Hikone, located in a narrow plain area stretching about five kilometers between a lake and a mountain, is the point where Eastern and Western Japan meet and two roads Nakasen-do Road and Hokuriku-do (commonly called Hokkoku-kaido Road) join together, and from this point the roads to Kyoto by land or water begins.
湖と山の間、5kmほどの狭い平地に立地する彦根は、中山道と北陸道（俗に北国街道と称）が合流し、水陸から京都に至る東日本と西日本の結節点である。