaki Oita Ehime Kochi Tokushima Kagawa Yamaguchi Hiroshima Okayama Tottori Shimane Hyogo Kyoto Osaka Wakayama Nara Shiga Mie Fukui Ishikawa Toyama Gifu Aichi Nagano Shizuoka Niigata Yamanashi Kanagawa Tokyo Saitama Gunma Tochigi Chiba Ibaraki Fukushima Miyagi Yamagata Iwate Akita Aomori Hokkaido
Region Chubu
Island Honshu
Capital Gifu City
Population 2,080,773
Area 10,621.29 km²

Located in the center of Honshu, Gifu Prefecture (岐阜県, Gifu-ken) has the distinction of being the place that changed modern Japanese history forever - the Battle of Sekigahara took place in 1600 in the Gifu town of the same name.

Tokugawa Ieyasu emerged victorious, he and his successors ruled Japan for the next 268 years virtually unchallenged, Japan closed its doors to foreign trade, and Edo (present day Tokyo) became the major city of the country. Sekigahara aside, Gifu still has more than plenty to offer.

Shirakawa-go, a World Heritage Site, is beautiful all year round but especially breathtaking in the winter, while Gero Onsen is also a popular destination. Can’t make it to Kyoto? Try visiting Takayama, affectionately nicknamed “Little Kyoto.” Kuri-kinton, a chestnut sweet, is the local delicacy, but if you have room to splurge definitely have some Hida beef!

Around Gifu

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