Experience the best of Matsue

Matsue lies between Lake Shinji and Lake Nakaumi in Shimane Prefecture on the Sea of Japan, a city of water, bridges and canals. Its black-timbered castle, completed in 1611, is one of twelve in Japan whose original main keep survives, and was designated a National Treasure in 2015. A moat circles the castle grounds, and boats pass beneath low bridges on a loop around it.

Beside the moat, the samurai district of Shiomi Nawate has restored houses, and the former home of the writer Lafcadio Hearn, who taught in Matsue in 1890 and 1891 and wrote about the city, is preserved beside a small museum. Izumo Taisha, one of Japan's oldest and most revered shrines, lies to the west, and the Adachi Museum of Art, known for its garden, lies to the east at Yasugi.

Lake Shinji provides seven traditional delicacies, among them sea bass, eel, shrimp and shijimi clams, the last most often served in miso soup. Matsue also has a long tea tradition, with sweets made to go with it. Evening is the best hour, when the lake turns red and gold at sunset.