Kintaikyo Bridge (Iwakuni)
錦帯橋（岩国） · Yamaguchi Prefecture · Iwakuni City
Over the Nishiki River in Iwakuni City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, linking both banks of the castle town; about 193 metres long and 5 metres wide, a five-span wooden arch bridge, one of Japan's Three Great Bridges.
Know before you go
- Red lines: no cycling, running or shaking railings on the wooden bridge. Taboos: do not block foot traffic by lingering long for photos on the deck, and do not climb the arch timbers. Good manners: keep right on arch slopes and give way to elderly visitors and pushchairs. Common mistakes for outsiders: (1) assuming a pushchair can be pushed over the arches — the slopes are steep and pushchairs cannot be pushed up
- (2) not checking closure information after typhoons or heavy rain and arriving to find it closed.
This article is Not yet verified. Please check official announcements for prices, opening hours and dates.
Stories & people
Stories & people
History
The rebuilding of Kintaikyo Bridge
Kintaikyo Bridge was first built in 1673 and rebuilt after a flood destroyed it the following year. Floodwaters damaged it again in 1950. Iwakuni residents chose to restore the wooden bridge, which reopened in 1953; later maintenance continued its traditional timber techniques.
Culture
Culture & customs
Background
built in 1673 by order of Iwakuni lord Kikkawa Hiroyoshi, after earlier wooden bridges were repeatedly washed away by floods; the first build was washed away the next year when the riverbed subsided, and after reinforcement and rebuilding in 1674 it stood for about 276 years, until a typhoon destroyed it in 1950 and it was rebuilt in pure timber in 1953 by the original method; the wooden arches join by mortise-and-tenon kumiki joinery on stone piers.
Local customs
- (1) Walk up and down the five arches (五連アーチ)
- (2) photograph the kumiki structure from the riverbank below
- (3) ride the ropeway to Iwakuni Castle (岩国城) for views
- (4) enjoy cherry blossoms and autumn leaves in Kikko Park (吉香公園)
- (5) see Iwakuni white snakes at the Shirohebi Museum (岩国シロヘビの館) and summer cormorant fishing, Ukai (鵜飼).
Etiquette & taboos
Etiquette & taboos
Don’t DON'T
- Red lines: no cycling, running or shaking railings on the wooden bridge. Taboos: do not block foot traffic by lingering long for photos on the deck, and do not climb the arch timbers. Good manners: keep right on arch slopes and give way to elderly visitors and pushchairs. Common mistakes for outsiders: (1) assuming a pushchair can be pushed over the arches — the slopes are steep and pushchairs cannot be pushed up
- (2) not checking closure information after typhoons or heavy rain and arriving to find it closed.
Locals appreciate DO
Please respect local residents, open areas, and on-site rules.
Plan your visit
Practical info
| Getting there | Intercity: by bus from JR Iwakuni Station on the Sanyo Main Line to Kintaikyo; about 1 hour by car from Hiroshima Station. Local: on foot across the bridge, and by ropeway to the castle. Tickets and payment: bridge tolls and combined bridge–ropeway–castle tickets are priced separately; buses take IC cards or cash. Fare scales are several hundred yen, as officially published. |
|---|
Travel tips
- Crossing and returning takes about 1 hour
- cherry and autumn-leaf seasons are crowded. Combined bridge–castle tickets are valid only on the day of issue, so visit all sites the same day, as officially published.
Sources & verification notes
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