AICHI Central Nagoya The world's largest railway hub leads to castles, fine museums and Earth's biggest planetarium

The center of the region that was the birthplace of Japan's greatest samurai warriors has much to offer. It's also where you can see a festival in which half-naked men fight for fortune, and get the best view of the universe this side of the stratosphere.

Being in the heart of Japan it is easy to get to Nagoya from almost anywhere in the country.

From Tokyo the Shinkansen bullet train takes just one hour and 40 minutes, and from Kyoto it's a mere 35 minutes.

Not content with being the world's biggest, Nagoya Station is also one of its busiest transport centers with more than 860,000 people passing through each day. It has extensive retail shops and great restaurants where you can sample many of the delights of the city without ever leaving the station.

Nagoya is famed for its full-flavored, piquant cuisine, and throughout the station area you can find fantastic restaurants dishing up peppery chicken wings, succulent red miso pork cutlets, and spicy "Taiwan" ramen.

The great warlords Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, the three most famous samurai in Japanese history, all have origins in Nagoya and played a part in reunifying Japan after a century of civil war.

Hideyoshi was born in what is now Nagoya, as was Nobunaga, who made Nagoya Castle his home. Ieyasu was born in Okazaki Castle in Aichi prefecture (Nagoya's prefecture), and the legacy of the most important sub-branch of the Tokugawa Clan lives on in the Tokugawa Art Museum , which continues to be managed by the family foundation.

Though the castle at Kiyosu is the oldest in the area, it is the towering Nagoya Castle that is the symbol of the city. Walking its grounds while chatting with "samurai warlords" dressed in full armor will give you a taste of the historical importance of the city.

No matter what time of year you are in central Nagoya, you are bound to come across a major spectacle, event or festival. Whether it is the combatting sumo wrestlers of the Nagoya Basho, the competitive dancers of Domatsuri, the elaborately dressed anime aficionados of the World Cosplay Summit , or the half-naked men braving the February chill of Konomiya's Naked Festival, you will find something that you cannot find anywhere else in Japan.

With Nagoya so important to Japan's past and present, there are plenty of museum exhibitions in the city center underlining this. Within 15 minutes of the station you can see the galaxy and beyond in the world's largest planetarium at the City Science Museum , learn about the history of Aichi's most famous company at the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology, or discover samurai culture at the Tokugawa Art Museum .

Despite it being a thriving city center, in late March everyone stops what they are doing to enjoy the glorious cherry blossoms. To join the lively party, head over to Tsuruma Park , the Nagoya Castle grounds or nearby Meijo Park.

Whether you head to the station for its upmarket department stores, Sakae for its high street shopping, or Osu for its 400-year-old commercial arcade, there are plenty of opportunities for all your shopping needs.