Sendai

  • Published on : 27/06/2025
  • by : G.L. / I.D.O.
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Local Time 18:06

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    Temp : 23.2°C

    Date : Today

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Local Time 18:06

  • Symbol : sunny

    Temp : 23.2°C

    Date : Today

  • Symbol : sunny_cloudy

    Temp : 25.5°C

    Date : Tomorrow

  • Symbol : sunny_cloudy

    Temp : 26.7°C

    Date : Monday

  • Symbol : sunny_cloudy

    Temp : 29.2°C

    Date : Tuesday

The capital of Tôhoku and a must-see city in northern Japan

With around one million citizens, Sendai is the largest city in Tohoku (the northeastern region of Honshu Island). Sendai is an old, historical castle town developed by the samurai warlord Masamune Date. It is one of Japan's fastest-growing and most charming cities.

His helmet decorated with a half-moon, his black horse, his castle: people in Sendai is familiar Date Masamune (1567-1636), the great lord who made ​​this small port town a prosperous and open city, from its founding in 1604. Renowned as angry and vengeful, Masamune was also a connoisseur of Noh theater and calligraphy. The history and influence of the "One-Eyed Dragon" (the nickname of Masamune, who lost an eye as a child) can be discovered to the west of Sendai, nestled on Kyogamine Hill.

The ancient castle, Aobajô, conceals beautiful period pieces behind its formidable watchtower and offers a spectacular view in addition to ancient ruins. Furthermore, there is the Gokoku Shrine, which is connected to the Yasukuni-jinja shrine in Tokyo, which has a small museum dedicated to the military history of modern Japan.

Sendai Zuihô-den Mausoleum

Sendai Zuihô-den Mausoleum

Zairon Wikimedia Commons

Zuiho-den

Zuiho-den

663highland Wikimedia Commons

Sendai Zuiho-den Mausoleum

Sendai Zuiho-den Mausoleum

Zairon Wikimedia Commons

Sendai's most famous cultural event is undoubtedly the Tanabata Festival, considered to be the biggest in Japan. Unlike most Tanabata festivals, which take place on July 7, Sendai's takes place from August 6 to 8, according to the traditional lunar calendar. During these three days, the entire city is decked out in thousands of colorful paper and bamboo decorations called sasatake, hung from the ceilings of Central Station and in shopping streets such as Chûô-dori and the Ichibancho Arcade.

These spectacular ornaments, the result of painstaking craftsmanship that can cost several million yen, symbolize the legend of the star-crossed lovers Orihime (Vega) and Hikoboshi (Altair). Tradition has it that each shopping district prepares a set of five bamboos adorned with paper streamers and keeps them hidden until the day of the festival.

Tanabata Matsuri Sendai

Tanabata Matsuri Sendai

Other sites included on the Loople Sendai bus tour, which departs from the west side of Sendai Station, are Sendai's two major shopping streets of Aoba Dori and Ichibancho and the Bansuisodo - the preserved house of local minor poet and composer, Bansui Doi.

Just north of Sendai Station, the AER Building at 145.5 meters is the tallest building in Sendai and the entire Tohoku region. There's a branch of Maruzen bookstore with writings in English, a Starbucks, the Tohoku Pokemon Center, and on the 31st floor The Panorama Terrace, with great views out over Sendai on a clear day.

The Sendai City Museum introduces the history of the city and displays Date family treasures including Masamune Date's suit of armor and relics from the fascinating journey to Mexico and Europe by his retainer, Hasekura Tsunenaga (1613 - 1620). This epic voyage, Japan's first embassy to the Americas and Europe, is described in Shusako Endo's novel The Samurai.

Other museums in Sendai include the Miyagi Museum of Art and Tohoku University's Museum of Natural History. Of the temples and shrines in the city, Osaki Hachimangu Shrine dates from 1607 and is a good example of Momoyama Period architecture. The shrine houses the guardian deity of the Date family and is the site of the Donto fire festival in January. Nearby Rinnoji Temple has a Japanese-style garden noted for its irises in June.

Sendai Mediatheque

Facade of Sendai Mediatheque.

Wikipedia

Our tours in Sendai

  • Duration : 18 days
  • Locations : Kyoto, Tokyo, Nikko, Sendai, Tohoku, Aomori
See all our Tours (2)