By YOSHIAKI KONISHI/ Staff Writer
October 20, 2026 at 18:15 JST
HIKONE, Shiga Prefecture—Officials trialed a carry service that harkens back to the Edo Period (1603-1867) on Oct. 19 that would allow disabled visitors to reach the area in front of the keep at Hikone Castle.
The experiment used an aluminum mountain sedan chair inspired by those once used to transport travelers across mountain passes, as the city explores improving accessibility ahead of the castle’s bid for UNESCO World Heritage status.
City employees and volunteers carried the chair in teams of two, taking turns as they made three round trips over about 140 stone steps.
Hikone Castle stands on a small hill, about 50 meters below the main bailey in front of the keep. The uneven stone stairways wind repeatedly to impede and prevent invaders from rushing to the top.
Because the site is designated a Special Historic Site, elevators and ramps cannot be installed.
Teams of carriers rotated during the ascent, reaching the area in front of the keep in just over 10 minutes.
“I expected it to be shakier, but it was actually quite comfortable,” said a 24-year-old wheelchair-user who participated in the trial.
A city official involved in the experiment said, “We were able to reach the castle safely. The challenge is that it requires a large number of people.”
Hikone Castle, which was completed around 1622, remains one of Japan’s best-preserved castle complexes, with its keep, palace ruins, ruins of senior retainers’ residences, moats, stone walls and turrets still intact.
Added to Japan’s tentative UNESCO World Heritage list in 1992, the castle is expected to secure a national nomination this year.
As it aims for World Heritage inscription in two years, the city is exploring ways to make the castle more accessible to all visitors.
Hikone Castle wins Japan’s UNESCO bid after 30 years
September 3, 2026
Hikone Castle takes step closer to earning World Heritage status
October 10, 2024
Morning exercise deemed threat to national treasure Hikone Castle
June 5, 2022
Himeji Castle doubles ticket price for adult nonresidents
March 2, 2026
City plans to double fee for visitors to enter Himeji Castle
September 5, 2024
Castles resurrect wooden donjons to restore former splendor
February 20, 2023
A peek through the music industry’s curtain at the producers who harnessed social media to help their idols go global.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
Participants in an accessibility trial arrive at the area in front of the keep at Hikone Castle in Hikone, Shiga Prefecture, aboard an aluminum mountain sedan chair on Oct. 19. (Minaho Serizawa)
