This 3-day trip plan covers these following mountain routes and spots in Japan Alps mountain range:
✔ Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route
✔ 1 hour walking in Murodo
✔ Ride on Kurobe Gorge Railway
✔ 2 hours sightseeing in Shirakawago
✔ Visit Takayama morning market
✔ Shin-Hotaka Ropeway
Two train rides are covered by JR Pass or JR East Pass Nagano Niigata. But you cannot get your money worth by this trip. You may use this sample as the part of your trip.
Overview
On day 1, enjoy the first mountain route, “Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route” . Unazuki Onsen is the place to stay overnight. This is the departure point for Kurobe Gorge Railway too.
On day 2, enjoy the ride on Kurobe Gorge Railway to see the spectacular view. You have 50 minutes break at Keyakidaira station. There are a few nice photo spots.
Move to Toyama to catch the bus for Shirakawago after visiting Kurobe Gorge. You will have 2 hours stop at Shirakawago to see a lovely village. After that, move to Takayama and stay overnight.
On day 3, drop by Takayama morning market and then take a bus for Shin-Hotaka. Enjoy an amazing view from the summit of Shin-Hotaka ropeway.
Day 1, Tokyo – Nagano – Alpine Route – Unazuki Onsen
On the first day of trip, you will take the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Nagano and start to go through Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route. You will make a stopover at Murodo at the highest point of the Alpine Route.
Itinerary
| Time | Place and transporation |
|---|---|
| 06:16 | Tokyo station |
| (The Hokuriku Shinkansen Kagayaki 501) | |
| 07:40 / 08:15 | Nagano station |
| (Alpico Kotsu express bus) | |
| 10:00 / 10:30 | Ogizawa station |
| (Kanden Electric Bus) | |
| 10:46 | Kurobe Dam station |
| 15 minutes walking | |
| 11:10 | Kurobeko station |
| (Kurobe Cablecar) | |
| 11:15 / 11:30 | Kurobedaira station |
| (Tateyama Ropeway) | |
| 11:37 / 11:45 | Daikanbo station |
| (Tateyama Torolley Bus) | |
| 11:55 / 14:20 | Murodo (lunch stop and walking) |
| (Tateyama Highland Bus) | |
| 15:10 / 15:20 | Bijodaira station |
| (Tateyama Cablecar) | |
| 15:27 / 15:51 | Tateyama station |
| (Toyama Chiho Railway limited express Tateyama 6) | |
| 16:26 / 16:42 | Terada station |
| (Toyama Chiho Railway local train) | |
| 18:10 | Unazuki-Onsen station |
Highlight
Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route
This is most popular mountain route in Japan. You will go through this route by many kinds of transportation, such as cablecars, ropeway, torolley buses. The vies is spectacular.
Murodo
Murodo is located at the highest elevation which is 2,450 m above the sealevel. And this is the biggest station on the Alpine Route. There are several restaurants and food stands. You will enjoy a lunch time with a great view.
You can enjoy walking in the moutain fresh air.
Unazuki Onsen
Unazuki Onsen is one of major hot spring resorts in this region. There are many accommodations from the standard to highend. This place is the departure point for Kurobe Gorge Railway. You can start this train trip on next day easily.
Day 2, Unazuki Onsen – Keyakidaira – Toyama – Shirakawago – Takayama
The second day of trip will be busy. You will visit Kurobe Gorge and Shirakawago.
Itinerary
| Time | Place and transporation |
|---|---|
| 07:57 | Unazuki-Onsen station |
| (Kurobe Gorge Railway) | |
| 09:12 / 10:01 | Keyakidaira station |
| (Kurobe Gorge Railway) | |
| 11:20 / 11:39 | Unazuki-Onsen station |
| (Toyama Chiho Railway local train) | |
| 13:17 / 14:10 | Toyama station |
| (Toyama Chitetsu Bus) | |
| 15:30 / 17:23 | Shirakawago bus terminal |
| (Nohi Bus) | |
| 18:35 | Takayama bus terminal |
Highlight
Kurobe Gorge Railway
The small train goes along Kurobe gorge. It is located north side of Tateyama mountain. The 1 hour 20 minutes train ride offers a breathtaking view, especially in fall season.
Shirakawago
This small historical village is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are many Japanese traditional style residences in the mountain.
Day 3, Takayama – Shin Hotaka – Matsumoto – Tokyo
The 3-day trip will be wrapped up. You will enjoy a time in Takayama morning market and then move to Shin-Hotaka Ropeway. (It is sometimes called “Shin-Hodaka”.)
Itinerary
| Time | Place and transporation |
|---|---|
| 09:40 | Takayama bus terminal |
| (Nohi Bus) | |
| 11:16 / 14:55 | Shin-Hotaka Ropeway (with lunch time) |
| (Nohi Bus) | |
| 15:28 / 15:50 | Hirayu Onsen bus terminal |
| (Nohi Bus or Alpico Kotsu express bus) | |
| 17:15 / 18:40 | Matsumoto station |
| (The limited express Azusa 54) | |
| 21:06 | Shinjuku station |
Highlight
Takayama Morning Market / Old Town
The morning market is held daily basis. It is held near Takayama old preserved town. You may visit both at same time.
Shin-Hotaka Ropeway
You can get the summit view point at 2,156 m by two gondolars easily. One of the gondola is a by-level one and it is only by-level on in Japan.
Travel cost
All train trips are covered by JR Pass and JR East Pass Nagano Niigata. And you have to add Tateyama Kurobe Option Ticket, Three-star Route Option Ticket, and a few regular fare ticket.
You must purchase Tateyama Kurobe Option Ticket (at 9,800 yen) and Three-star Route Option Ticket (at 5,500 yen) before you start this trip in Tokyo. You can buy these tickets at JR East Travel Service Center. Please see the links below to find more information:
Tateyama Kurobe Option Ticket (official site)
Three-star Route Option Ticket (official site)
| Trip | Cost |
|---|---|
| The Hokuriku Shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagano | Covered |
| Tateyama Kurobe Option Ticket for Alpico Kotsu express bus from Nagano to Ogizawa, Tateyama Kurone Alpine route from Ogizawa to Tateyama | 9,800 yen |
| Toyama Chiho Railway from Tateyama to Terada | Covered |
| Toyama Chiho Railway limited express ticket | 110 yen |
| Toyama Chiho Railway from Terada to Unazuki-Onsen | 1,610 yen |
| Kurobe Gorge Railway round trip to Keyakidaira | 3,960 yen |
| Toyama Chiho Railway from Unazuki-Onsen to Dentetsu-Toyama (For the ride from Unazuki-Onsen to Terada only. Tateyama Kurobe Option Ticket covers the ride for Terada to Dentetsu-Toyama.) | 1,610 yen |
| Three-star Route Option Ticket for Toyama Chitetsu express bus from Toyama to Shirakwago, Nohi Bus from Shirakawago to Takayama Nohi bus from Takayama to Hirayu-Onsen Nohi bus or Alpico Kotsu Express bus from Hirayu-Onsen to Matsumoto | 5,500 yen |
| Nohi Bus from Takayama to Shin-Hodaka For the ride from Hirayu-Onsen to Shin-Hodaka. Three-star Route Option Ticket covers the ride for Takayama to Hirayu-Onsen.) | 910 yen |
| Shin-Hodaka Ropeway | 2,900 yen |
| The limited express Azusa from Matsumoto to Shinjuku | Covered |
| Total cost | 27,310 yen |
Summary
I understand it is such a busy trip. But I just tried to put all three mountain spots and Shirakawago in 3 days.
You may download this itinerary in Excel file (.xlsx file) and customize it. Please download it at the link below:
You can extend the duration to add Kanazawa and/or Toyama.
I hope you can enjoy this trip.
