Takegawara Kōji — Japan's oldest arcade

photo by 大分帰省中 · CC BY 3.0

Opened on 1 December 1921, it is the oldest covered arcade still standing in Japan.

A wood-and-glass arcade 61 metres long and 3 wide, completed on 1 December 1921 so that tourists landing at Beppu's old port could reach the Takegawara onsen without getting wet. It is the oldest covered arcade still in existence in Japan, and since 2009 it has been recognised as heritage of industrial modernisation. Today it houses about ten businesses, including a curry restaurant, snack bars and a wine bar.

Takegawara Kōji is a small covered shopping passage in the Motomachi neighbourhood of Beppu, linking Ryūsen-dōri and the Takegawara onsen street. Completed on 1 December 1921, the wood-and-glass arcade (61 m long, 3 wide), lined with two-storey buildings, was built so that passengers landing at Beppu's old port could reach the Takegawara public bath, which had just been rebuilt at the time, without being exposed to the rain. It is now considered the oldest covered arcade still in existence in Japan, recognised as heritage of industrial modernisation in 2009. After the Heisei period several shops closed, but the arcade is still alive with about ten businesses, including a curry restaurant, a few snack bars and a wine bar: a small evening circuit rather than a daytime shopping centre.

ℹ️ A public passage, open at all times. Opening hours and closing days of the individual venues have not been checked one by one: the evening, when the venues are open, is recommended. Access: about 8 minutes' walk from the east exit of JR Beppu Station.

🚉 Beppu · 10 min walk

Sources: ja.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org

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