Ouchi-juku
大内宿
Former Edo-period post town on the Shimotsuke Kaido road, where thatched-roof houses still stand along the street as homes and shops.
Ouchi-juku is a street of homes that double as shops, and each shop sets its own hours and days off. Most are open from about 9:00 to 16:00; the association publishes a monthly calendar of shop opening days.
〒 969-5207How to get there
湯野上温泉Aizu Line73 min walk from the station
Ouchi-juku is a former post town in Shimogo, Fukushima Prefecture. In the Edo period it served the Shimotsuke Kaido (下野街道), a secondary road between Aizu-Wakamatsu and Nikko-Imaichi, as a midday rest stop for travellers. When transport routes changed after the Meiji era, the village escaped development and kept its old appearance. Thatched-roof houses still line the road and are lived in as homes and shops.
The village was selected as a national Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings in 1981. Under the residents' charter, nobody sells, rents out or tears down a house, and the villagers renew the thatch themselves, led by kayade (茅手), specialist thatchers. A reconstruction of the honjin, the inn where lords and officials stayed, shows photographs and everyday tools of the period.
Getting There
Planning a trip? Fit this into a trip and Oni plans the rest around it.
You might also like
Aizu Bukeyashiki
A museum of samurai life in Aizuwakamatsu, built around a 1975 reconstruction of the house of the Aizu domain elder Saigo Tanomo.
Aizuwakamatsu · Fukushima
Aizu-Wakamatsu Castle
Also called Tsuruga Castle, the seat of the Aizu Domain held out for a month in the 1868 Boshin War; its rebuilt red-tiled keep houses a museum.
Aizuwakamatsu · Fukushima
Higashi Chaya District
A teahouse quarter in Kanazawa laid out in 1820, where rows of latticed teahouse buildings form a nationally selected preservation district.
Kanazawa · Ishikawa
UFO Festival
A town in Fukushima that calls itself the UFO village closes its shopping street for an alien costume parade, with prizes for the most convincing.
31 Oct 2027Exact date not confirmed yetFukushima
Fukushima City Half Marathon
Premier half-marathon running event through Fukushima City's scenic neighborhoods and parks, featuring aid stations every 5 kilometers and spectator support.
17 May 2027Exact date not confirmed yetFukushima
Hiroshige: New Perspectives on Edo Japan
Hiroshige at the Tokyo National Museum: every print of his three major series, from the Tokaido to the Hundred Famous Views of Edo, shown in three parts.
29 Sep – 20 Dec 2026Tokyo
