The large houses with their steeply pitched thatched roofs are the only examples of their kind in Japan. Despite economic upheavals, the villages of Ogimachi, Ainokura and Suganuma are outstanding ...

SHIRAKAWA, Gifu -- An illumination event at a UNESCO World Heritage-listed settlement in this central Japan village began on Jan. 13, lighting up historic thatched houses. Tourists in the ...

In the heart of the Japanese mountains, the villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama are home to treasures of traditional Japanese architecture: thatched cottages with sloping roofs, designed to ...

Located in the mountains of Gifu Prefecture, Shirakawa-go is a village full of old-fashioned houses with thatched roofs - and a registered World Heritage Site. The roofs are steeply slanted ...

SHIRAKAWA, Gifu Prefecture--Villagers in this renowned UNESCO World Heritage site came together to re-thatch the roof of a multitiered house here for the first time in five years on May 13.

Shirakawa-go in Gifu Prefecture is one of Japan's snowiest regions. It's famous for its traditional thatched-roof Gassho-style homes. The triangular roofs distribute the weight of heavy snow ...