The 19 best shopping and stores in Kotohira-cho

Fantastic. The oldest kabuki theater in Japan features a lot of hidden details and things to discover. You can move freely but the guides on-site will tell you a lot of great stories and share their background knowledge.

Fantastic udon! I had the Tori (chicken) tempura cold soy sauce udon. The portion is a decent size for the price 720 yen. The Udon comes topped with grated daikon, ginger, sliced spring onions and crispy tempura bits. The waitress adds a bit of soy sauce and tells you to add your own bit by bit so it isn't too salty. At first it tasted a bit bland but as you mix the ingredients and soy sauce the flavours start to blend and on a hot day, this was the perfect lunch. Cool and refreshing with all of the ingredients working well together. The chicken tempura was well marinated and was juicy and tender as well. The aburage for our kids' kitsune Udon was huge and tasty as well. Well recommended.

(Translated by Google) 🌉 Scabbard Bridge｜Century-old scabbard-shaped bridge 🌉 This special-shaped sheath bridge is one of the important historical buildings of Kotohira Palace and has a history of more than 100 years. The current bridge was built in 1905 and existed as early as the Edo period. It is a bridge with a long history. of cultural heritage. The name of the scabbard bridge comes from its appearance that looks like a scabbard, which is very recognizable. The special structure adopts arch support and has no bridge columns at all. The design is quite clever. The bridge deck also has a roof to protect pedestrians from wind and rain, adding to the beauty of traditional Japanese architecture. ✨ In the past, the Sheath Bridge was located on the stone shrine directly connected to Kotohira-gu Shrine, and worshipers had to pass through this bridge before going up the mountain. However, due to the impassability of army artillery vehicles, the Sheath Bridge was moved to its current location. Nowadays, both ends of the bridge are closed, making it impassable during normal times. Only when Kotohira-gu Shrine holds a festival will the mikoshi pass through. The scene is quite spectacular! ⛩️ When visiting Kotohira-gu Shrine, remember to stop and admire the unique charm of this bridge! (Original) 🌉 鞘橋｜百年歷史的劍鞘形橋樑 🌉 這座造型特殊的 鞘橋 是金刀比羅宮的重要歷史建築之一，擁有超過 100年以上的歷史，現今的橋體建於1905年，早在江戶時代就已存在，是一座歷史悠久的文化遺產。 鞘橋的名字來自於它看起來像劍鞘的外型，非常具有辨識度。特殊的結構採用拱形支撐，完全沒有橋柱，設計相當巧妙。橋面還有屋頂，為行人遮風避雨，增添了傳統日式建築的美感。✨ 過去鞘橋的位置是直接連接金刀比羅宮的石段參道，參拜者必須經過這座橋才可上山。然而，由於軍隊砲車無法通行，鞘橋才被移至現在的位置。如今，橋的兩端被封閉，平時無法通行，只有金刀比羅宮舉辦祭典時，才會有神輿通過，場面相當壯觀！⛩️ 來金刀比羅宮參拜時，記得停下腳步欣賞這座橋的獨特魅力！

Handmade Udon. Done. Highly recommend the curry Udon and get rice to eat after to make curry rice. So good.

Delicious local food for a very cheap price. Charming people. Don't miss the udon!

Skip the udon shops along the main parade and come to this one, mere minutes walk away! Don't let the prices fool you (a mere 550yen for a lunch set), these are full sized bowls of the best udon in town! This price includes a rice ball and a stick of oden, which was very smart, because you won't stop at one! The oden is one of the best I've had, with an amazing miso sauce to top it off at an incredible 50yen a stick. Warm and friendly shopkeeper. Highly recommended!

(Translated by Google) It is located on the way to the former Kotohira Theater. Built in the Taisho era, it is registered as a national cultural heritage site. Only Kotohira town residents are allowed inside. (Original) 旧金刀比羅大芝居に行く途中にあります。大正時代に造られて、国の文化遺産に登録されています。中は、琴平町民しか入れません。

Fantastic filling and inexpensive lunch! We had wafu tonkatsu which included side dishes, and a seasonal vegetable curry with a side salad for extra. The mixed fruit juice was also good. The service was friendly and the atmosphere was nice. Highly recommended! 6-month update: We got the wafu tonkatsu again and it was as good as the last time. In addition, we tried the nanban chicken, which was on their specials menu. It was good overall, but neither the chicken nor the sauce were sour as nanban usually is. We came around 12:45 and it was almost a full house. Mostly middle-aged to elderly local crowd with a few Konpira-san visitors. There’s lots of seating including areas for families, so younger people and children will feel quite at home here. Lastly, our food took about 20 minutes to come out, which is fair given the type of lunch and that it was quite busy.

A small little Udon restaurant where you self serve other items and then add the Udon last and pay before sitting.

Perfect for lunch after climbing to Kotohira-gū. Pork sandwiches and omurice are tested and validated! There is a very cute Japanese garden in the back to eat peacefully.

Very nice place to stay after a long hiking trip to Konpira temple. The staffs are very friendly to foreigners and easy to communicate with. The desserts and drinks are very delicious 😋

(Translated by Google) When I was looking for a restaurant, I found this one. I saw that no one was dining and I didn't think about going in. However, the old man who owned the restaurant at the door greeted me and said it was open, so I sat on the bottom left. I can't believe the food is good. The fried fish is delicious but not thick in batter. The sauce is sour, sweet and spicy with mustard. It's the same as the fried fish. It is commendable that the two elderly people in the shop are attentive and give the whole meal an authentic human touch! They are kind to foreigners and have pictures on the menu, so you don’t have to worry about not knowing what to order. I wanted to say that the radishes were delicious, but maybe because of the language barrier, the old lady gave me an extra plate. Super touching. (Original) 尋找餐廳時揾到呢間，原本看到沒有人在用餐，冇諗過進去，但在門口店主老人家和我地打招呼，應該在說營業中，就坐底左。 估唔到食物唔錯，個炸魚好食唔厚粉漿，醬汁酸酸甜甜加芥辣，同炸魚幾夾。 值得稱讚是店舖的兩位老人家的用心，令整個用餐有一種地道的人情味！ 對外國人有善，Menu有圖片，唔怕唔知點啲咩。 我地想說蘿蔔很好食，可能因為言語不通，老太太為我地多拿一碟給我地。超感動。

Despite being a chicken restaurant (we didn't realise at the time), the staff were very helpful when we explained we were vegetarian, and helped us with some vegetarian skewers and salads. Had a great meal and would definitely recommend.

Very simple but great Udon.

(Translated by Google) As mentioned in the comments, is it a udon restaurant? There's a souvenir shop right in front of you. What I was a little curious about was "If you don't need T-shirts that turn into pajamas" I like this catchphrase Well, what really drew me in was the oranges from the faucet🍊 This punch is amazing Please come and experience it❣️ (Original) コメントにもありますが、うどん屋さんなの？ と思うぐらい前にあるはおみあげ屋さん ちょっと気になったのは「パジャマになるTしゃつはいらないなら」 いいねこんなキャッチコピー まーそれより引き込まれたのはやはり蛇口からみかん🍊 このパンチはすげー 是非皆さんも体験を❣️

(Translated by Google) I recommend visiting the Kotohira Town History and Folklore Museum before going to the Kanamaruza Theater and climbing Mt. Konpira! 200 yen. This is the site of the Kanamaruza Theater, the oldest wooden playhouse in Japan that still stands, built in the Edo period. The Kanamaruza Theater is also designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan. The Kanamaruza Theater was relocated here, and the site is now a History and Folklore Museum that introduces the history and folklore of the region. If you like history and culture, you should definitely go! The exhibition space is small, but it displays traditional local tools, farming implements, and folk tools, allowing you to feel the life of Kotohira in the past. In particular, you can get a deeper understanding of the Kanamaruza Theater that was located here. The staff member asked me, "Shall I explain it to you?" but I didn't have time. I climbed Mt. Konpira in the morning and entered the building around 9:20, but I had to check out of the hotel at 10. However, after a little tour, I thought it would be better if he explained it to me, so I asked him. He was like a walking dictionary, knew everything, and his explanation was interesting. I asked, "Doesn't this take at least an hour?" and he said, "I can do five hours!", so I checked out and came back. I had plans for the afternoon, so I listened to him until late afternoon. I don't know much about Kabuki, but I learned a lot, and I learned that the temple town of Kotohira was very lively in the Edo period. Originally, sumo was held as a temporary event to raise funds for festivals, and it became Kabuki. It was built and demolished every time, but money was raised through a lottery, and it was built as a permanent playhouse in 1835 during the Edo period, and it was designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan in 1970. When it is designated as a cultural property, preservation is given top priority, and the use of the building is strictly restricted. In other words, it was a situation where "it can't be destroyed, but it can't be used" for a long time. However, thanks to the efforts of people who believe that "cultural properties are valuable not only when they are preserved, but also when they are used," the regular Kabuki performance "Shikoku Konpira Kabuki Grand Play" was resumed in 1985. There were lots of specific anecdotes about that. It was a time before lighting, so the buildings were built in sync with the rising and setting of the sun, and it was a treasure trove of trivia. I was told that when they started worshiping Shinto, finances got tight, so an organization was formed and expanded its membership throughout Japan, but I regret forgetting the name! I love history and culture, so I always go to local history museums when I travel, and this was the most interesting one I've ever been to. I also became interested in Kabuki. I felt lucky because they don't always explain things that much to tourists. Thank you! (Original) 琴平町立歴史民俗資料館は、金丸座に行く前、金比羅山を登る前に行くのがお勧め！200円。ここは江戸時代に建てられた現存する日本最古の木造芝居小屋「金丸座」があった場所です。「金丸座」は国の重要文化財にも指定されています。金丸座が移築して、この場所は地域の歴史や民俗を紹介する歴史民俗資料館になっています。歴史や文化が好きなら絶対行くべき！ 展示スペースは小さいですが、地元の伝統的な生活道具や農具、民具が展示されていて、昔の琴平の暮らしを感じることができます。特に、この場所にあった「金丸座」を深く知ることができます。 スタッフの人に「説明しましょうか？」と声をかけられたんですが時間がなかったんです。朝に金比羅山を登って、9時20分ぐらいに入ったんですが、10時にホテルをチェックアウトしないといけなかったんです。でも、少し見学して、これは説明してもらったほうがいいと思ってお願いしました。そしたら生き字引みたいな方で、なんでも知っていて説明が面白い。「これって１時間は軽く必要ですよね？」と聞いたら「５時間はいけます！」っていうので、チェックアウトしてまた戻ってきました。午後には予定があったので、昼過ぎまで話を聞きました。歌舞伎について詳しくないのですが、すごく勉強になったし、江戸時代には琴平の門前町はすごく賑やかだったことがわかりました。 もともとは祭りのために資金集めとして一過性のイベントとして相撲をしていて、それが歌舞伎になったんです。毎回作っては取り壊していたが、宝くじでお金を集めて、江戸時代、1835年に常設の芝居小屋として建てられ、1970年に国の重要文化財に指定された。文化財に指定されると保存が最優先され、建物の使用が厳しく制限される。つまり、「壊すわけにはいかないけれど、使ってもいけない」という状態が長く続いていたわけです。 でも、「文化財は保存するだけでなく、生かしてこそ価値がある」と考えて動く人たちの努力で、1985年から歌舞伎の定期公演「四国こんぴら歌舞伎大芝居」が再開されることになった。そのへんの具体的なエピソードも盛りだくさんでした。 照明がない時代なので、太陽が上って沈む動きにあわせて建物が作られていたり豆知識の宝庫です。 神道を祀るようになったとき、資金繰りが厳しくなって、ある団体ができて日本中に同志を広げたと教えてもらったけど名前を忘れたのが悔しい！ 歴史が文化が好きなので旅行に行くと郷土資料館には必ず行きますが、いままでで一番面白かったです。歌舞伎にも興味を持ちました。観光客に毎回あんなに説明してるわけじゃないので思うのでラッキーでした。ありがとうございました！

(Translated by Google) Castella roll is really delicious. The shop owner is also very friendly. Castella rolls are not available at the main store, but only at the north store or Moxibustion Man Udon. When the north store is closed, I go to the udon shop to buy some. (Original) ロールカステラがめちゃくちゃおいしいです。 お店のおじさんも気さくな感じです。 ロールカステラは本店には置いてなくて、こちらの北店か灸まんうどんのほうにしかないそうです。 北店が休みの時はうどん屋のほうに買いに行ってます。

(Translated by Google) The liquor store is closed. (Original) 酒店としては閉業しています。

(Translated by Google) There were many antique goods in the large store. I was impressed by the sheer quantity and variety of products, so I took my time to take a closer look. I think the price is on the cheap side personally. Before entering the store, the outside looked unconventional, but the layout was wonderful and it felt like a different space. Perhaps because it was surrounded by old things, it had a nostalgic smell of my grandmother's house. If you're looking for something, just say hi to the store, and they won't push you unless you ask, so don't worry if you think it's hard to get in! Please go. (Original) 広い店内にアンティーク雑貨が沢山ありました。 あれだけの量と品揃えに凄いなあとゆっくり、じっくり見させてもらいました。 価格は私的にはお安い方かと思います。 店内に入るまでの外にも無造作に見えて素敵にレイアウトされていて異空間でした。 古い物に囲まれてるからか、お婆ちゃんの家の懐かしい匂いがしました。 お店の方も何かお探しならと声掛けだけで、こちらが尋ねなければ押してくることはないので入りにくいと思ってる方は大丈夫ですよ！是非行ってください。