Ise Hotels

Ise, formerly called Ujiyamada, is a city located in eastern Mie Prefecture, on the island of Honshû, Japan. Ise is home to Ise Grand Shrine, the most sacred Shintô Shrine in Japan, and is thus a very popular destination for tourists. The city has a long-standing nickname which roughly means The Holy City (shinto; literally meaning "Capital of the Kami"). It is part of Ise-Shima National Park. During the Meiji period, these two villages were merged and designated as a single municipal entity. The resulting amalgamated name of Ujiyamada represented the amalgamated villages. The name Ujiyamada stood for 66 years and, to people who live in the area, is still synonymous with Ise. Between 1890 and 1930, two train lines were constructed which are known today as the Kintetsu Yamada Line and the JR Sangû Line. These railways connected Ujiyamada to Osaka, Nagoya, and the rest of Japan and were responsible for a large increase in pilgrims and tourists coming to visit Ise Grand Shrine. The renaming phase took some time around the city. For example, it took four years to rename the main JR station in town, Yamada Station, to Ise-shi Station. Some things were never renamed such as Ujiyamada Station, Ise's largest train station, and Ujiyamada High School, Ise's first high school