Visiting the Real-life Places of Hinamizawa Village
Have you ever dreamt of visiting the real-life places of Hinamizawa village? Hinamizawa is portrayed in the horror anime Higurashi no Naku Koro ni but have you ever given much thought to it? The village becomes known for carrying the unusual fictional disease called the Hinamizawa Syndrome known for creating excessive anxiety and paranoia that drives the main characters to the brink of insanity.
The site is one of the most iconic tourist spots in Japan and fans of the anime will be familiar with Shirakawa-go as the model for the fictitious village Hinamizawa. It is located in Shishibone City, adjacent to Gifu Prefecture.
The Shirakawa-go is a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its triangle-shaped roof houses, houses that have been standing for over two and half centuries. Here are some of the real-life places of Hinamizawa village you can visit :
- The Deai-Bashi bridge
- Rika and Satoko Home
- Shirakawa Hachiman Shrine (Furude Shrine)
- Saiguden
- Keiichi Maebara’s house
- Statues of The Club on a farm in the village
- Water Mill
- Shirakawa Village panoramic view
- The wooden bridge
- Irie Clinic
The Deai-Bashi bridge
If you are visiting the real-life places of Hinamizawa village, then you must cross the Deai-bashi suspension bridge. Don’t worry about the bridge, it is very stable. Serving as an entrance to the village, the bridge connects the main bus terminal and car park with Ogimachi village. The bridge affords panoramic scenes of the river, mountains and village.
Rika and Satoko Home
This house tends to be one of the most popular real-life places in Hinamizawa village as it is the house where the two orphans, Rika and Satoko, both lived. It is located near the entrance toward the observatory.
Shirakawa Hachiman Shrine (Furude Shrine)
Shirakawa Hachiman Shrine is another location that appears throughout the series but is well-known as the Furude Shrine. There appears to be a similarly named, much smaller shrine nearby. Be careful when visiting to not get confused by the two.
The Furude Shrine is the shrine of Oyashiro-sama, the god of Hinamizawa, and the place where the Watanagashi Festival is held every year.
Originally in the anime, the Furude Family lived here but after the priest and his wife died, their daughter, Furude Rika, decided to live in a small house with Satoko near the shrine and on its grounds (the house you saw up earlier).
Saiguden
The Saiguden is the ritual storehouse behind the Furude Shrine. In the anime, it is always locked, and very few people have access to it. This is because it is filled with a variety of torture implements that had been used over the course of the years in the name of Oyashiro-sama, the guardian deity of Hinamizawa.
In real access to the house is authorized and of course, there are no torture devices inside.
Keiichi Maebara’s house
The Maebara House is a large house in Hinamizawa called “the Maebara Mansion” by villagers. The house was built by the Maebara Family after they moved from their home in Tōkyō. Due to its size, many villagers assume that the Maebara family is rich; however, they are middle-class.
It is located in the back of Road Station Shirakawa-go. Because there are no other real-life places in Hinamizawa village that stand out nearby, you can quickly identify the house. Unfortunately, it is not possible to enter the site.
Statues of The Club on a farm in the village
Bottom row: Satoko, Hanyu and Rika.
The Club in Higurashi no Naku Koro ni originally consisted of Sonozaki Mion, Ryūgū Rena, Furude Rika, Hōjō Satoko, and Maebara Keiichi. Later Sonozaki Shion and Furude Hanyū joined. You can admire the statues of its members on a farm inside the village.
Water Mill
Shirakawa village overview
Shirakawa-go is perfectly reproduced in the anime as seen in the images.
The wooden bridge
Mion, Keiichi, and Rena cross a small wooden bridge in Hinamizawa in the first episode of the 2020 series. There is a little difference in the anime as the bridge is not centered as in real life but rather on the right side of the path.
Irie Clinic
The Irie Clinic is the only medical clinic in Hinamizawa and it is named after the doctor in charge of it, Irie Kyōsuke. Kyousuke Irie is the director and proprietor of the clinic while Miyo Takano is employed as a nurse.
It is a fairly large clinic with up-to-date facilities, contrasting with the many rural houses Hinamizawa has. The clinic is large enough that it can accommodate a parking lot and space for buses.
Must Do’s At Shirakawa-go
See the inside of a Gassho hut
There are a number of Gassho huts open to the public at Shirakawa. The biggest and the most prominent of them is the Wada House. The family has now kindly opened up part of their house to tourists for the sake of cultural appreciation.
Admission is 400 yen per adult, and 250 yen for kids (as of October 2022). The fireplace is lit all year round, and visitors can take photos and videos inside. Do not get there without visiting one of the top real-life places of Hinamizawa village.
Address: Wada Residence, Ogi-machi, Shirakawa Village, Gifu Prefecture（Google Map）
| Closed | Irregular |
|---|---|
| Admission | Adults ¥400 / Children ¥250 |
| Additional Information | SHIRAKAWA-Go Free Wi-Fi is available |
Get to the observation point
The observation point is a 20-minute walk from Shirakawa-go bus terminal but it can also be reached via a shuttle bus. The view of Ogimachi, the largest and most popular of the villages, is so beautiful. From there you can really see the semblance of Shirakawa-go to Hinamizawa.
Take in the culture of Shirakawa Hachiman Shrine
A world heritage site built in the 7th century AD and enshrines Emperor Ojin, who was admired by the villagers of Shirakawa. It embarks a museum though small in size but very impressive, particularly the timber structure.
Do remember to wash your hands in the stone basin at the frontage prior to entering the shrine and have a taste of sake there.
Myozen-Ji Temple & Museum
Myozen-ji is the largest temple in the village. The main hall, kitchen and clock tower are constructed using the distinctive ‘gassho-huti’ design, making them particularly photogenic. Designated as an ‘Important Cultural Property’, the temple is home to the largest building in the village.
The ‘kuri’ or ‘monk’s residence’ houses a museum profiling the temple’s history and local worship. This is a place you must visit if going to Shirakawa village.
NB: It is open from 08:30 to 17:00 between April and November, and 09:00 to 16:00 between December and March admission is JPY300 for adults and JPY100 for children.
Drive by Miboro Dam
Miboro Dam is a dam on the Shō River in Shirakawa. It is a rock-fill dam 131 meters high, and 401 meters wide and supports a 256 MW hydroelectric power station. Of the nine dams on the Shō River, it is the furthest upstream.
Although not in Shirakawa-go precisely, it is located around a 30-minute drive away and forms another interesting historical nugget to the area.
The dam is also known for floods as it flooded several villages and shrines, submerging them completely. Two cherry trees were taken from one of the submerged shrines and placed in Shirakawa-go where it is said that each petal represents a memory from someone who lived in the villages before they were flooded.
How to get to Shirakawa
Shirakawa-go is known for being hard to access. If you’re coming from Tokyo, you can take the Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo to Toyama station, and then a bus from there to Shirakawa-go. The trip takes 3+ hrs and you need a reservation for your bus; seats are limited but the visit is worth it.
Did you know apart from real-life places of Hinamizawa village, you can also visit other locations in real life of some of your favorite anime?
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