Hida no Sato

Hida no Sato is an open-air folk village museum set amid rich natural surroundings, recreating traditional life in the Hida region of Japan. Within the grounds, visitors can explore rows of historic buildings such as steeply pitched gassho-zukuri thatched-roof farmhouses built to withstand heavy snowfall, board-roofed homes, and former work structures like bracken starch huts, offering a vivid glimpse into rural mountain life of the past. The site includes four buildings designated as National Important Cultural Properties and seven designated as Prefectural Important Cultural Properties, highlighting its important role in preserving Japan’s architectural and cultural heritage. Hida no Sato was established in the 1950s to relocate and preserve gassho-zukuri houses that would have been submerged by the construction of the Miboro Dam. Inside each house, visitors can learn about traditional Hida industries, view exhibits on agricultural village life and daily tools, and gain insight into how people once lived in harmony with nature. The museum also offers a wide range of hands-on experiences, including straw craft, sashiko embroidery, and traditional weaving—activities rarely encountered in everyday life today. In the folk craft workshop, guests can even make iconic Hida handicrafts such as sarubobo dolls and braided cords. During autumn and winter, the gassho-zukuri houses are illuminated at night, creating a magical, storybook-like atmosphere as snow-covered homes glow softly in the light, captivating visitors with a timeless and nostalgic landscape.