Note that this photo is a posed shot. You are supposed to cycling anti-clockwise around the lake! Haha If you are deciding between taking the train to Kawaguchiko or driving, you can check out the car rental prices at https://www.nipponrentacar.co.jp/english/user-guide/reservations.html and train prices at http://www.hyperdia.com/ It depends on whether you’re staying overnight at Kawaguchiko and the number of people travelling. Remember to add toll fees of about ¥4200 one way. We decided to rent a car but forgot about the toll fees so it ended up being more expensive. I’d say if you’re staying for one night and there are at least 3 of you, renting a car is a good option. If there are two of you and you want more freedom to move around (such as going to neighbouring places like Oshino Hakkai, Chureito Pagoda, Yamanakako etc) it is also better to rent a car. You should also be warned that traffic is congested upon leaving and arriving at Tokyo. We parked our car at ou...
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Nakasendo: From Magome to Tsumago (Dec 2018)
We started our journey from Nakatsugawa, a 48-min train ride from Nagoya (covered by JR Pass), followed by a 25-min bus ride (¥560 not covered by JR Pass).
Outside Nakatsugawa Tour Information Center
We stayed at Magome for one night and started our walk from Magome to Tsumago the next day. Here’s a video of our walk:
We had hand-made soba in a family-run restaurant. It was nice to have a hot bowl of noodles in the cold weather.
On the way back to our minshuku, we stopped by for a cup of tea at one of the tea houses.
Our accommodation was Magome Chaya, a minshuku owned by a Japanese man and his Filipino wife. The lady who served us is the wife’s sister. There is option to include dinner and breakfast. We suggest you take it as there isn’t much nearby. Not even convenience stores. They have a common kitchen that you can use if you have your own ingredients though.
Our 6-tatami mat room. The heater is not very effective so it was really cold.
After the day trippers leave, you can enjoy the serenity of Magome
They served basashi (Horsemeat sashimi) for dinner. It tastes very gamey and despite chewing it for a long time, I just couldn't swallow it so I spat it out and hid it under the shiso leaf haha
Ready for my 8-km walk the next morning. For top, I wore 2 merino wool base layers, 1 north face light soft jacket, another north face gortex water-proof outer layer and a wool scarf. For bottom, I wore uniqlo stretchable jeans, wool socks, leather boots with fur interior and gortex soles. The walk from Magome is steep but easy so just take your time to enjoy the walk.
From Tsumago, there are buses to Nagiso where you can catch a train back to Nagoya. The bus ride is about 5 min. The train ride from Nagiso to Nagoya is also covered by JR. There are direct limited express trains from Nagiso to Nagoya but you should reserve the seat at Nagoya as Nagiso station is not able to issue seat tickets.
It’s possible to do this as a day trip from Nagoya. If you plan to do this, I strongly suggest starting from Tsumago and ending at Magome because there are more cafes, restaurants and shopping in Magome. That way, you can enjoy some snacks and shop for some local goods before heading back to Nagoya. Kiso Hinoki products are highly recommended as their fragrance is so distinct and therapeutic. I bought some soap dishes, a toufu making tool and some chopsticks at Magome and got them to send to my hotel in Kyoto as I didn’t want to lug them around with me.
Kiso Hinoki toufu-making tool
Nakatsugawa station is much bigger and can issue reserved seat tickets on the limited express train back to Nagoya so if you want to change your timing, you can just go to counter to change your ticket. Nagiso is not able to issue reserved seat tickets so you need to reserve your ticket at Nagoya in advance. You also can't change the timing of your tickets at Nagiso.
Note that this photo is a posed shot. You are supposed to cycling anti-clockwise around the lake! Haha If you are deciding between taking the train to Kawaguchiko or driving, you can check out the car rental prices at https://www.nipponrentacar.co.jp/english/user-guide/reservations.html and train prices at http://www.hyperdia.com/ It depends on whether you’re staying overnight at Kawaguchiko and the number of people travelling. Remember to add toll fees of about ¥4200 one way. We decided to rent a car but forgot about the toll fees so it ended up being more expensive. I’d say if you’re staying for one night and there are at least 3 of you, renting a car is a good option. If there are two of you and you want more freedom to move around (such as going to neighbouring places like Oshino Hakkai, Chureito Pagoda, Yamanakako etc) it is also better to rent a car. You should also be warned that traffic is congested upon leaving and arriving at Tokyo. We parked our car at ou...
The Tsukuba Kasumigaura Ring Ring Road is a cycling route from JR Iwase station to JR Tsuchiura station and continuing to Lake Kasumigaura loop. The stretch between JR Iwase station and JR Tsuchiura station is 40km and the loop around the lake is about 100km so the total return trip is 180km. Map of Ring Ring Road from JR Iwase station to JR Tsuchiura station We only did part of the straight route and part of the lake so we covered only about 50km. Here’s a video of our trip. IMPORTANT NOTE: We based in Tsukuba because we needed to meet a dear friend. Tsukuba is not the best starting point for this cycling route because we had to cycle 10km to intersect at a part of the Ring Ring Road since public transport connection between Tsukuba and Iwase or Tsuchiura is poor. We took a taxi from JR Tsuchiura station back to Tsukuba (¥3400). When we told the taxi-driver our destination, he smiled happily and said Arigatou!! 🤣🤣 A better plan will be as follows: Use Mito in Ibaraki as a base. Mit...
I was very thrilled to visit jiufen because it is the inspiration of Hayao Miyazaki's animated film Spirited Away and it certainly did not disappoint :) we took the TRA to Ruifang and had lunch there which cost only TWD$95!!! Amazing value for money! Intrigued by this oven, we bought a baked black pepper bun to try. Although the crust is tasty with the sesame seeds, we found the filling a little too peppery. We took a 15-min taxi to Jiufen and since the roads are very narrow, had to walk a short distance to find our minsu. When Chris told me we will be staying in a minsu 民宿, I pictured myself squatting in the bathroom scooping out water from a tub/pail to bathe. But when we arrived at 日光涵管, I was very impressed with the amazing view from our rooms. It's a maisonette unit where the lower level is a living area and the upper is the bedroom, toilet and bathroom. And thankfully, I didn't have to squat in the toilet and scoop water to bathe hahaha perhaps because I didn't ...
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