Takeaways from Ishikawa

It has been a pleasure working with Ishikawa prefecture over the past couple of years to promote The Golden Destination to the North American travel trade. I had learned so much about the region and all that it has to offer, but I finally had the opportunity to visit myself and experience firsthand all that the prefecture has to offer. I thought I knew what to expect, the images and words would just come to life, but I was wrong. Ishikawa is so much more than the cultural hub of Kanazawa, and the natural beauty of Noto in the north & Kaga in the south—Ishikawa is a full destination on its own that would appeal to any type of traveler. I could use this blog to spout facts about the history and culture of the prefecture and promote each of the three key regions—Kanazawa, Kaga, and Noto—separately but instead I am going to focus on three travel themes for which Ishikawa truly excelled beyond my lofty expectations: Culinary, Wellness, and Tradition.

Culinary Travel

More and more, local food and beverage experiences are at the center of people’s travel plans; the number of people that identify as ‘foodies’ is laughable. That said, I am a big fan of not only trying local dishes and brews but also learning about local ingredients and getting hands on with a cooking class when possible.
This ‘itch’ was immediately scratched as we spent part of our first afternoon visiting the Noguchi Naohiko Sake Institute in Kaga. This experience included a tour of the sake brewery, sake tasting with little bites as food pairings, and the opportunity to meet the 90 year-old brewmaster who is a legend! To say I have a new appreciation for rice wine would be a vast understatement.
Other highlights included learning about Koji cooking and incorporating that into a three course meal that we prepared under the guidance of a local chef; enjoying some of the freshest (and largest) oysters you can get on the coast of the Sea of Japan; walking through Omicho market in Kanazawa and tasting some of the local delicacies (we were fortunate to be there in the height of strawberry season 🤤); and of course the traditional multi-course kaiseki dinners served during your stay in a traditional ryokan. The people that prepare the kaiseki menus are part chef and part artist!

Wellness Travel

Speaking of ryokan stays… another travel trend that is just about as popular as culinary travel is wellness travel. Once again Ishikawa prefecture has no shortage of experiences and accommodations to pamper your mind and your body. Throughout Ishikawa you can find stunning onsens, natural hot springs, to inspire relaxation and total decompression. Throughout Japan you can find lovely ryokans with beautiful onsens, but the great part about the onsens in this region is that many are in remote areas surrounded by natural beauty. We saw several with hiking and biking offered, or kayaks & stand up paddleboards to use on the lake. In my previous onsen stays in other parts of Japan, there was never such an opportunity to be so active between the huge kaiseki meals.
Being surrounded by nature is therapeutic in itself but we were able to take this one step further during our visit to Sojiji Temple. We were greeted by a Buddhist monk who walked us through the stunning grounds and explained the history of the 700+ year old Buddhist Temple. That visit would have ranked as a trip highlight had it ended there, but we were then taken into a private room in the temple and our host led us through a meditation session. This was the first time I had ever properly meditated and I couldn’t have asked for a better setting to find my zen!

Timeless Traditions

Ishikawa is well-known for its long history of creating traditional crafts. The city of Kanazawa is famous for its production and use of gold leaf, but the artisans of Ishikawa excel well beyond this one art form. While traveling through the Kaga region in the southern part of the prefecture, I visited Kinzan Pottery and met a 4th generation master, who has earned the status of ‘National Treasure of Japan.’ The work at Kinzan was beautiful and guests have the option of creating their own pottery to bring home, but unfortunately due to time constraints we weren’t able to enjoy this experience. However we were lucky enough to visit two different lacquerware studios and learn the detailed and precise process of creating these decorative pieces.

Kanazawa is pretty well-known in the travel landscape but this trip showed me just how much is on offer in Ishikawa. Visitors to Japan would be wise to include more than just a two night stay in the city known as ‘Little Kyoto’ on their next trip. I am certain they will not be disappointed.

For additional information visit the official Ishikawa website or reach out to Dave anytime.