Spend $8,500 to be lord of Japan’s Fukuyama Castle for a day

Sleep in a Moon Viewing Turret, experience a lounge in the castle keep, and enjoy luxurious gourmet meals!

Hiroshima's 17th-century Fukuyama Castle is welcoming its first guests as Japan experiences a tourism boom. The cheapest offer to become lord of the castle starts at $8,500 for two people per night.

What's included? Plenty, but most importantly, it's a rare opportunity to experience the 17th-century Japanese castle firsthand. Your personal lounge will be on the top floor of the five-story castle keep, while your beds will be made on tatami mats in the Tukimi Yagura Turret offering a panoramic view of the castle grounds!

During your stay, you will have exclusive private access to the entire castle. This means that you will be walking where few people have ever set foot. It will also be a unique historical and cultural experience. The most exciting thing (for me!) is that as a guest of Fukuyama Castle, you'll be able to take a tour of the wooden Fushimi Yagura Turret - one of the oldest turrets among Japanese castles that is usually closed to the public.

Both turrets are believed to have been moved here from Fushimi Castle in Kyoto (it was destroyed by the devastating earthquake of 1596, which also killed about 1,200 Kyoto residents).

The castle was rebuilt, but demolished again in 1623. Several of its rooms and buildings have been incorporated into castles and temples throughout Japan, and some still have blood-stained elements dating back to the turbulent times of Japan’s history.

Fukuyama Castle is the third castle to offer tourists the opportunity to stay and experience the unique historical atmosphere. The first two are the 14th-century Ozu Castle in Ehime Prefecture and Hirado, a samurai castle on a remote and peaceful island in Nagasaki.

Castles owners from across Europe and beyond share their secrets with me! Click the button below to learn them!