Shiroyone Senmaida Rice Terraces

Also written: 白米千枚田 · 白米千枚田

A picturesque stretch of coastal terraced rice fields on the Noto Peninsula, admired as an iconic Japanese rural landscape. It is also popular on international social media for its spectacular winter illumination.

Ishikawa Chubu Townscape & Scenery

About this place

Shiroyone Senmaida are terraced rice fields facing the Japan Sea in Shiroyone Town, Wajima City, Ishikawa on Noto Peninsula. They number 1,004 paddies draped over about 4 hectares of steep 25-degree slope, each averaging 18 square meters down to 0.2 square meters, making mechanization impossible. Rice cultivation here dates to Edo period early 1600s using water from the Taniyama irrigation canal engineered by Itaya Heishiro from Kanazawa. Terraces serve as erosion control dams, designated National Place of Scenic Beauty 2001 and Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems 2011 as part of Noto's Satoyama and Satoumi. In the Noto Peninsula Earthquake January 1 2024, cracks affected 80 percent of terraces, collapsing waterways and tilting coastal paddies due to uplift. Volunteers restored 120 paddies in 2024 and 480 in 2025 seasons. From mid-October to mid-March, 25,000 LED solar lights illuminate ridges switching colors every 15-30 minutes during Aze no Kirameki festival, creating a luminous tapestry visible from Roadside Station Pocket Park shop atop hill. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship. Visitors enjoy seasonal changes, local food specialties, and easy access via public transport or rental car. Please respect private lands and carry out trash. The site remains a living cultural landscape, its beauty sustained by ongoing community stewardship.