Stretching along Asaichi-dori for about 360 metres, the Wajima Morning Market has operated daily for over 1,000 years and is ranked among Japan's three greatest morning markets alongside Katsuura (Chiba) and Takayama (Gifu). Some 200 stalls are run almost entirely by local women (ama divers and farmers) selling fresh seafood, dried squid and abalone, Noto vegetables, and Wajima-nuri lacquerware — a regional lacquer craft designated as a national traditional craft. The market opens around 8 a.m. and winds down by noon, making it an ideal morning itinerary anchor before exploring the Noto Peninsula. Wajima is reached by bus from Kanazawa in approximately two hours.
- Type
- Experience
- Category
- Food
- Season
- Year-round
- Month
- Year-round (daily except 2nd and 4th Wednesday)
- Region
- Chubu
- Prefecture
- Ishikawa
- City
- Wajima
Highlights
- ◆1,000-year-old market tradition, one of Japan's three great morning markets
- ◆~200 stalls run by local ama (female free-divers) and farming women
- ◆Fresh seafood, dried Noto produce and authentic Wajima-nuri lacquerware
- ◆Unhurried, local atmosphere far from mass-tourism circuits
- ◆Gateway to UNESCO-nominated Noto Satoyama Satoumi landscape