Niigata Prefecture (新潟県) Travel Guide

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Niigata Prefecture (新潟県) is a prefecture of Chubu Region in Central Japan. The name Niigata means "new lagoon". It is located on the west coast of Honshu Island facing the Sea of Japan. Covering 12,582 sq km, it is the 5th largest prefecture in Japan out of the 47 prefectures. It is within the Hokuriku sub-region of Chubu, which includes Ishikawa Prefecture, Fukui Prefecture and Toyama Prefecture. It has a population of 2.5 million people (2011 estimate). The prefectural capital is Niigata City.

Watatsu Jinja Shrine, Niigata Prefecture
Author: ChiefHira (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)

Niigata Prefecture borders Yamagata Prefecture to the north, Fukushima Prefecture to the east, Gunma Prefecture to the southeast, Nagano Prefecture to the south and Toyama Prefecture to the southwest. It was created during the Meiji Restoration from Echigo Province and Sado Province. Niigata City is today the biggest Japanese city on the Sea of Japan. It was also the first Japanese port on the Sea of japan to be opened to foreign trade by Matthew Perry.

Mount Makihata
Author: hiropan (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)

Niigata Prefecture is the venue of the annual Fuji Rock Festival, one of the largest music events in Japan, with attendance of over 100,000 people.

Going to Niigata Prefecture

The Joetsu Shinkansen Line connects Tokyo to Niigata City in 2 hours. You can also take the Nagano Shinkansen Line to Nagano City in 2 hours, followed by an express or local train to Myoko and Naoetsu in Niigata Prefecture.

Ojiya Balloon Festival, Niigata Prefecture
Author: Kropsoq (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)

Cities of Niigata Prefecture

Niigata City - prefectural capital
Izumozaki
Joetsu
Urasa

Tourist Attractions of Niigata Prefecture

Mount Yone
Myoko
Sado Island
Tokamachi
Yuzawa

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