The facts
| Official name | NPO法人「日本で最も美しい村」連合 (Nihon de Mottomo Utsukushii Mura Rengo, a specified non-profit corporation; known in English as The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 4 October 2005 (NPO certification: 24 February 2006) |
| Wazuka’s membership | Approved 4 October 2013, at an extraordinary general meeting in Ama, Shimane Prefecture — the 52nd member |
| Position within Kyoto Prefecture | Wazuka joined in 2013 as the second member from Kyoto Prefecture, after Ine (which joined in 2008). Today the Kinki block has four members: the Ojiro area of Kami Town (Hyogo), Soni Village (Nara), Ine Town and Wazuka Town (Kyoto) (per the Union’s member map, checked September 2026) |
| Current membership | 57 as of January 2026 (27 towns, 21 villages and 9 areas, as counted on the Union’s overview page) |
| What was recognised | The town’s efforts to protect “a village landscape of tea fields and tiled roofs as a Tea Utopia” and “tea culture inherited from the Kamakura period” (the town’s own English wording) |
| Membership conditions | A population of roughly 10,000 or fewer / at least two local assets (landscape and/or culture) / activities of a kind the Union assesses that make use of those assets (town planning that respects the landscape; inventive activities led by residents; preserving local crafts and ways of life) |
| Application process | A membership application and a letter of consent from the local council are required (applications accepted December–March). The application is then passed to the Union’s expert examiners. If a screening goes ahead, the applicant submits a screening checklist and the examiners visit the area in person; a discussion with the mayor or local representative is mandatory. |
| Ongoing requirement | Members must pass a re-screening every 5 years to remain in the Union; those who fail are removed. |
Background & significance
Modelled on the French association “Les Plus Beaux Villages de France”, The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan was founded by seven towns and villages in 2005 and became an NPO in 2006. It is a union of small towns, villages and local areas working to protect rural landscapes and cultures at risk of disappearing, and to draw on them to build self-reliant communities. Wazuka was admitted in recognition of its efforts to protect its landscape of tea fields and tile-roofed villages, known as Chagenkyo, and a tea culture handed down since the Kamakura period. The Union’s profile of Wazuka lists these two as the local assets registered with the Union. Of the tea fields, it says that some 600ha are dotted across the town (about 530ha are cultivated today, according to Kyoto Prefecture’s FY2025 figures), and that 800 years of clearing steep slopes by hand hoe to make tea fields, and of producing high-quality tea, have become a source of local pride. Of the tea culture, it names chakabuki (a contest of identifying teas by taste), the traditional hand-rolling of tea, local foods such as tea tsukudani (simmered in soy sauce), and festivals. Membership is not permanent: a member must pass a re-screening every five years to stay in the Union. Of the five members that joined in 2013, Kuma Village (Kumamoto) left in March 2021; Wazuka remains on the Union’s member list (Union history, FAQ and member map, checked September 2026). In May 2023, the general assembly of the Federation of the Most Beautiful Villages of the World was held in Ine and Wazuka, bringing 29 visitors from seven countries to Japan.
A few things to note
- The organisation is an NPO (non-profit organisation), not a general incorporated association.
- A letter of consent from the local council is required: the Union’s membership page states that it must be submitted together with the membership application.
- The Union’s pages give different totals for different dates: 61 (January 2022, FAQ), 58 (1 May 2024, membership page) and 57 (January 2026, overview page). This page uses 57, the most recent figure.
- Details of how Wazuka came to join — such as its application date, the date of the town council’s consent resolution, or any statement from the mayor — could not be found on the Union’s or the town’s official websites (the town’s newsletters and council minutes from 2013 have not been checked).
- The Union’s history page says it was certified as an NPO in April 2006; this page uses the certification date given on its overview page (24 February 2006; registered 13 March 2006).
🍵 Taste Chagenkyo at the cafe
A breather amid Chagenkyo. wazukanoSATO Cafe seats 14 inside, plus 16 on the outdoor terrace in good weather, serving local fare centred on Wazuka-grown rice and vegetables and Wazuka tea.
Sources
- Wazuka Town, “Wazuka Town has joined the ‘Most Beautiful Villages in Japan’ Union” (October 2013; Japanese with English summary)
https://www.town.wazuka.lg.jp/kakukanogoannai/chiikichikarasuishinka/keikanshisan/1352.html - The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan (overview, Japanese)
https://utsukushii-mura.jp/about/overview/ - The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan (history, Japanese)
https://utsukushii-mura.jp/about/history/ - The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan (joining process, Japanese)
https://utsukushii-mura.jp/about/accession/ - The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan (FAQ, Japanese)
https://utsukushii-mura.jp/faq/ - The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan (member map, Japanese)
https://utsukushii-mura.jp/map/ - The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan (Wazuka’s page, Japanese)
https://utsukushii-mura.jp/map/waduka/ - Kyoto Prefecture, tea production and distribution data for FY2025 (formerly the Kyoto Prefecture Tea Statistics; PDF, Japanese)
https://www.pref.kyoto.jp/nosan/documents/r7chachosa1.pdf