Niigata City: Features, Popular Tourist Attractions, Gourmet

Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture is the prefectural capital of Niigata Prefecture, facing the Sea of Japan. With a population of approximately 800,000 people, it is the largest city in the prefecture.

Niigata City has many tourist spots where you can feel history and culture, such as Bandai Bridge, Furumachi Street, and the Niigata City History Museum. Bandai Bridge is a symbol of Niigata City that spans the Shinano River. At night, it is lit up and you can enjoy a beautiful night view. Komachi-dori is a downtown area in the center of Niigata City, where the townscape of the Edo period remains. Niigata City History Museum is a museum that exhibits the history and culture of Niigata.

Niigata City has many traditional sake breweries that have been around for a long time. Some of the sake breweries offer tours and tastings to help you get to know the history and traditional Japanese sake brewing and atmosphere. Niigata is Japan’s number one rice producer. Because the water is clean, sake brewing is popular here, and being able to see sake brewing up close in traditional breweries is a great opportunity to learn about Japanese culture, making it popular among tourists from both Japan and abroad.