Are you in Nagoya on the 21st? (Too specific a question? I know;)
At a very special temple in Nagoya — the only one of its kind in Japan — a fair held on the 21st of every month. Local elderly regulars filling trolley bags with vegetables, younger visitors drawn by food stalls and vintage finds — this fair is not a food market built for tourists, but it’s where the locals actually go (that means you don’t have to worry about tourist prices;p).
How about browsing the fair, food crawling and visiting a special temple in a single morning? I think you can feel everyday Japan here:) Please enjoy the local atmosphere!
What the Kobo-san Fair Is Like
I went to “Kobo-san” fair held on the 21st of every month at Kakuozan Nittaiji:) Locals call it the Kobo-san fair, after the monk Kobo Daishi. I’ve known about this fair but I’d never visited before so it was my first time! It seems that usually the fair draws many elderly local regulars, but maybe since it happened to be on Sunday that day, there were people of all ages and families. It was so lively!
On fair days, the approach from Kakuozan Station to the temple gates — a straight 400-metre path — becomes pedestrianised, and is lined on both sides with roughly 100 stalls.
The stalls sell wide range of things from food to Buddhist items. Fresh vegetables and fruit direct from local farmers, dried goods, pickles, seafood, handmade konnyaku, clothing, shoes, pottery, flowers, sweets, antiques etc.
There are lots of street food stalls too. Mitarashi dango, doteni (Nagoya-style miso offal stew), okonomi-yaki, an-maki (large sweet bean paste roll unique to the Chubu region), yakisoba and so on.
I bought Gohei-mochi (a local cuisine originating in the mountains of the Chubu region). Excuse me;) I took a bite before taking a photo, it just looked too good!
Can you guess what it is?
This stall is “Railroad Lost and Found Market”. It might be fun to check it out to see the items left behind are similar to the ones in your home country or completely different;) In Japan, you’ll see tons of umbrellas and a lot of handkerchiefs and hand towels.
It was very hot that day, so I saw a lady buying a sun umbrella, saying she is going to use it right away;) I’m really curious what you found. Did you find something really Japanesey;)? I’d love to know what you think after you go:)
After that, I saw a huge, delicious-looking watermelon for sale at the market. Even though I knew I really shouldn’t have bought it (because it would be a hassle to carry it home), I just couldn’t resist and ended up buying it. It was a quarter of a watermelon (again, it was huge), but it was so, so, so heavy… I really regretted it on the way home — it was so heavy that I felt like my arms were going to fall off. But the moment I took a bite of the watermelon, I forgot all about that;) (I won’t let myself do the same again though;p)
Visiting Tips
- Stalls open around 8:00-9:00 (depends on stalls), and most stalls start to close around 14:00. I recommend arriving before noon to see the full fair. I arrived around 9:30 and I think it was good timing.
- Cash only for most stalls so make sure to bring cash, coins too, to fully enjoy!
- I’ve been told that weekday 21sts are noticeably quieter than weekend 21sts — I think both have their charm;)
Here is a piece of trivia;) Why the 21st? The date commemorates the death anniversary (命日) of Kobo Daishi (弘法大師, also known as Kukai 空海, 774–835) — the founder of Shingon Buddhism and one of the most revered figures in Japanese Buddhist history.
Kakuozan Nittaiji (覚王山日泰寺) & Access
Kakuozan Nittaiji is a Buddhist temple in Chikusa Ward, Nagoya, unique in all of Japan: it belongs to no single Buddhist sect. Instead, it is jointly managed by every sect of Buddhism in order. The reason for this unusual arrangement is the temple’s purpose: it was built to house sacred relics (骨片) of the historical Buddha himself, gifted to Japan by the King of Siam (present-day Thailand) in 1900 so that the relics of Shakyamuni Buddha would belong to all of Japanese Buddhism, not be monopolized by any single sect.
“Nittaiji” (日泰寺): “Nit” (日) = Japan; “Tai” (泰) = Thailand.
This name was chosen to symbolize the friendship between Japan and Thailand, which lies at the heart of the temple’s founding. Original name “Nissenjiin” (日暹寺) — 暹 being the old kanji for Siam. Renamed “Nittaiji” in 1942 after Siam officially became Thailand in 1932.
Fee: Free
Opening hours: 5:00 to 16:30
Holidays: Open everyday
Access:
From Nagoya Station, take the subway Higashiyama Line.
Alight at Kakuozan Station and 10 minutes’ walk from Exit 1.
A morning at the fair pairs perfectly with another Nagoya tradition — if you have time, enjoy a proper Nagoya morning before you head to the fair:)
Anyway, my arms were fine and I had a happy morning;)
📍 How to get there: About 15 minutes from Nagoya Station to Kakuozan on the subway Higashiyama Line (¥240 one way), then a 10-minute walk from Exit 1 — the stalls line the path from the station to the temple.
⏱ Time needed: A morning is plenty — the fair, a snack crawl, and the temple. Most stalls start closing around 2 PM.
💰 Budget: Around ¥2,000-¥3,000 per person — the subway is under ¥500 round trip, and the rest is snack money. Cash only at most stalls, so bring coins too.
🗓 Best time to visit: Only on the 21st of each month. Arrive before noon — I got there around 9:30 and it was perfect timing. Weekday 21sts are noticeably quieter than weekend ones; both have their charm.
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