Imaimachi (Icho) retains the old townscape as if you had slipped back in time. It was established as a Terauchi town during the Warring States period, and in the Edo period it prospered as a commercial center, "Yamato's gold is seven minutes to Imai."

Imaimachi, where the townhouses of the Edo period are carefully preserved, has about 500 traditional buildings, including nine important cultural properties, on a site about 600m east-west and about 310m north-south. The number is the largest in the country and has been selected as a preservation area for important traditional buildings in the country.

The town is dotted with important cultural properties that can be visited, old private house cafes and restaurants full of emotions, and you can enjoy photogenic gourmet and sweets. In addition, you can learn about the tea ceremony surrounding Sokyu Imai, which is related to Imaimachi, the history of tea in Yamato, and the activities of Imai merchants. You can taste "Yamato Imai's tea porridge" cooked with firewood using a furnace of an important cultural property townhouse.

Photo provided: Kashihara City Tourism Association