The Great Waterfall at the Origin of Nachi Worship
The Nachi Falls (那智大滝, Nachi no Otaki) is a waterfall 133 metres high on Mount Nachi in Nachikatsuura Town, Higashimuro District, Wakayama Prefecture, which in 1972 was designated a Place of Scenic Beauty.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs lists it under the criterion for gorges, waterfalls, mountain streams and deep pools. Wakayama Prefecture gives the location as Nachisan 2 and adjoining land, owned by the religious corporation Kumano Nachi Taisha.
The prefecture calls the Nachi Falls Japan's finest waterfall, visible even from the Kumano Sea and the origin of the worship of Mount Nachi. The National Diet Library notes that the Nachi area is part of the World Heritage property Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range.
The Falls
Wakayama Prefecture explains that Mount Nachi has four streams with many waterfalls, known together as the forty-eight falls of Nachi. The first of them, commonly called the Nachi waterfall, is the Nachi Falls.
Surrounded by primeval forest, the water drops straight down a cliff of quartz trachyte: 133 metres high and 13 metres wide, into a plunge pool 10 metres deep. Because it pours from three notches at the lip, it is also called the Three-Strand Falls.
Kumano Nachi Taisha says the flow is said to be about one tonne of water a second. The second and third falls lie a short way upstream, and the three together are designated as the Place of Scenic Beauty.
The Falls as a Deity: Hiro Shrine
According to Kumano Nachi Taisha, its subsidiary Hiro Shrine worships the waterfall itself as the form in which the deity Onamuchi appeared. There is therefore no sanctuary building; worshippers pray directly to the falls.
The shrine relates that the falls' deity and the Kumano gods were once worshipped at the site of Hiro Shrine, before Kumano Nachi Taisha was built at its present site in the fifth year of Emperor Nintoku. The poet-monk Saigyo and the haiku poet Takahama Kyoshi are among the many who wrote verses about the falls.
The surroundings lie within a special zone of Yoshino-Kumano National Park, and the forest around it is designated a Natural Monument as the Nachi Primeval Forest.
Visiting the Nachi Falls
Kumano Nachi Taisha says that after registering beside the Hiro Shrine office, visitors can walk to the worship stage directly facing the falls, the closest viewpoint. Entry is 500 yen for adults and 200 yen for elementary and junior high school students, free for younger children. The walk takes about three minutes, passing a dragon spout that carries water from the plunge pool.
From JR Kii-Katsuura Station on the Kisei Line, take a Kumano Gobo Nankai bus toward Nachisan, about 30 minutes to the Nachisan stop, or about 20 minutes by taxi. Parking in front of Hiro Shrine is mostly pay parking run by souvenir shops. Enquiries: Kumano Nachi Taisha, 0735-55-0321.
Q&A
- How high is the Nachi Falls?
- According to Wakayama Prefecture, 133 metres high and 13 metres wide, with a plunge pool 10 metres deep.
- When was the Nachi Falls designated?
- It was designated a Place of Scenic Beauty on 11 July 1972.
- Why is the Nachi Falls worshipped as a deity?
- At Hiro Shrine, a subsidiary of Kumano Nachi Taisha, the falls themselves are the deity, so there is no sanctuary building.
- Where is the best view of the Nachi Falls?
- The worship stage at Hiro Shrine faces the falls directly; entry is 500 yen for adults and 200 yen for children.
- How do I get to the Nachi Falls?
- Take a Kumano Gobo Nankai bus from JR Kii-Katsuura Station toward Nachisan, about 30 minutes.
Basic Information
| Name | Nachi Falls (那智大滝) |
|---|---|
| Location | Nachisan 2 and adjoining land, Nachikatsuura Town, Higashimuro District, Wakayama Prefecture |
| Designation | Place of Scenic Beauty |
| Year Designated | Designated 1972/7/11 (Showa 47) |
| Quantity | Not recorded in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Dimensions | Height 133 metres, width 13 metres, plunge pool 10 metres deep |
| Owner | Kumano Nachi Taisha (religious corporation) |
| Public Access | Viewable from Hiro Shrine; worship stage entry charged |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Nachi Falls (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/401/2090
- Wakayama Prefecture: Nachi Falls (Japanese)
- https://wakayama-bunkazai.jp/bunkazai/bunkazai_462/
- Kumano Nachi Taisha: Hiro Shrine and the Falls (Japanese)
- https://kumanonachitaisha.or.jp/pavilion/waterfall/
- Kumano Nachi Taisha: Access (Japanese)
- https://kumanonachitaisha.or.jp/access/
- National Diet Library: Nachi Falls (Japanese)
- https://www.ndl.go.jp/landmarks/sights/nachinotaki
Last verified: 2026.09.28