Nagoya lies north of Ise Bay on the Nōbi Plain. The city was built on low-level plateaus to ward off water damage. The plain is one of the fertile lands of Japan, which allowed for the development of agriculture. The Kiso River flows to the west along the city border, the Shōnai River comes in from the northeast and takes a southern towards the bay at Nishi Ward. The man-made Hori River was constructed as a canal in the 1610 and flows from north to south, and is a part of the Shōnai River system. The rivers allowed for trade to develop with the hinterland. The Tenpaku River feeds from a number of smaller river in the east, flows briefly south at Nonami and then west at Ōdaka into the bay.
The geographic location and the position of the city in the centre of Japan allowed it to develop economically and politically over the centuries.
Nagoya is also a starting point for short visits in the surrounding area, such as Inuyama, Little World Museum of Man, Meiji Mura, Kasadera Kannon, Toyohashi and Arimatsu. Reachable within a two hour radius by car or train are Gifu, Gujo Hachiman, Gifu, Ise Shrine, Takayama, Gifu, Gero Onsen and the hill stations in the Kiso Valley Magome and Tsumago.
Nagoya is served by Chūbu Centrair International Airport (NGO) built on the artificial island off shore of Tokoname and by Nagoya Airfield (Komaki Airport, NKM) near the city boundary with Komaki and Kasugai. On February 17, 2005, all of Nagoya Airport's commercial international flights moved to Centrair Airport. Nagoya Airfield is now used for general aviation and airbase facility as well as the main J-Air airline hub.
Nagoya Station, the world's largest train station by floor area, is on the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, Tōkaidō Main Line, and Chūō Main Line, among others. The Nagoya Railroad and Kintetsu provide regional rail service to points in the Tōkai and Kansai regions. The city is also serviced by the Nagoya Subway.
Nagoya Port is the largest port by international trade value in Japan. Toyota Motor Corporation uses Nagoya Port for export of their products.
Nagoya is the center of Greater Nagoya which earned nearly 70 percent of Japan's trade surplus as of 2003.
Nagoya's main industry is the automotive business, as many Japanese automotive companies are based out of Nagoya, akin to how many U.S. automakers are based out of Detroit. Toyota is headquartered in Toyota and Nagoya. Mitsubishi Motors has R & D division in Okazaki located in a suburb of Nagoya. Many Japanese automotive suppliers such as DENSO, Aisin Seiki, Toyota Industries, JTEKT or Toyota Boshoku etc. are headquartered in Nagoya or suburbs of Nagoya. Furthermore, major automotive suppliers such as Magna International or PPG also have a presence in Nagoya.
JR Central, which operates the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, is headquartered in Nagoya, as is the fine ceramics company Noritake. As well Brother Industries which is known for office machines such as multifunction printers, NGK which is known for spark plugs and related products, Nippon Sharyo which is known for manufacturing rolling stock including the Shinkansen bullet trains and Hoshizaki Electric which is known for commercial ice machines and refrigeration equipment are also headquartered here. The Japanese confectionery company Marukawa is headquartered in Nagoya. There is also a sizable aerospace, machine tool and electronics industry in the area.
Aerospace-related firms operating in Nagoya include Boeing, Pratt & Whitney, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Bodycote, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Spirit AeroSystems, and Fuji Heavy Industries.
Robot technology is another rapidly developing industry. Mechanized puppets, called "karakuri ningyo", are a traditional craft in the Nagoya area. In addition to the aerospace and robotics industries, a materials engineering industry is also developing in this area.
Nagoya has a large number primary and secondary schools, which are mostly state-run. A large number of state and private colleges and universities exist throughout the city as well, with many located on the eastern side of the city. Some educational institutions were founded during the opening of the Meiji era according to a Western system, with more to follow during the Taishō and Shōwa eras. Nagoya University was set up in 1871 as a medical school. Nanzan University was set up by the Jesuits in 1932 as a high school and expanded throughout the decades to include Nanzan Junior College and the Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture. Some universities specialise in engineering and technology such as Nagoya University Engineering school, Nagoya Institute of Technology and Toyota Technological Institute, since the city is a hub of industrial activity, and receive support and grants from companies such as Toyota.
Other colleges and universities include Aichi Prefectural College of Nursing & Health, Aichi Shukutoku Junior College, Aichi Toho University, Chukyo University, Daido University, Doho University, Kinjo Gakuin University, Kinjo Gakuin University Junior College, Meijo University, Nagoya City University, Nagoya College of Music, Nagoya Future Culture College, Nagoya Gakuin University, Nagoya Management Junior College, Nagoya Women's University, St. Mary’s College, Nagoya, Sugiyama Jogakuen University, Sugiyama Jogakuen University Junior College, Tokai Gakuen Women’s College. Various universities from outside Nagoya have set up satellite campuses, such as Tokyo University of Social Welfare.
The Hōsa Library dates back to the 17th century and houses 110,000 items including classic literature, an heirloom of the Owari Tokugawa bequeathed to the city. The Nagoya City Archives have a large collection of documents and books. Tsuruma Central Library is a public library and Nagoya International Center has a collection of foreign-language books.
Nagoya has a wide array of different kinds of museums, ranging from the traditional to modern art, from handicrafts to industrial high-tech, from natural to scientific museums.
Nagoya Castle has a collection of objects from the Owari Tokugawa era. The main tower is a museum that details the history of the castle and the city. The Honmaru Palace, destroyed in World War II, is slated for reconstruction by 2016 and will again be a prime example of the Shoin-zukuri architecture of the feudal era. The Tokugawa Art Museum is a private museum belonging to the Owari Tokugawa, who lived in Nagoya castle for 16 generations. Among other things, it contains 10 designated national treasures of Japan, including some of the oldest scrolls of The Tale of Genji. The Nagoya Noh Theatre houses various precious objects of Noh theatre. The Nagoya City Museum showcases the history of the town.
Paintings and sculpture are also exhibited at the Nagoya City Art Museum, as well as modern art in the Aichi Arts Center. The Aichi Arts Center also is the venue of rotating exhibitions. The city is also home to the Nagoya/Boston Museum of Fine Arts, a sister museum to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which was founded to bring aspects of the MFA's collection to Japan.
The art of porcelain and ceramics can be seen at the Noritake Garden. Toyota has two museums in the city, the Toyota Automobile Museum which shows vintage cars, and the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology, which showcases the long history of the company when it started as a textile mill.
The Nagoya City Tram & Subway Museum has a number of old trams and subway cars, as well as the Nagoya City Science Museum. The SCMaglev and Railway Park opened in March 2011 with various trains from the Central Japan Railway Company.
Arts museums that are located close to Nagoya in Aichi prefecture are the Aichi Prefectural Ceramic Museum and the Toyota Municipal Museum of Art. Meiji Mura is an open-air museum with salvaged buildings from the Meiji, Taisho and Showa eras.
Noh theatre and Kyōgen have a deep-rooted tradition that dates back to the feudal times of the Owari Tokugawa. The Nagoya Noh Theatre at Nagoya Castle continues that tradition and is a prominent feature in the cultural life of the city, with monthly performances.
One of the grand stages of Kabuki in Japan is Misono-za, which also hosts various other Japanese theatre plays and entertainment forms such as concerts.
In the 1992, the large, modern Aichi Arts Center was opened in Sakae. It is the main venue for performing arts, featuring a main hall that can be used for opera and theatre, and a concert hall. The Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra gives its performances there, as well as many visiting guest orchestras from abroad.
Apart from the main national festivals and holidays, there are festivals in Nagoya which are unique to the city and region.
Major events include the Atsuta Festival at Atsuta Shrine in June, the Port Festival at Nagoya Port in July, the Nagoya Castle Summer Festival in August at Nagoya Castle and the Nagoya Festival held in October at the Hisaya Ōdori Park. Various smaller festivals exist and different wards and areas of the city have their own local festivals as well, such as the Daidou-chōnin Matsuri (大須大道町人祭, Street Performer's Festival) in Ōsu.
In 2007, the Chunichi Dragons won the Japan Series baseball championship. In 2010, Nagoya Grampus won the J. League championship, their first in team history.
Nagoya is also home of the Shonai FC amateur football club and Nagoya Barbarians amateur rugby football club. Since 1984 the city has hosted the Nagoya Marathon; an annual marathon race for women.
A honbasho or sumo tournament is held every July at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium. See also The Crowns golf tournament.