Samurai Experience: Matsumoto Castle Tour & Sword Fighting

Explore Matsumoto Castle and master samurai sword fighting in an immersive historical experience. Learn, dress, and fight like a true samurai!

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Matsumoto Castle - Matsumoto Castle is one of five castles designated as ‘National Treasures of Japan’ and the oldest castle donjon remaining in Japan. Construction began in 1592 of the elegant black and white structure with its three turrets. Because of the elegant black walls, Matsumoto Castle is sometimes called ‘Crow Castle’.
    Please note that…
What's Included
  • Samurai outfits and swords rental during the activity
  • Entry/Admission – Matsumoto Castle
  • Entry/Admission – Samurai Experience Activity
  • English Speaking Guide
What's Not Included
  • Miscellaneous fees during the activity (meals, snacks, souvenirs etc.)
  • Insurance (Travel Insurance, Private Insurance, etc…)
Additional Information

Your chance to become a Samurai while visiting Matsumoto Castle!
What better place to have your samurai experience than in a city with an authentic castle from the feudal era?
First take a tour of Matsumoto Castle designated a “National Treasure” of Japan due to its well-preserved original structure! During the tour, you will learn about the Matsumoto…

Location
Matsumoto Station
Tour begins at Matsumoto Station at the front of the JR Line ticket office / Starbucks Coffee inside the station (2F)
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(72 Ratings)
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Martinbc1283zw
Feb 6, 2026
Great guided tour - Both the castle tour and the Samurai experience were great and detailed. I even got some information about the city itself.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
F1371ybdk
Jan 22, 2026
A cut above the rest! - Tom was knowledgeable and helpful. The samurai instructor was patient with the children. She was also very skillful. It was great hearing tidbits sprinkled throughout the day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Benjaminav7121xa
Jan 21, 2026
A great time! - A great experience! The tour guide (Akiko) does a great job walking you through the city to the castle explaining history of Matsumoto and the castle. Akiko was very friendly and engaging and offered multiple times to take picture for me. She was also great at translating and helping me understand everything going on around me. The samuri experience was also a fantastic event. The teacher was very helpful in explaining all the intricate details of the techniques and made it very easy to follow along. The guide was also very helpful in making sure I was all set on my train tickets after the experience as I had to leave right after. A fantastic experience that everyone should do.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Yasser_a
Jan 18, 2026
Fun time. - This was a great experience! Our guide was great showing us around giving us the history of the castle! Going up the castle was great and so was the samurai session!
Review provided by Viator
Annming_y
Dec 26, 2025
Fun afternoon in Matsumoto - This was 100% a great tour and would recommend it to anyone! Tim and Collin were excellent guides and I loved that Tim had slippers in his backpack to made walking on the chilly Matsumoto castle floors more comfy. The samarai experience was authentic and super fun. Our instructor was excellent and knowledgeable and we really got a great sense of the katana, how to do some basic movements, and sheath and unsheath the sword. Great memories. It is hard to impress my two middle schoolers and they both had a great time.
Review provided by Viator
Lara_k
Oct 26, 2025
A lot of information & great experience - It was a great experience to climb the stairs inside the castle. The guide provided a lot of details and information about the architecture, fighting styles, samurai culture and weapons as well as the history of the town and castle, which was great. The samurai experience was also really authentic and it was interesting to try the fighting style myself. The guide had great restaurant recommendations and other tips as well :)
Review provided by Viator
Moetfan
Oct 23, 2025
History and fun all in one tour! - Great views from the top of Matsumoto Castle followed by a fun and interesting experience at Samurai school! Our guide was knowledgeable and made the tour unforgettable 😊
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Susansk6747wf
Oct 14, 2025
History and swords in one morning - Such a great trip with Chin yesterday. He led us around Matsumoto Castle, explaining lots about the history of Japan and then onto the samurai experience. Such great fun, learning basic moves and some more history. Chin took loads of photos for us and helped out a lot…. As a left handed person I needed it! Great trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
514nelsona
Oct 7, 2025
Afternoon in Matsumoto with family. - It was a great experience, we recommend, and our Akiko guide was incredibly kind. She explained everything in detail and told the story while being interesting. Thank you very much to her.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rayaso
Sep 28, 2025
Great experience in Matsumoto! - Our guide Tom was OUTSTANDING! He was great with the kids keeping them interested with quizzes and sticker prizes, very engaging and theatrical explanations. The castle was AMAZING , so beautiful and interesting. Tom also showed us around the castle, some shrines and water fountains and gave us food suggestions. The samurai experience was very fun, the sensei was a very good teacher and we had a great time!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $86
up to 12 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).