Tsuruga Castle — Red-Tiled Fortress of the Samurai Aizu Clan

Tsuruga Castle is the five-story white keep where the Aizu clan made their last stand in 1868, holding out for a month while Imperial forces bombarded them with Armstrong cannons from the hills. The castle's distinctive feature is its red roof tiles — unique among Japanese castles, applied during the 2011 restoration to match what was here in the 1600s. The keep rises 39 meters above stone ramparts and a wide moat, surrounded by grounds that hold 1,000+ cherry trees blooming in mid-April.

Inside, the museum climbs five floors through Aizu clan history, heavy on the Byakkotai tragedy: 20 teenage samurai who saw smoke rising over the city, assumed the castle had fallen, and committed seppuku on a nearby hillside. Only one survived. The top floor observation deck circles the castle's peak, offering 360-degree views of Aizu-Wakamatsu below and mountains beyond. The red tiles stand out dramatically against white plaster walls and black timbers, especially when snow covers the grounds in winter or cherry blossoms turn the castle pink in spring.