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Nara

Japan's ancient capital delivers on culture

About Nara
Photo: Benny Marty / Shutterstock.com

Top Attractions in Nara

Todaiji
Nara
Culture

Todaiji

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Around Nara

Nara City

Nara City

Nara City (奈良市) is the capital of Nara Prefecture located in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern pa...

Nara
Sakurai

Sakurai

Sakurai city is located in a fairly rural part of Nara prefecture, in the central east near Mie Prefecture, and is famous for...

Nara
Tenri

Tenri

Tenri is a small city located just to the south of Nara city and is noted for being the location of the headquarters of Tenri...

Nara
Gose

Gose

Gose city was formed in 1958, has an estimated population of 33,000 people. Some of the more notable locations in Gose includ...

Nara
Ikoma

Ikoma

Ikoma is in the northwestern part of Nara Prefecture and is noted for Mt Ikoma, the mountain range which divides Osaka from N...

Nara
Yamato-Koriyama

Yamato-Koriyama

Yamato-Koriyama in western Nara is home to one of the few castle ruins in the Nara area, and the remains can be seen just wes...

Nara
Kashihara

Kashihara

Kashihara is located in the middle of the prefecture, directly south of Nara city, and is the second largest city in the pref...

Nara
Yamato Takada

Yamato Takada

Inhabited since ancient times, the city area nurtured paddy field agriculture in the fertile Nara Basin since its pre-history...

Nara

Top Articles

Upcoming Nara Events

Shimoichi Hatsuichi Festival

Shimoichi Hatsuichi Festival

Kim

Supermarkets and convenience stores are modern-day conveniences, but historically, hatsuichi (first market) events were place...

Nara
Oyumi Hajime Festival

Oyumi Hajime Festival

Kim

Nara's Oyamato Shrine holds their annual Oyumi Hajime Festival on January 4th. The purpose of the festival is to pray for goo...

Nara

Where to eat in Nara

Kurokawa Honke in Nara

Kurokawa Honke in Nara

Cordelia Ding

During the summer season, at Kurokawa Honke (黒川本家), located in Nara city, many dishes with arrowroot incorporated, like t...

Nara

Places to stay in Nara

Latest Nara Reports

A Journey to West Nara

A Journey to West Nara

Tom Roseveare

The West Nara area is a cultural pocket of rich historical and cultural significance, located in the northwestern part of Nar...

Nara
Nara Ikimono Museum

Nara Ikimono Museum

Kim

The Japanese word ikimono translates to living creatures in English, and the soon-to-open Nara Ikimono Museum will allow visi...

Nara
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About Nara

Nara
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 Kansai
Island Honshu
Capital Nara
Population 1,400,728
Area 3,690.94 sq. km

Japan’s first permanent capital from AD 710 to 794 (known then as Heijo), as well as the site of the ancient capitals of Asuka and Fujiwara, it goes without saying that Nara Prefecture (奈良県, Nara-ken) is filled with history and culture.

Nara is renowned for its many prestigious temples, led by Todai-ji (home of the Nara Great Buddha) and Horyu-ji, the oldest wooden building in the world. The lesser-known Asuka Temple is considered to be the oldest temple in Japan, constructed in AD 588. The traditional performing art of Daimokutate is performed every October 12th and is a sight to behold.

One of the most iconic sights of Nara is Nara Park; in addition to it containing Todai-ji, Kofuku-ji, and Kasuga Shrine, it is famous for its roaming deer - visitors can even feed them! The town of Yoshino is arguably the best spot in Japan for cherry blossom viewing. 

Around Nara

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