South Tottori · ChizuNo.588★Open in map →

Chizu-juku

— Post-town on the old Inaba highway, in cedar country

historyOff the trail — and worth it

A highway post-town in the cedar hills of southern Tottori, where the old road is still the main street and the largest merchant house on it opens to visitors. Cedar-leaf balls hang from ordinary eaves here, not only from the brewery.

FromTottori Station
Half a dayJR Inbi Line from Tottori
Get off atChizu Station (JR Inbi Line)
On foot
Chizu-juku

Directions ↗

The sweet spot

Chizu is not hidden — the highway, the expressway interchange and the railway all pass through it. What keeps it quiet is that it reads as a working town rather than an attraction. There is no gate and no fixed route: the road is a public street, so what you see depends on which side lane you take and which doors happen to be open.

Where it is

10 more notes in Tottori · open the map →

What to look for

Ishitani Residence663highland / CC BY 2.5

Chizu Okanthe old highway itself, still the town's main street and an ordinary public road
Ishitani Residencethe largest house on the road, an Important Cultural Property open to visitors
Suwa Shrinethe town shrine, home to a pillar festival listed by the prefecture
Suwa Sake Brewerya working brewery on the street, its label known from a manga about sake-making

How to actually get there

Tottori Station → Chizu Station (JR Inbi Line).
Chizu Station → the old Inaba highway street (walk about 10 min northeast).
Walk the street as far as the Ishitani residence, then continue to the shrine end before turning back.

JR Inbi Line from Tottori: Chizu sits on the JR Inbi Line south of Tottori, up the valley toward the prefectural border. Local services on this section are spaced out rather than frequent, so check the departure board at Tottori before you set out. Note also that the town is a walk from the station rather than right beside it.
Return from Chizu Station: The same line runs back north to Tottori. Leave time to walk down from the far end of the old road, since services are limited; the return departures are posted in the station hall.

Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

Chizu lies where the Inaba highway leaves the Tottori plain for the mountains that separate the province from the Kinai region. The old road, the Chizu Okan, is still the spine of the town, and the buildings along it are working houses and shops rather than a restored set. The largest is the Ishitani residence, a road-facing compound now open to visitors, with earthen storehouses and a garden behind the front rooms. Cedar is the local trade, and cedar-leaf balls hang under eaves along the whole street. Renovated townhouses now hold cafes and small shops between the older frontages.

How to enjoy it

The townscape starts about ten minutes on foot from Chizu Station, and the old road is short enough to walk end to end and back. Mornings suit it: the shops along the street open through the morning, and the Ishitani residence keeps set days, so check those before you build a trip around the house rather than the street.

Background & history

The Inaba highway carried traffic between the Kinai region and Inaba province long before the Edo period. Under the Tottori domain, Chizu became the first night's halt for the lord's procession on the way to Edo, and the town held the domain's tea house, its magistrate's office and its official notice board. The Ishitani residence, designated an Important Cultural Property, stands where that road-front standing was expressed in timber. The Suwa shrine in the town still keeps a pillar festival listed by the prefecture.

Before you go

Cash: The street costs nothing to walk. The Ishitani residence charges admission at the door, and the shops and cafes along the road are small independent businesses, so carry cash rather than relying on cards.
Good to know: The Ishitani residence keeps set opening days, so it is the one part of the walk that needs checking in advance. This is a snowy valley in winter. The old road is a live street with traffic on it, so walk the edges rather than the centre.
Another way: By car, Chizu sits just off the Chizu interchange on the Tottori Expressway. The town has no dedicated visitor car park on the street and directs drivers to the municipal ground instead.
After you get off: Leave Chizu Station and walk northeast, away from the tracks, for about ten minutes. The old road runs along the valley, and the townscape begins where the modern shopfronts give out.

Nearby notes

Local life · Tottori★