JR Ishiyama Station then transfer to Keihan Zeze-Honmachi Station, 5 min walk
Visiting Zeze Castle Ruin can be a deceptively underwhelming experience, and this is completely true if a castle fan just strolls around the public park where Zeze Castle’s honmaru or main bailey had once stood. There is little vestige of Zeze Castle at the park apart from a reconstructed gate and some stone wall remnants, some of which are modern reconstructions. Much of what was Zeze Castle has been built over and subsumed by modern day Zeze. However, if you are willing to spend time walking around Zeze, Ishiyama, and Kusatsu, there are 10 relocated gates and buildings from Zeze Castle to be seen. In addition to these relocated structures recognized by Otsu City, there are three more possible relocated gates, one in Ritto, another one in Kusatsu, and a third one at Zeze Shrine. If you are done tracking down relocated Zeze Castle gates and buildings, there are three nagayamons (長屋門) from former samurai residences in the castle town. They have been moved to three different temples along the former Tokaido Road in Zeze. Furthermore, at Enshin Temple, one can see the tombs of Toda Kazuaki, the first lord of Zeze Castle and Honda Toshitsugu, the fourth and then again, the eighth lord of Zeze Castle. At Zeze Castle Park, in recent years, a new sign with a map has been installed at the site of where the castle keep had once stood. The map is a bird’s eye view of Zeze Castle. It is a copy of an old map created in 1894. While the map on the new sign is informative, the castle model of Zeze Castle at the Otsu City Museum of History raises it to another level. It is an amazingly detailed model of Zeze Castle and the castle town, bringing the castle and its town “back to life” for castle fans to experience. Looking at this model one can see why Zeze Castle was rated as one of the Top Three Lakeside Castles in Japan. Unfortunately, for copyright reasons, I am unable to upload any photos of it. In sum, there are eleven relocated structures, two possible relocated structures, three nagayamons, two tombs of Zeze Castle lords, and a brilliant model of Zeze Castle that castle fans can check out if they want to do more than just briefly visit Zeze Castle Park. Most of the relocated gates and buildings are within walking distance from the JR stations, Ishiyama and Minami-Kusatsu and Keihan stations, Kawaragahama and Zeze-Honmachi. Otsu City Museum of History is a 5-to-6-minute walk from Keihan Otsu Shiyakushomae Station. If you just walk around Zeze Castle Park, my rating is still half a star, but if you spend hours tracking down all the structures listed here and visit the Otsu City Museum of History, the total Zeze Castle experience gets bumped up to 2 stars. The original (2012) and revised castle profile (2022) are by RaymondW. ~Admin Update Jun 2024~ RaymondW has already put together a comprehensive profile here, so the only photos or information I added are a few photos of some dobei clay walls from the samurai district in the town and a new sub album of lakeside photos from when the water level was very low.
30 minutes for castle ruins and 5+ hours for visiting original structures scattered around Zeze, Ishiyama, and Kusatsu
Zeze Castle
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Zeze Castle - Lakeside Stone Walls
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File:Zeze Castle 301A Minami Otemon at Muchisaki Hachimangu Shrine 鞭嵜八幡宮.jpg
Zeze Castle 301A Minami Otemon at Muchisaki Hachimangu Shrine 鞭嵜八幡宮.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 301B Minami Otemon at Muchisaki Hachimangu Shrine 鞭嵜八幡宮.jpg
Zeze Castle 301B Minami Otemon at Muchisaki Hachimangu Shrine 鞭嵜八幡宮.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 302B Relocated Gate at Goryo Shrine 御霊神社.jpg
Zeze Castle 302B Relocated Gate at Goryo Shrine 御霊神社.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 303A Unidentified gate at Chikatsuo Shrine 近津尾神社 .jpg
Zeze Castle 303A Unidentified gate at Chikatsuo Shrine 近津尾神社 .jpg
File:Zeze Castle 303B Unidentified gate at Chikatsuo Shrine 近津尾神社 .jpg
Zeze Castle 303B Unidentified gate at Chikatsuo Shrine 近津尾神社 .jpg
File:Zeze Castle 304A Ninomaru Mizumon 二の丸水門 at Shingu Shrine.jpg
Zeze Castle 304A Ninomaru Mizumon 二の丸水門 at Shingu Shrine.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 304B Ninomaru Mizumon 二の丸水門 at Shingu Shrine.jpg
Zeze Castle 304B Ninomaru Mizumon 二の丸水門 at Shingu Shrine.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 305A Relocated Storehouse.jpg
Zeze Castle 305A Relocated Storehouse.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 305B Relocated Storehouse.jpg
Zeze Castle 305B Relocated Storehouse.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 305C Relocated Storehouse.jpg
Zeze Castle 305C Relocated Storehouse.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 306A Relocated Nagayamon at Daiyoji 大養寺.jpg
Zeze Castle 306A Relocated Nagayamon at Daiyoji 大養寺.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 306B Relocated Nagayamon at Daiyoji 大養寺.jpg
Zeze Castle 306B Relocated Nagayamon at Daiyoji 大養寺.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 307A Nagayamon at Keigan Temple 敬願寺.jpg
Zeze Castle 307A Nagayamon at Keigan Temple 敬願寺.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 308A Nagayamon at Kyoninji Temple 響忍寺.jpg
Zeze Castle 308A Nagayamon at Kyoninji Temple 響忍寺.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 310A Possible Relocated Gate at Ten Shrine.jpg
Zeze Castle 310A Possible Relocated Gate at Ten Shrine.jpg
File:Zeze Castle 310B Possible Relocated Gate at Ten Shrine.jpg
Zeze Castle 310B Possible Relocated Gate at Ten Shrine.jpg