Himeji - how long for real samurai buff?

I know some people say that Himeji doesn't take long to see, but since we have enough time, I wondered how long to allow so my 14-year old, who is REALLY into Samurai and castles, can get as much time as he wants/needs. Between the castle and the town, could we easily spend a whole day?

I would think that a good half day or a bit more would be sufficient. The castle is beautiful, but the town itself doesn't have much of the samurai era to see. I doubt if your son would be interested in the nearby gardens, but they are worth seeing.

are actually quite interesting to him. he has specifically requested that we make time to visit a number of Japanese gardens. How long is needed to view the Himeji garden?

I found the walk to the castle and back to the train station a nice leisurely half hour strode. I spent about 2 hours at the castle, but that's just because I was so tired and dreaded climbing down from the top storey. Beware that you will be climbing ALOT of steep flight of stairs at the castle, but it is one of a very few Japanese castle to survive intact from the 17th century. You might like the Nishi-Oyashiki-Ato garden
check out http://www.himeji-kanko.jp/en/spot/ss002.html

I have visited the castles in Himeji, Matsue, Matsumoto, Osaka etc. Himeji is the biggest and most magnificent. take the whole tour, starting by low buildings to the left of the main towers that include private apartments. Including the gardens around the castle and the other garden behind it whose name I can't remember, we spent about 4hrs. Matsue castle is small but interesting as there are a couples of samourai houses behind but it is a relatively long treck from the Kansai. Hikone castle near Kyoto-- planned for my next trip-- has a street of old houses below it. That castle, on a hill with,I think,a view of the Biwa lake, would be worth spending another day in the area. besides all that I find all the towns interesting, especially if one walk along side streets rather than main ones. Stores displays, private houses, tiny gardens here and there, cars parked in the tightest spots,everything is fascinating.

Make sure you also visit Mt Shosha where scenes from "The Last Samurai" were filmed. Als, right next to Himeji castle is Koko-en, a really beautiful garden.

If you are going to Kyoto I would recommend a visit to the Toei Eigamura - a working film set/samurai village where the TV samurai dramas are made.

Himeji castle is very very big and it took me about six hours to see it all, but I also visited the nearby castle-garden (on the leftside of the entrance) and walked around the castle along the moat. On your way from the castle to the station (or vv), there is a nice 'indoor' shopping mall with many shops, restaurants and coffeeshops. If your kid wanna see Samurai, I can recommend Igu-Ueno, there is a Samurai-school, museum and a show (Iga ueno is between Kyoto and Nara and can be reached by JR).

Agree with Bert. If you love samurais, a visit to Iga Ueno is worth the trip. The museum and live demo are really good.

When I search for a trip to Iga Ueno, Hyperdia doesn't recognize the destination name. What is the station?

The station is Ueno-shi - a short ride from Iga-Ueno station. The ninja museum is a short walk away from Ueno-shi. Look for the ninja embelms on the pavement as your guide to the place.

Btw, use the search facility on this website. Key in "Iga Ueno" and you will get a wealth of info about the ninja place.

Another nice Ninja city is Koka, about 45 minutes from Kyoto on the JR Kusatsu line.Koka is having a Ninja estate, village and a castle. And don't forget to try the Koka Miso, very tasty !