Kitamoto City

One of Japan's Five Great Cherry Trees.

Ishito Kaba-zakura

Photo by 京浜にけ (CC BY-SA 3.0)

01 ／ Kaba-zakura

Edo-higan crossed with yamazakura,and only this one tree grew wild.

The Ishito Kaba-zakura (石戸蒲ザクラ) in the grounds of Tōkōji Temple (東光寺) is a celebrated tree said to be about 800 years old. It is thought to be a natural hybrid of the Edo-higan and yamazakura cherries, and this is the only one growing wild. It is named after Minamoto no Noriyori, and legend says his staff took root here. Designated a Natural Monument in 1922, it bears small white blossoms around 10 April each year.

Said to be about 800 years old
Natural Monument, 1922
Best around 10 April

02 ／ Jōmon site

A Jōmon village ringed around a plaza,210 m across.

The Dēnotame Site (デーノタメ遺跡) is a settlement from the Jōmon period, about 5,000 to 3,800 years ago. Its middle-Jōmon ring settlement, with dwellings around a central plaza, is 210 m across at its longest, among the largest in the Kantō region. The wetland below the plateau yielded lacquered pottery, walnuts, horse-chestnut seeds and other things that rarely survive in the ground. It became a national Historic Site in 2024.

210 m across
Among the largest ring settlements in Kantō
National Historic Site, 2024

03 ／ Tomatoes

From test plots grown for seedto the tomato town's curry.

Tomato growing in Kitamoto began in 1925 with trial plots to harvest seed for export. By 1927 growers had formed a cooperative, and the name "Ishito tomatoes" became known across Japan. In 2011 a local curry making the most of the tomatoes was born, and in 2014 it took the grand prix at the national local-curry contest in Yokosuka.

Trial growing, 1925
Ishito tomatoes
National grand prix, 2014

Living here

43 minutes to Ueno, with a certified Forest Therapy Base.

about 70,000 people

The city's gateway is Kitamoto Station on the JR Takasaki Line: 43 minutes to Ueno Station by local train, or 45 minutes to Shinjuku Station by the Shonan-Shinjuku Line special rapid. City Hall is a 10-minute walk from the west exit. In 2019 the city's woods, with trails through Kitamoto Nature Observation Park (北本自然観察公園), became the first Forest Therapy Base in Saitama Prefecture.

People living here: 65,201people
Area: 19.82km²
Households: 27,403households
Rent (average for rentals): 52,508yen
Healthcare: 2 hospitals ／ 43 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —10 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Kitamoto City in Japan36.027°N 139.530°E

to UenoJR Takasaki Line43min
to ShinjukuJR Shonan-Shinjuku Line special rapid45min
to TokyoJR Ueno-Tokyo Line50min

Travel times follow 市公式の観光サイト「アクセス」（2026-04-23 更新・産業観光課）の鉄道の表に載っている値。JR東日本の北本駅の時刻表（2026年10月版・平日下り）の列車ごとの時刻で確かめた (checked 2026-09-24). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 4 municipalities.

Territory of Kitamoto City

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (N03)

North to south

6.9km

鴻巣市, 桶川市, 川島町, 吉見町

Kitamoto City isthis kind of town.

01The Ishito Kaba-zakura, one of Japan's Five Great Cherry Trees and the only one of its kind growing wild, stands at Tōkōji Temple
02The Dēnotame Site, one of the largest Jōmon ring settlements in Kantō, became a national Historic Site in 2024
03A town of "Ishito tomatoes" since the Taishō era, whose Kitamoto tomato curry won a national local-curry grand prix

See the town as it is now.

Facebookkitamotocity ↗

Source: Wikidata (P2002, P2003, P2013, P2397)

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Kitamoto City official site ↗Wikipedia ↗