Takayama is a castle town high up in the mountains of Gifu Prefecture (4–5 hours from Tokyo), overflowing with traditional charm and busy streets waiting to be explored. Renowned for morning markets, sake, snow, amazing spring and autumn festivals, as well as its proximity to onsen towns and the famous Shirakawago village, you may well be wondering why you haven’t been already.
The town (locally called Hida-Takayama, to avoid confusion) is perfect for a getaway in the country. Each season offers a different take on the town, so you can’t really choose a bad time to go. And there’s always a great excuse for going back again and again. The spring cherry blossoms are stunning, the summer is a warm paradise, autumn leaves make for beautiful mountain views, and the guaranteed winter snowfall creates a winter wonderland! There is plenty to do for a weekend away, and it’s an especially great spot for cyclists.
Sights in Takayama
Sanmachi Old Town
The beautifully preserved old town consists of three main streets that were once the bustling merchant center of the town.
The houses and stores date back to the Edo period and have been carefully cared for to maintain the traditional feel that makes Takayama so special. These days you can find souvenir and craft shops, galleries, museums, cafes and even century-old sake breweries. You can easily identify the breweries by the large balls of cedar branches hung outside the entrance.
Note: Shops are generally open between 9 am and 5 pm.
If you want to head inside and learn about the area, visit the Hida Takayama Town Museum, housed in one of the oldest buildings in Sanmachi, and the Kusakabe Heritage House. Some homes are also open to the public and you can catch a glimpse of Edo living styles.
Morning markets
Every day, bright and early, you can head out to the two farmers’ market—the riverside Miyagawa Market or the shrine-side Jinya-Mae Market—and stock up on fresh vegetables and sweet treats as well.
Be sure to try the grilled marshmallow squares, which are a festival specialty but can be found at a small shop along the river market throughout the year.
If you have a kitchen at your accommodation, this is a great place to stock up for dinner. If not, you can still pick up fruit for snacks, and even souvenirs.
There are unusual crafts available too, with plenty to peruse as you wander along the stalls. The markets start at 6:30 am (7 am in winter).
Festival museums
If you aren’t in Takayama at the time of the festivals, fear not—it has two great museums with displays of festival floats and other paraphernalia. This is a great chance to see the detail up-close, as it is hard to see during the festivals themselves.
The Matsuri no Mori has life-size replicas of the floats and marionette puppets, along with some of the largest taiko drums in the world and displays from other great festivals from across Japan. The museum is a 15-minute ride on the Sarubobo bus from the station. Entry is 1,000 yen but you can save 200 yen with this voucher.
The Yatai Kaikan displays four of the floats from the festival, considered one of the three most beautiful festivals in Japan. Each float is over 700 years old and provides a beautiful display of Takayama’s famed craftsmanship. The museum is located next to Sakurayama Hachiman Shrine towards the northern end of the Old Town, about 20 minutes from the station on foot. Entry is 1,000 yen, and the site homepage has seasonal opening times listed.
Hida Folk Village
With over 30 houses from the Edo period carefully relocated from across the region, this open-air museum is beautiful to wander around in any season.
The houses include logging huts, storehouses, thatched houses and shrines scattered to create a village. You can enter the buildings where daily articles are displayed as well as demonstrations and workshops are held to showcase traditional crafts such as quilting, straw craft and woodcarving.
As the village is home to the famous gassho-zukuri (thatched, steep-roofed buildings), it will fill all your photogenic needs. (While obviously these houses exist in Shirakawago too, many are still inhabited and you cannot enter, they are also not as photogenic.)
Take your pick from the many festivals celebrated here. You can check the schedule on their site.
It is a 30-minute walk or 10-minute ride on the Sarubobo (local mascot) bus from Takayama Station. Discount tickets including the bus fare and admission are available for 930 yen.
Children: ¥200
Takayama festivals
Famous across Japan for the biannual Takayama festivals—the matsuri culture here is strong. Held in spring and autumn, the festivals involve a parade through old town with beautiful and intricately designed floats with marionettes on top. The Sanno Spring Festival takes part in the southern half of old town, and the Hachinamn Autumn Festival in the northern half, with both having their own stunning floats.
The mechanical marionettes are a large part of the festival and perform on the floats, or inside the storehouses if the weather is bad. The evening festival is especially impressive, as the floats are paraded with lanterns through the streets.
Trips from Takayama
1. Shirakawago
A Japanese mountain settlement carefully maintained and surrounded by snow-covered mountains, Shirakawago offers a unique insight into an isolated village’s way of life. You’ll recognize the gassho houses from any guide to Japan with their steep thatched roofs. They’re especially stunning when buried deep in the winter snow.
The park has two main areas. The first is the village area, with World Heritage status and many houses still inhabited. The second is the Hirase hot spring area, with plenty of natural beauty and a reputation for skin-beautifying water. You can travel between the two main areas by bus, which takes about 15 minutes.
Named after hands in prayer and built to withstand the weight of settled snow through winter, the gassho houses of Ogimachi are the main draw in Shirakawago. The town has different sections, including a small open-air museum of preserved houses relocated from other areas, as well as other preserved houses. The museum is 600 yen and the preserved buildings have a 300 yen entrance fee each. You can stay overnight in one of the farmhouses which have become family-run minshuku (Japanese-style B&Bs) with simple amenities. An overnight stay costs around ¥12,000 per person, and includes locally sourced breakfast and dinner, as well as a small discount at the town onsen. Follow this link for more Shirakawago accommodation options.
You can reach Shirakawago on a 50-minute express bus from Takayama, which costs ¥2,600 one way.
2. Gero Onsen Town
Considered one of the three best onsen in Japan during Edo times, Gero Onsen is still a popular spot (despite the name sounding like “ “vomit” in Japanese) with over a million visitors every year. Located between Takayama and Nagoya, it makes a great stop off, especially during the cold months of winter.
There are three public baths in the town, numerous free footbaths and plenty of ryokan with onsen. The tourist information office at the station has plenty of maps and guides with enticing photos, so it’ll be tough to choose. You can purchase a Yumeguri Tegata at the office or any convenience stores or onsen. This is a wooden spa pass which gives you entry to three of the onsen in the town. It costs ¥1,300 and can be used for six months.
Where and what to eat in Takayama
The local specialty is definitely the Kobe and Matsusaka rival: Hida beef. Raised in Hida for 14 months, the black-haired cattle are pampered before becoming dinner, which might make you feel better, who knows. There are plenty of Hida beef restaurants to choose from, they line the streets and smell amazing, so you can’t really go wrong.
For those who prefer not to eat animals, we have a brilliant recommendation. Heianraku serves Japanese-style Chinese dishes with plenty of vegetarian options too—the dumplings are amazing and there is plenty of sake to choose from. The lovely owner speaks English and will ask you to pin your hometown on the map, as well as guiding you on sake choices and generally introducing you to everyone who comes in. We spent a whole evening getting drunk, very full and having a brilliant time, so would definitely recommend it.
Where to stay, including temples!
It is possible to stay in a temple in Takayama, with one option being the Zenkoji Temple Guesthouse. It used to operate on a donation-based price per night (think ¥3,000 per person for a private room). Sadly, things have changed since 2017, and the temple now charges nightly rates similar to a hotel. At least you’ll get the unique experience!
As far as regular hostels are concerned, there are some familiar names including K’s House and a J-Hoppers, both of which are well known for their friendly service and great tips on where to go locally.
There is also a hostel at an onsen resort called Hidamari-no-yu with discounted prices for the bathing areas and a shuttle bus, dorms starting from ¥2,500/night.
If you’re feeling fancy, there are countless ryokan and nice hotels in Takayama, some with reasonable rates. Be sure to check distances if relying on public transport or the use of shuttle buses as Takayama can be quite spread out.
Getting to Takayama
From Tokyo
- Fastest: From Tokyo, you can catch the bullet train to Toyama or Nagoya, then catch the Hida Wide View Ltd Express (with special wide-view windows for the sights) taking about 4 hours overall and costing around ¥14,400 one way.
- Cheapest: You can catch an overnight highway bus to Toyama from Narita, Tokyo or Shinjuku for between ¥3,500 and ¥3,900 one way. From there you can catch the Hida Wide View Ltd Express to Takayama for ¥3,420 (non-reserved seat) or take two local JR trains (Toyama to Inotani to Takayama) for ¥1,690. The latter adds about 40 minutes to your journey, but means that you can cut costs down to under ¥6,000 each way if you book your bus early.
From Osaka/Kyoto
- Fastest: Catch the Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka or Kyoto Station to Nagoya, then the Hida Wide View Ltd Express for just under ¥7,790 (one way, unreserved), which takes about 3 to 3.5 hours—Kyoto being slightly closer.
- Cheapest: You can catch a highway bus from Osaka or Kyoto Station to Takayama for between ¥3,300 and ¥3,800—which saves enough for a night in a hostel, although it does take around 5 hours from Osaka and 4 hours from Kyoto.
This article was updated May 12, 2021.
