Ichijōdani Asakura Ruins一乗谷朝倉氏遺跡

The present building opened in 2022 a few steps from the station. Inside are a partial full-scale reconstruction of the Asakura residence, a model of the stone-paved river port, a diorama of the whole townscape and a recreation of what is described as Japan’s oldest flower bed. The finds from the dig, 2,343 pieces, have been an Important Cultural Property since 2007.

Fees: ¥700 for adults; ¥400 high school; ¥200 elementary and junior high; ¥350 for 70 and over. An annual pass is ¥1,800. Open 9:00–17:00, closed on Mondays.

The Karamon (唐門) is the gate at the front of the Asakura lords’ residence site, with a curved gable roof. It is not an Asakura building: it is thought to date from the Edo period, when it served as the gate of a temple, Shōunin, that stood on the site. Behind it you see the stone foundations of the residence.

It is the image the valley is known for and the easiest thing to find on foot from the station.

The Yudono, Nanyōji, Suwa Yakata and Asakura Yakata garden ruins are, together, a Special Place of Scenic Beauty (1991). They are dug-out ponds with stone arrangements, set where the houses were. The Suwa Yakata garden is usually singled out for its stone cascade.

The whole site is a Special Historic Site of about 278 hectares (designated 1971). Most of it is open grass and trees with signs, which is why the museum is worth seeing first.

About 200 m of the town has been rebuilt as it looked in the Muromachi period: samurai houses, merchant shops and craftsmen’s workshops behind walls and wooden fences, some with mannequins at work. It opened in 1995.

It is the only part of the site, apart from the museum, that needs a ticket.