Kanazawa Shinise Memorial Hall (also called the Shinise Kinenkan in Japanese) is a historical wooden townhouse that was donated to Kanazawa City by the Nakaya family in 1987 and opened as a museum in 1988. The museum is dedicated to exhibiting the traditional lifestyle and culture of Kanazawa’s townspeople. Inside you can view an old style shop space, living quarters, a tea room, an attractive traditional garden and also some local handicrafts. Throughout the museum there is explanatory information in both Japanese and English.
The entrance to Kanazawa Shinise Memorial Hall
Shinise means “old shop” in Japanese and describes an old style merchant house that typically had a shop at the front of the building and a home at the back. This building originally housed a family run pharmacy. It was built in 1878, renovated in 1919, and moved to its current location in 1987. However, the Nakaya family who owned the building established their traditional medicine business as far back as 1579.
A reproduction of the original pharmacy
The Nakaya Pharmacy was a respected business in Kanazawa. The Nakaya family began its medicine business in 1579, and later received the honor of preparing official palace medicines from the fifth Maeda lord, Maeda Tsunanori. Their house was originally located in a more central location in town, and was unusually large, having extra rooms and even a tea room.
The tea room
Viewing the garden
The second-floor exhibition space introduces Kanazawa’s long-established businesses, with displays of production tools, household items, and town culture materials changed three times a year.
A traditional “self-righting” doll and “shishi” lion heads
Noh theater masks
Temari balls are traditional toys. The colorful balls on display are crafted in silk and are used to decorate several rooms in the museum
Kanazawa is famous for its confectionery. On the 2nd floor you can find a blossoming tree that is made completely of sugar!
Access
Kanazawa Shinise Memorial Hall is located in the Nagamachi district of Kanazawa, close to the former samurai residence area. From Kanazawa Station, take a Hokutetsu bus, JR bus, or the Kanazawa Loop Bus from the east side of the station and get off at Korinbo, from where it is about a 5-minute walk to the museum. The Kanazawa Loop Bus leaves from Kanazawa Station East Gate bus stop #7 and costs 220 yen for adults. The Kanazawa Flat Bus Naga-machi route also stops at Shinise Kinenkan.
The Kanazawa Shinise Memorial Hall
Open: 9.30 – 17.00 (Last entry at 16.30)
Closed: Mondays, or the next weekday when Monday is a public holiday; during display changes; and during the New Year holidays from 29-Dec to 3-Jan.
Entrance fees:
Adults: 100 yen
Visitors aged 65 or older, eligible disability-card holders, and one accompanying caregiver: 100 yen, with free admission on public holidays
Senior High School Students and younger: Free
The nearby Maeda Tosanokami-ke Shiryokan Museum
For 360 yen, adults can buy a same-day ticket that includes entry to Kanazawa Shinise Memorial Hall and the nearby Maeda Tosanokami-ke Shiryokan Museum. The combined ticket is 310 yen for groups of 20 or more and 260 yen for visitors aged 65 or older; high school students and younger enter free.
The Maeda Tosanokami-ke Shiryokan Museum preserves and displays historical materials handed down by the Maeda Tosanokami family, including ancient documents, armor, weaponry, artworks, and calligraphy. It introduces the history of an upper-ranking Kaga Domain samurai family through rotating exhibitions.
Article and original photos by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved. Last updated 26-May-2026.
