Ogaki is a small/mid-sized city located 10 minutes by train from Gifu City, the capital of Gifu Prefecture. The population of Ogaki (as of May 2012) is 164,000.

Get in

Most travelers will arrive via the Tokaido Main Line. The line runs from Maibara to the west through Ogaki and onward to Gifu, Nagoya, and Toyokawa. Although Gifu-Hashima Station is within Gifu Prefecture, those traveling by Shinkansen can get here faster by transferring at Maibara (from the west) or Nagoya (from the east). The Moonlight Nagara night train which starts in Tokyo actually terminates in Ogaki, providing an additional option and an affordable way to reach here from Tokyo if you have the Seishun 18 Ticket.

The Yoro Line runs from the northern city of Ibigawa (Ibi Station) to Kuwana down in Mie Prefecture. The Tarumi Line connects Ogaki with Motosu, although if you're in Motosu, you probably already went through Ogaki to get there.

Get around

Ogaki is a city divided into three disconnected areas thanks to city mergers. Most travelers will be coming to Ogaki Station. This area is the city center and original Ogaki. The castle and Matsuo Basho museum can be reached on foot. Akasaka Station is within walking distance of Akasaka-juku, the 56th station of the Nakasendo.

The merged districts are Sunomata and Kamiishizu. Neither of these areas has a train station, so you'll have to take a bus to reach them. Ogaki City Community Bus has lines to the Kamiishizu area. Meishin Kintetsu Bus connects Ogaki with the Sunomata area (buses bound for Shotoku Gakuen Daigaku).

See

• Ogaki Castle, ☏ +81 58-474-7875. 9AM-5PM. Ogaki Castle is an important historic site. The Battle of Sekigahara actually began here before moving west to Sekigahara, where the battle ended. The original castle was destroyed in WWII, so the current castle was reconstructed in 1959. Inside it is a museum with information about the castle and the Battle of Sekigahara. ¥100. 

Buy

• Aqua Walk. A shopping mall located just outside Ogaki Station. It contains most of the same shops as Morera (the largest mall in Gifu Prefecture) but is much easier and cheaper to access by train. (updated Jul 2015)

• Aeon Town. Aeon Town is a small mall with a variety of clothing shops, a sports shop, the large Sleeping Factory, and various entertainment and specialty shops along with some restaurants. Aeon Town consists of two buildings with Korona World between them. 

Go next

• Gifu
• Sekigahara
• Yoro
• Ibigawa
• Mino
• Gero
• Inuyama
• Hikone
• Nagoya

Gifu City is 10 minutes away by train (230 yen), and has about 400,000, making it the go-to "city" in Gifu prefecture.

Nagoya is definitely a good city-getaway if you feel suffocated by the ample countryside of Ogaki.