+Timothy Tye

Home Yamagata Prefecture (山形県), Japan

       Follow Me on Pinterest 




Yamagata Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Tohoku Region on the northern part of Honshu Island. It is 9,324 sq km in area, and has a population of 1.2 million people (2011 estimate). The prefectural capital is Yamagata City.


Yamadera Temple, Yamagata Prefecture
Yamadera Temple, Yamagata Prefecture
Author: Guenny (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)

 Yamagata Prefecture faces the Sea of Japan. It borders Niigata Prefecture and Fukushima Prefecture to the south, Miyagi Prefecture to the east and Akita Prefecture to the north.

The area that is now Yamagata Prefecture was originally inhabited by the Ezo aboriginal people until the Japanese established their settlement there. It was ruled by the Fujiwara family during the Heian Period (794-1185).


Torii gate of the Shrine of Mount Yudono, the most sacred of the Dewa Sanzan shrines
Torii gate of the Shrine of Mount Yudono, the most sacred of the Dewa Sanzan shrines
Author: Crown of Lenten rose (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)

Going to Yamagata Prefecture

Take the Yamagata Shinkansen from Tokyo. Despite its name, it is really traveling at half the speed of a "true" Shinkansen bullet train. It takes 3 hours to reach Yamagata City, with the fare being ¥10,000.


 Walking trail to Mount Gassan, the highest of the Three Mountains of Dewa
Walking trail to Mount Gassan, the highest of the Three Mountains of Dewa
Author: Crown of Lenten rose (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)

Cities of Yamagata Prefecture

  1. Higashine
  2. Kaminoyama
  3. Murayama
  4. Nagai
  5. Nan'yo
  6. Obanazawa
  7. Sagae
  8. Sakata
  9. Shinjo
  10. Tendo
  11. Tsuruoka
  12. Yamagata
  13. Yonezawa

Tourist Attractions of Yamagata Prefecture

  1. Dewa Sanzan
    Three sacred mountains in Yamagata Prefecture.

  2. Mount Zao
    A famous winter ski resort.

  3. Yamadera Temple
    Famous temple carved out of the rock face, in Yamagata City.

Japan Travel Guide


Planning a vacation in Japan?

Hello and thanks for visiting my Japan Travel Guide!

Japan is a country of astounding contrast and beauty. With this website, I want to take you on an armchair journey to explore it from length to length, visiting every prefecture, every city, to admire all the sights - and doing so from the comfort of home. Whether you are viewing this website as preparation for a visit to Japan, or simply browsing it for fun, I hope you will derive lots of viewing pleasure.

Accommodation usually consumes a large proportion of any travel budget. So if you are traveling to Japan (or elsewhere), it is prudent to do a bit of research, to find the lowest rate for your hotel room. Different booking sites offer the same room at a different rate, so it pays to compare. To take away the tediousness of visiting different sites, use a hotel search engine, like the one on this page. Just key in your destination and travel period, and it will show you the best price among all major online booking sites. This guarantees you the lowest price every time.




The official currency in Japan is the Japanese Yen (JPY). Here's latest exchange rates in the last 24-hours.




Lastly, let me line up a selection of books which you may want to read ahead of your trip. You can get them directly from Amazon.





SBI! Results