It is an ancient capital known since Emperor Tenchi transferred the capital to Omi no miya (Omi Palace), and it is dotted with lots of historical sites including shrines and temples such as Enryaku-ji Temple on Mt. Hiei as the World Cultural Heritage, Onjo-ji Temple (Mii-dera Temple) and Hiyoshi-taisha Shrine.
天智天皇が近江宮に遷都して以来の歴史を持つ古都であり、世界文化遺産の比叡山延暦寺や園城寺（三井寺）、日吉大社などの神社仏閣をはじめ史跡が多く点在する。