# Kumamoto Castle

> Under restoration after the 2016 and July 2026 earthquakes. The main tower has reopened, but check what is currently open before visiting.

- Prefecture: Kumamoto
- Type: Castle
- Address: Kumamoto, Japan
- Admission: 800 yen
- Official site: https://castle.kumamoto-guide.jp/en/

Kato Kiyomasa finished this castle in 1607 and built it to be attacked. The stone walls curve outward as they rise, gently at the base and almost vertical at the top, a profile called musha-gaeshi, warrior repelling, which cannot be climbed. There were 49 turrets. The wells inside were dug deep enough for a long siege and the tatami were reportedly stuffed with dried taro stalks while dried gourd went into the walls, both edible if the food ran out.

It was tested once, in 1877, when Saigo Takamori's rebel army besieged it for fifty days and failed to take it. The keep burned a few days before the attack began, from a fire nobody has explained, and the garrison held anyway. Saigo is said to have remarked that he had been defeated not by the government but by Kiyomasa.

The keep you see is a 1960 concrete reconstruction. Then came the 2016 earthquakes, which brought down walls and turrets across the site; the Iidamaru five-storey turret was left standing on a single narrow column of surviving stones, an image that became the symbol of the prefecture's recovery. Reconstruction of the keep finished in 2021 and it is open again. The rest of the site will take until roughly 2052. Then a further earthquake on 28 July 2026 did fresh damage and closed the castle; it reopened on 13 August with access still restricted, so check what is open before you go.

That makes this a rare thing: a castle where you can watch major restoration work in progress. An elevated walkway carries visitors over the damaged areas so you see collapsed walls, numbered stones waiting to be replaced, and the scale of what an earthquake does to a fortress.

Entry is around 800 yen. Suizenji garden is fifteen minutes away by tram.

## FAQ

### What's actually open with the reconstruction still underway?

More than you'd expect. The April 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes (M6.5 + M7.3) destroyed 13 buildings and toppled large sections of stone walls; the **full restoration is scheduled to run to FY2052**, but key milestones are already done. **Open today**: the **Tenshukaku main keep** (fully reopened April 26 2021, exterior restored to pre-quake condition, interior modernized as a 6-floor museum with elevator and a panoramic observation deck on top); **Sakura-no-Baba Josaien** (free samurai-themed mall with restaurants outside the castle gates); **Hosokawa Gyobu-tei** samurai residence (¥320, 10-min walk); plus most outer-ward viewing paths. **Still closed for restoration**: the inner-ward Honmaru Goten palace and many of the collapsed stone-wall sections. **Admission**: ¥800 adult / ¥300 child for the keep + aerial walkway (see next FAQ). Hours 9:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:30), extended to 19:00 (last entry 18:00) through July and August, open daily except a short Dec 29 to 31 closure. The castle shut again after the 28 July 2026 earthquake and reopened on 13 August 2026, keep and aerial walkway included, so check the official site if you are visiting soon after another tremor.

### Is the Special Aerial Walkway worth doing?

Yes, it's a unique castle experience. Opened June 2020, the **350-meter elevated wooden walkway** lets visitors traverse the still-damaged inner ward from a safe height, passing directly over rubble piles, dismantled stone walls, and active restoration crews. Information panels along the way explain the engineering work, the careful numbering and reassembly of original stones, and the seismic-strengthening techniques being layered into rebuilt sections. Included in the ¥800 castle ticket. The walkway is the main reason to visit during the reconstruction era, since you're seeing castle archaeology and restoration craftsmanship in progress, with the Tenshukaku rising perfectly framed at the end of the path. **Practical**: fully wheelchair-accessible (elevator at both ends), shaded but no rain protection, ~25 minutes to walk the full loop with stops. Most visitors do it in this order: enter at Sakuranobaba-side → Aerial Walkway → Tenshukaku keep → exit through Iida-maru.

### How do I get there, and what else is worth doing in Kumamoto?

**Kumamoto City Tram** is the easy answer: from JR Kumamoto Station, take Tram Line A or B to **Kumamotojo-Shiyakusho-mae** stop (10 min, ¥180 flat fare, every 5 to 10 min). A one-day tram pass is ¥500. **Castle Loop Bus** (¥160/ride, ¥400 day pass) circles the castle every 20 min and links to museums and Sakuranobaba; mostly redundant if you have a tram pass. **From Fukuoka (Hakata)**: Kyushu Shinkansen Sakura/Mizuho/Tsubame ~45 min, ¥4,990 reserved (JR Pass covered). **From Kumamoto Airport**: airport shuttle bus 'Liner' direct to JR Kumamoto Station ~50 min, ¥1,000. **Beyond the castle**: **Suizenji Jojuen Garden** (¥400, tram 20 min east, a miniature Mt Fuji and Edo-era Tokaido road in a traditional strolling garden) is the natural pair for a half-day; **Kumamoto Ramen** at the Kamitori arcade lunch hour; **Hosokawa Gyobu-tei** samurai house combined with the castle visit. Day-trips: Mt Aso 1 h east, Kurokawa Onsen 90 min north (see those entries' transport notes); 1-night stay in central Kumamoto is the right rhythm.

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Source: Kumamoto Castle — Japan Voyage