Teetoo- Japan 2023 Trip Itinerary
- Nov 1 – Arrival at Nagoya, around Nagano Station, Stay : Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagano-Zenkojiguchi
- Nov 2 – Bus trip to visit the famous Snow Monkey Park, Nagano, Stay : Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagano-Zenkojiguchi
- Nov 3 – Easy trek at Togakushi 5-shrines, Nagano, Stay : Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagano-Zenkojiguchi
- Nov 4 – Visite to Zenkoji Temple and hiking at Hakuba Happo Pond, Stay : Hotel Hakuba
- Nov 5 – Relax at Hakuba Mountain Harbour and Oide Park, Stay : Hotel Hakuba
- Nov 6 – Drive to Sea of Japan, Ben-ten Iwa rock, Stay : APA Hotel & Resort Joetsu Myoko
- Nov 7 – Drive to Kiyotsu Gorge and Naena Waterfall, Stay : APA Hotel & Resort Joetsu Myoko
- Nov 8 – Drive around Lake Nojiri, train ride to Lake Suwa and Tateishi Park, Stay : Beni-ya Hotel
- Nov 9, 10 – Train ride to Shizuoka and Nihondaira Terrace sunset, Stay : Nippondaira Hotel
- Nov 11 – Walk around Atami City, Stay : Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan
- Nov 12 – Mount Fuji, fresh seafood at Co-op and Numazu City festival, Stay : Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan
- Nov 13 – Mount Fuji, Shira-Ito Falls, Fujisan Sengan Shrine, Mount Fuji World Heritage Center, Stay : Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan
- Nov 14 – Mount Fuji, Hamamatsu Station and Overall Experience, Stay : Hotel Route-Inn Tokoname Ekimae
Woke up really early before the sun rose coz it is train spotting time for me and I’ve got a choice to either walk 5km or take a train nearest to my destination for the morning, Fuji City Riverbed Rest Square. I decided to make it a walk since it was a pretty cold day. Along the walk, passed through quiet housing estates with neatly packed garbage in anti-rodent netting – the rodents here are the pesky crows. Upon reaching Fujikawa Bridge, the destination is nearby.
The skies weren’t too great and Fujisan is still hiding herself so I just sat myself on a spot with waist-height grass to take any shinkansen shots. It was just a marvel seeing the fast trains hurtling down the tracks at such graceful silence and speed. There is no shortage of trains to shoot as lots went by.
In awe and ALSO in blistering cold winds, I decided to leave after 1 hour with my ungloved hands frozen. It was another 1.2km walk to the nearest train station, Fujikawa Station, to go back to my hotel to rest my battered legs (after 10 days of walking).
After a brief rest, we take a train to Fujinomiya Station and had our breakfast at the empty-ish food court of Aeon Style Fujinomiya before embarking on a bus trip to the waterfalls of Shiraito. I had already walked 15k before 1030am so I decided to minimize walking for today. Mai siao siao… nanti leg pain.
There are 2 local buses every hour from Fujinomiya Station to Shiraito Falls which costs 630yen one-way and takes about 30mins to reach. It is a local bus so prepare either cash (to be paid upon disembarkation) or easier the IC card (Suica, Icoca, etc). And boarding the bus in japan is using the rear door and alighting/paying using the front door – which make more sense. Shiraito Falls information click here. Bus timetable (in japanese).
Walking to our bus-stop at Fujinomiya Iriguchi, we chanced upon an eatery and upon kepoh-peering inside we saw delicious udons being served in Marugame Seimen Fujinomiya. We cannot tahan so we went in to try. Udons are buckwheat noodles served in soup and egg. The chorus of shouts and chatter of the staff is very infectious and it adds to the ambience of an informal place. It was cheap and delicious – highly recommended for a super quick meal.
There is a bus time table at the bus stop and the bus arrives on time – just like Japan trains so it was effortless – just make sure to board the right bus. Ask the driver in simple words like “Shiraito?”. Don’t ask like “Does this bus go to Shiraito?”. Make questions simple and you won’t go wrong.
We saw a beautiful temple on the way which we decided to drop by on the way back. Found out it was Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha – a shrine which was not on our initial plan. As the sky cleared, Fujisan was in her majestic best – our eyes were always transfixed on the mountain while in the bus – it was so beautiful.
The bus stop at Shiraito is just 5mins from the entrance building and do note the opening time is from 9am – 4.30pm and car park costs 500yen per entrance. Entrance to the park is FREE! The first waterfall the walking path takes us is to Otodome Falls, a thunderous single 25m drop waterfall.
Descending down the walking path, we could see the majestic Shiraito Falls from afar through the foliage. This Natural World Heritage Site is indeed fantastic with multiple water outlets looking like a wall of water draining on a river. We spent quite a bit of time admiring this beauty from all angles possible before we got hungry (got pretty girls also). We made our way up to Shiraito General Store and bought ourselves some coffee and snacks for some leg resting. Site map of Shiraito no taki.
Then we took the local bus back and stopped at a bus stand nearest to Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha Shrine to make a brief visit. It was really really beautiful with peace and quiet surrounding the vast temple ground. Worth a visit to this temple. From the temple, we saw a super large vermillion torii gate in the direction of our next destination – Mt. Fuji World Heritage Centre. The Heritage Centre, designed by architect Shigeru Ban, looks like an inverted Fujisan and can be reflected by the shallow pond. Hinoki wood (japanese cypress) is used to create a diagonal pattern that wrapped around the inverted cone facade.
To access, it costs 300yen and opens from 9:00am to 5:00pm. It is a museum about the formation of the famed mountain presented in static and interactive boards. At the highest floor, there is an observation hall with an epic view of Mount Fuji. Definitely worth a visit.
We cannot remember what we had for dinner . must be at a random udon shop before heading back for a good night sleep.
- Useful links:
- From our experiences :
- Google maps is the ultimate useful tool to board the right bus. We used it and also double check on the bus timetable at the stand with the help of Google translate.
- Reserve at least 4 hours or more for the whole trip via bus trip to Shiraito no Taki to enjoy at a more relaxing pace. The whole park takes a bit of walking as well.