The shrine's honden was built in 1932 using timber salvaged from the Grand Shrine of Ise, connecting it to Japan's most sacred shrine complex through its very structure.

The shrine is part of a system with over 60 auxiliary shrines scattered around Lake Suwa, ranging from tiny stone structures to full compounds, each playing a role in the ritual calendar.

Unlike the other Suwa shrines positioned near the lake, Maemiya sits on rising hillside terrain where the basin meets the forests, gradually pulling visitors upward and away from the flatlands below.

Maemiya is the only one of the four Suwa Taisha shrines with an actual honden (main sanctuary building) that houses the sacred shintai. The other three shrines have only worship halls.