City guide · 仙台 Sendai
Sendai
The 'City of Trees' built by the One-Eyed Dragon, Date Masamune
Sendai is the largest city in the Tōhoku region, its streets lined with rows of zelkova trees. Its summer Tanabata festival is the biggest in Japan, and the city's story begins with Date Masamune.
History
How the city came to be
Sendai's history as a city begins in 1600, when the daimyō Date Masamune moved here; in December that year he ordered Sendai Castle built, and work on the castle town began the following year. The Sendai domain encouraged residents to plant trees in their gardens, and even before the Meiji Restoration Sendai was known as the 'City of Trees' (Mori no Miyako). On 11 March 2011 the tsunami triggered by the magnitude-9.0 Great East Japan Earthquake devastated Sendai's coastal areas.
- 1600Date Masamune ordered the building of Sendai Castle
- 1601Work began on the castle town
- 1636Date Masamune died, leaving instructions for his mausoleum
- 1637Zuihōden was completed
- 1945Zuihōden was destroyed in an air raid (rebuilt in 1979)
- 2011Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami
Stories
Stories of the city
History · Zuihōden
The One-Eyed Dragon's last wishes
Date Masamune lost his right eye to smallpox as a child and later became known as the 'One-Eyed Dragon of Ōshū'. In 1604 he moved with more than 50,000 retainers and their families to Sendai, then still a small fishing village, and built a castle town. Before his death in 1636 Masamune left instructions for building his mausoleum, the origin of Zuihōden; it was destroyed in an air raid in 1945 and rebuilt to its original design in 1979.
Legend · Zuihōden
Where did that eye go?
Masamune's right eye was blinded by smallpox, but exactly how he lost it is not reliably recorded. One widely told story is that, so that the dead eye would not become a weakness, Masamune had his most trusted retainer, Katakura Kojūrō, gouge it out with his own hands.
People
People connected with Sendai
Must see
Places you shouldn’t miss
Before you go
Rules to know in Sendai
Take off your shoes when you see a genkan (entrance step)
- Take off your shoes at the entrance of homes, some restaurants, temples and hot-spring facilities
- If unsure, look for a shoe rack or slippers at the entrance
- Stepping onto tatami or indoor wooden floors in shoes
It is seen as very rude.
Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: JNTO: Japanese etiquette
No phone calls on trains and the shinkansen; queue to board
- Put your phone on silent; on the shinkansen, take calls in the area between carriages
- Queue at the marked spots on either side of the train door, and let people off before you get on
- Give priority seats to older people, pregnant women and passengers with limited mobility
- Talking on the phone or playing sound aloud in the train
Not illegal, but you will get looks and a reminder from the conductor.
Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: JNTO: Japanese etiquette
If you have tattoos, check the rules before using a hot spring
- Before you go, email the facility to ask about its rules
- Small to medium tattoos can be covered with skin-coloured patches (some onsen sell them)
- Choose a tattoo-friendly onsen, or book a private bath (kashikiri-buro) in advance
- Ignoring 'no tattoos' signs and getting in anyway
Most onsen do not allow guests with tattoos to bathe, but rules vary by facility and are often more relaxed for foreign visitors.
Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: JNTO: tattoo rules and etiquette at onsen
Wash your body thoroughly before getting into a hot spring
- Before getting in, sit on the small stool in the washing area and wash your whole body with the shower or a bucket, leaving no soap
- Leave your small towel at the edge of the bath or fold it on your head
- Getting into the bath without rinsing first
- Dipping your towel in the bath water
- Leaving a used towel in the washing area
Not illegal, but other guests and the staff will see it as very rude. Most onsen require you to be fully naked in the bathing area.
Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: JNTO: a beginner's guide to onsen
There is no tipping in Japan
- Say thank you with 'arigatō gozaimashita'
- Pressing loose change on staff
Japan is a no-tipping country and bills usually include service; if you press a tip on staff, some will politely refuse.
Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: JNTO: Japanese table manners
An izakaya's otoshi is a cover charge
- Accept the otoshi as an appetiser
- Arguing with staff about it or asking for it to be taken back
There is no penalty: before you order at an izakaya, a small dish of otoshi always arrives. It doubles as the cover charge and cannot be chosen or swapped.
Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: JNTO: drinking in Japan