Ōmiya Station (大宮駅)
Station Type: Train station
Omiya Station, located in Nishiki-cho, Omiya-ku, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture, is a terminal station served by East Japan Railway (JR East), Tobu Railway, and Saitama New Transit.
The station is the largest terminal station north of Tokyo, and is served by many Shinkansen bullet trains, local trains, and private railways connecting Tokyo with the northern Kanto, Tohoku, Shinetsu, Hokuriku, and Hokkaido regions. The area around the station and the adjacent Saitama Shin-Toshin area are the largest hub of rail transportation, commerce, and business in Saitama Prefecture, and the downtown area is one of the largest in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The area around the station is also the hub of the prefecture’s road transportation network, which includes the Saitama-Shintoshin and Saitama-Omiya lines of the Metropolitan Expressway, as well as National Routes 16 and 17 and the Shin-Omiya Bypass.
The area around the station is crowded with department stores, specialty stores, and restaurants. In addition, many companies and financial institutions have their headquarters, branches, and sales offices in the area, making it one of Saitama Prefecture’s business centers. The vacancy rate for tenants in front of the station is extremely low, and the area is known as a fierce battleground for business properties along with Kawaguchi Station in Saitama Prefecture.
Restaurants, Foods
Some restaurants and food shops around the station.
Hiikiya Ōmiya east exit shop (ひいきや 大宮東口店)
Restaurant Type: Bistro
Torafuku Rumineomiyaten (大かまど飯 寅福 ルミネ大宮店)
Restaurant Type: Japanese restaurant
MAISON NEW YORK KITCHEN Ohmiya (MAISON NEW YORK KITCHEN 大宮駅前店)
Restaurant Type: Izakaya restaurant
Tourist area
Some tourist area – the best views, museums and parks – around the station.
Omiya Park (大宮公園)
Tourist Area Type: Park
Omiya Park is located 1.5 km northeast of Omiya Station. The park was established in 1885 under the name of Hikawa Park in response to a proclamation by the Grand Council of State in 1873, and has the longest history of any prefectural park in existence today.
The park has a red pine forest with towering red pine trees over 100 years old, 1,000 famous cherry trees, and many other trees with beautiful fresh green and autumn leaves, allowing visitors to enjoy the changes of the four seasons. It is the most popular prefectural park in Saitama Prefecture. The park has been selected as one of the 100 best cherry blossom viewing spots in Japan and one of the 100 best urban parks in Japan, and during the blooming season in early April, the park is very lively with food stalls.
Omiya Park Zoo (大宮公園小動物園)
Tourist Area Type: Zoo
Omiya Park Petting Zoo is a small zoo located in Omiya Park, where you can enjoy a peaceful atmosphere filled with greenery. The zoo is located in Omiya, one of Saitama’s many downtown areas, but is loved by locals because it is away from the bustling station area and can be enjoyed at a leisurely pace.
Saitama City Museum (さいたま市立博物館)
Tourist Area Type: Local history museum
The museum collects, preserves, and exhibits historical, archaeological, and folklore materials related to Saitama City. Permanent exhibits introduce the history and culture of Saitama City, and there is also a local learning and experience corner where visitors can enjoy learning about the city. In addition, the museum holds special exhibitions in the fall, special exhibitions in the spring, the “Summer Children’s Museum” in the summer, and the “Old Tools and Life Exhibition” in the winter, as well as various hands-on classes, lectures on ancient documents, and history courses at the Citizen’s College.
Omiya Bonsai Village (大宮盆栽村 (盆栽園集合地域))
Tourist Area Type: Tourist attraction
Omiya Bonsai Village is located in Bonsai-cho, Kita-ku, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture, and was formed by a mass migration of bonsai growers.
The village was created with the aim of bringing together bonsai vendors and bonsai enthusiasts, and several bonsai gardens remain today. This was very unusual in that it was a town built from the ground up by private citizens in a place where nothing existed at the time.
Hikawa Shrine (武蔵一宮 氷川神社)
Tourist Area Type: Shinto shrine
Hikawa Shrine is located in Takahana-cho, Omiya-ku, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture. It is a Shiki-uchi-sha (Meishin-taisha), the first (or third) shrine in Musashi Province, and an imperial shrine. Formerly a kanpeitai-sha, it is now an annexed shrine of the Jinja Honcho (Agency for the Promotion of Shinto Religion). It is one of the shrines that are worshipped at the Shiho worship service at the Imperial Palace. It is the head shrine of approximately 280 Hikawa Shrines in the vicinity of Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture. It is also called “Omiya Hikawa Shrine” to distinguish it from other Hikawa shrines.
Hikawa shrines based on the Hikawa faith are located in the Arakawa River basin in Saitama and Tokyo prefectures, especially in Adachi-gun in the former Musashi Province, and the Company is the center of these shrines. The name “Omiya” is a common noun derived from the name of the shrine, which was called “the great palace. The shrine attracts worshippers from a wide area around Saitama Prefecture, and the number of visitors to the shrine for Hatsumode on the third day of the New Year (according to a police survey) is among the top 10 in Japan. Especially since 2008 (Heisei 20), when the number of Hatsumode visitors increased nationwide, more than 2 million people have visited the shrine every year.
The shrine grounds are located on the shore of Minuma (a vast swamp that existed until the mid-Edo period), and it is believed that the shrine was originally dedicated to the water god of Minuma. Kamiike, which stretches to the south of the shrine, is a pool of underground water that gushed out from the west side of the shrine and was once part of the Minuma. The Saitama Prefectural Omiya Park adjacent to the shrine was developed in the Meiji period (1868-1912) by acquiring the forest around the shrine, and it preserves the geographical feature that the inlet of Minuma used to surround the small mountain where the shrine is located.
Hotels
There are various hotels around the station.
Palace Hotel Omiya (パレスホテル大宮)
Omiya Third Place Hotel (サードプレイスホテル)
Super Hotel Premier Saitama Omiyaeki Higashiguchi (スーパーホテルpremierさいたま・大宮駅東口)
Convenience Stores, Grocery Stores
Stores for foods, drinks and others.
Tourist Information Center
Tourist information centers inside/around the station.
Omiya Information Centre (大宮観光案内所)
Have a nice visit !
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