On my most recent trip to Japan, I was perhaps most excited to visit the small town of Takayama for the first time. Nestled in the mountains of Japan’s scenic Hida region, Takayama is most well-known for its well-preserved Edo period streets, numerous sake breweries and delicious food such as the mouthwatering Hida beef.
While some might be tempted just to visit on a day trip, we decided to spend two nights exploring this charming town. This is how I recommend you spend 2 days in Takayama, allowing you to experience the town’s authentic charm in a way a day trip just can’t compare.
How to Get to Takayama
Takayama is best explored as part of a trip through the Japanese Alps.
If you’re following my 4 weeks in Japan itinerary and exploring the Japanese Alps, I travelled from Kanazawa to Takayama via bus. However, Takayama is also easy to get to from major cities like Tokyo and Kyoto by catching the train via Nagoya.
From Kanazawa
A highway coach bus departs from Kanazawa to Takayama multiple times a day. Advance bookings are required and can be made online here.
Tip: The bus stops at Shirakawa-go, a traditional village famous for its thatched-roof houses. You can get off the bus here, leaving your bags in a locker at the bus station and venture on foot to explore the village.
Alternatively, during your 2 days in Takayama, there is an opportunity to visit an open-air folk village museum, which offers a glimpse into the traditional culture if you’d prefer to continue directly to Takayama.
From Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto (via Nagoya)
Catch the JR Tokaido Shinkansen from Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto to Nagoya.
From here, transfer to the JR Hida limited express train to Takayama. It takes about 2 hours to reach Takayama from Nagoya. Additionally, there is one daily departure from Osaka on the Hida Limited Express (also stopping in Kyoto).
In total, the journey takes about 4.5 hours from Tokyo, or 3.5 hours from Osaka.
Getting Around Takayama
Whether you arrive by bus or train, you’ll find yourself at the same location, as the JR Takayama Station and Takayama Hida Bus Center are conveniently next to one another.
From here, it is a short 15-minute stroll to Takayama Old Town. You’ll find Takayama is easily walkable for most of the main attractions – we got around on foot during our 2 days in Takayama, except catching the local tourist bus (Sarubobo Bus) to the nearby Hida Folk Village (Hida no Sato).
For information on how to get around Takayama on the tourist bus, read more here.
How Long Do You Need in Takayama?
Staying two nights allows you one full day in Takayama, which we found was sufficient for us when we visited in April 2023.
It is a small town, so you can comfortably see the main sights and attractions in this time. If you decide to spend an extra day, consider taking a day trip to one of the nearby attractions – some ideas are provided below.
Where to Stay
You’ll find most budget and mid-range accommodation near the station, and luxury options in the old town area. Both areas are great options to stay, as it is only a short walk between each.
- Budget – Guesthouse Tomaru: We stayed in this simple Japanese guest house with shared bathrooms near the train station. The owner was extremely friendly and helpful (note that bookings only open a few months beforehand)
- Mid-Range – Hotel Wood Takayama: A boutique hotel located near the centre of Takayama’s old town. Facilities include an onsen plus free-flow sake tastings.
- Luxury – Wat Hotel & Spa: This trendy, modern hotel is located near the station and includes an onsen, pool and rooftop lounge area.
Where to Eat
- Ramen Menya Toto: Everyone heads to Menya Shirakawa to try the local style Takayama ramen, but wanting to avoid the long lines, we came across Ramen Menya Toto around the corner. We thoroughly enjoyed the Takayama-style ramen and house specialty shoyu ramen (and no queuing required!)
- Center4 Burgers: quirky restaurant full of retro memorabilia serving up juicy hamburgers (reservations recommended)
- Falo Coffee Brewers: We had a delicious hand-drip coffee and chatted with the barista who had spent time working in Australia (hence you know he makes good coffee!).
- Jakson Curry: Brilliant little Japanese curry shop – bookings are recommended as it’s extremely popular!
- Butchers: popular steakhouse serving a mix of Japanese and Western styles. Many come here for the Hida beef, of course!
- Kyoshi: Affordable lunch sets which are a great option for those wanting to try Hida beef in a sit-down restaurant without breaking the bank! Try the hida beef rice bowl or the sushi.
Takayama 2 Days Itinerary
Day One
Spend your first afternoon after arriving in Takayama wandering the preserved traditional Edo-period streets in the Sanmachi area.
Explore the Sanmachi area
The main street is Sanmachi Suji shopping street, between the Nakabashi and Kaji bridges. You’ll find numerous boutiques, souvenir stores, cafes, food stalls and sake breweries along this street.
We spent most of our time eating and drinking our way along the street. There are numerous restaurants and cafes, many of which have a small stall out the front from which you can purchase snacks including dango balls, Hida beef skewers and other treats.
Some of our favourites included:
- Onoya Brewery: an artisanal soy sauce and miso brewery that offers free tastings
- Funasaka Brewery: A sake brewery and tasting store. What makes this one unique is that you purchase a small cup from a gashapon capsule machine, and tokens to use at the self-service pouring machines.
- Harada Sake Brewery: A sake brewery where you pay for your cup and a small tasting fee, and serve yourself sake from the bottle
While Sanmachi suji is the main (and busiest) street, continue exploring the two streets parallel to discover more sake breweries, restaurants and museums.
If you need a break from the busy streets, pop into the Hida Takayama Town Museum. This free museum depicts the history and culture of Takayama in a large warehouse with a peaceful garden.
Nearby, you’ll find the Takayama Showa-kan Museum, a retro museum showcasing unique displays from the Showa period in the 1920s – 1980s. It’s quite interactive, as there are video games, pinball machines and pachinko slot machines on display that you can use. For 1000 yen entrance tickets, there’s plenty to do and see in this packed museum.
Open: Daily 9 am – 5 pm
Entrance: ¥1200
Day Two
Make sure you’ve got comfortable walking shoes today, as you’ll be covering a lot of ground on your full day in Takayama!
Miyagawa Morning Market
Begin your day by strolling along the river at the Miyagawa Morning Market.
This food market is held daily from 7 am – noon (8 am in winter), with vendors setting up stalls selling fresh vegetables, specialty snacks, souvenirs and handicrafts. There tends to be a larger variety of stalls on weekends.
Once you reach the end of the market stalls, you’ll be around the corner from Yoshijima Heritage House.
This 100-year-old traditional merchant house was once a sake brewery and is worth visiting if you are interested in traditional architecture and touring a well-preserved Japanese-style house.
Open: Wednesday – Sunday 9.30 am – 3.30 pm
Entrance: ¥500
Across the other side of the river is another market, the Jinya-mae Morning Market. When we visited in April, it was very quiet in comparison to the Miyagawa Morning Market with only a few fruit and vegetable vendor stalls.
Hida Folk Village
Catch the Sarubobo Bus to Hida Folk Village.
Bus tickets cost ¥100 and can be purchased on the bus. For more information and times, click here.
Hida Folk Village, or Hida no Sato, was a really interesting way to see various traditional houses from across the Hida region. Especially as we decided not to stopover in Shirakawago on the way from Kanazawa to Takayama due to inclement weather, visiting Hida no Sato was very worthwhile.
The open-air museum consists of a loop trail around the lake, with various traditional houses from different regions and periods that you can enter. Most of the houses had various exhibits with tools and items from the period on display, with informative signage in English.
Higashiyama Walking Course
Catching the bus back into town, we decided to follow the Higashiyama Walking Course which takes you past numerous temples and shrines.
We followed the entire trail, starting from here at Unryuji Temple and finishing at Shiroyama Park, including climbing the hill to the Takayama Castle Ruins.
Once we passed the numerous temples, we felt like we were the only tourists as we followed the river along a quiet residential area.
Crossing over the river, we headed into the large, leafy green and serene Shiroyama Park, following signs leading up the hill until we reached the Takayama Castle Ruins. Don’t expect to see much in the way of ruins, as it basically consisted of a crumbling stone wall!
We found the signs with hanging bells along the way quite curious, which thanks to our crude Google translate, we determined were bear bells! Luckily, no bears were sighted.
Takayama Festival Floats Exhibition Hall
If you aren’t too worn out by this point, consider heading over to the Takayama Festival Floats Exhibition Hall (Takayama Matsuri Yatai Kaikan).
Takayama has two annual festivals that draw thousands of visitors across Japan: the Sanno Festival in spring, and Hachiman Matsuri in Autumn, which have been held for over 400 years to celebrate the seasons.
We actually happened to visit Takayama the day after the close of the spring festival, and the town showed signs of the celebration! The spring festival is held each year on April 14-15, and the autumn festival on October 9-10.
If visiting during one of the festival periods, make sure to book accommodation in advance!
The highlight of these festivals is the festive and richly decorated floats that are paraded around town. These hand-crafted, exquisitely decorated floats are masterpieces, and are stored in large sheds around town – you might spot one or two as you wander the Sanmachi suji and Miyagawa morning market!
To admire the details of these floats, you can see four of the eleven autumn festival floats on display at the Takayama Matsuri Yatai Kaikan.
Open: Daily 9 am – 5 pm
Entrance: ¥1,000
At this point, we were a tad “shrined out” after navigating the Walking Course, however, Takayama’s oldest shrine, the Sakurayama Hachimangu shrine, is found next door to the Festival Float hall.
However, if you’ve chosen to rest your legs and skip the walking course, make sure to visit here! Entry is free.
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Day Trips from Takayama
If you’re spending more than two days in Takayama, consider taking a day trip.
Shirakawa-go
One of the most popular day trips from Takayama is to the thatched roof village of Shirakawa-go, a UNESCO World Heritage site. If you’re following my one month in Japan, you might have already stopped here on your way to Takayama from Kanazawa.
Getting to Shirakawa-go from Takayama is possible by catching the highway bus, or joining a guided tour.
To get to Shirakawa on public transport, catch the Takayama-Shirakawago/Kanazawa Line Nohi highway bus departing several times a day from Takayama Bus Station. You can view the timetable here.
Some departures require advance reservations, which can be made online one month in advance (¥2,600 one-way).
For a guided tour option, consider this tour. It includes a guided walking tour of Takayama, visiting some of the sights I’ve covered in my 2 days Takayama Itinerary above. The afternoon of the tour is spent exploring Shirakawa-go with your guide, plus allowing free time to wander the town.
Kamikochi
Kamikochi is an outdoor nature lovers’ haven located high in the Japanese Alps in the Chubu Sangaku National Park.
This valley is known for its crystal clear rivers, lush greenery and jaw-dropping mountain scenery, best explored by the numerous walking trails.
You can easily visit on a day trip from Takayama by catching the Nohi bus via Hirayu Onsen.
Kamikochi is open seasonally, usually from late April to mid-November, so make sure to check bus times beforehand.
Utsue Forty-Eight Falls
Another scenic hike and an underrated gem in the region is the Utsue Forty-Eight Waterfalls.
Catch the train from Takayama Station two stops to Hida-Kokufu Station (12 minutes).
There is a free shuttle bus that will take you to the start of the hike, which takes around an hour to reach an observation deck at the top of the falls. A maintenance fee of ¥200 applies, and there are seasonal closures over the winter months.
The shuttle bus timetable can be found here (only in Japanese, but Google Translate works well) and more information here.
Final Thoughts – Takayama Itinerary 2 Days
That wraps up this comprehensive travel guide to Takayama. Exploring this small town is a must for those looking to step back in time and immerse themselves in a more traditional side of Japan, compared to the big, bright and uber-modern cities of Tokyo and Osaka. With its historic streets, serene temples and an abundance of natural wonders on its doorstep, visiting Takayama is a unique and unforgettable experience.
Let me know if you have any questions about this Takayama itinerary in the comments below, and check out my other Japan guides to help plan your trip.
Japan Itineraries:
- A Fun 7 Day Tokyo Itinerary: Complete 1 Week in Tokyo Guide
- An Exciting 4 Days in Osaka Itinerary for First-Timers
- Exploring Fuji Five Lakes: 3 Days in Kawaguchiko Guide
- The Perfect 3 Day Kyoto Itinerary: How to Avoid the Crowds
- An Efficient 4 Weeks in Japan Itinerary (Perfect for First-Timers)
Japan Travel Planning, Tips & Tricks:
- How to Plan a Trip to Japan: Ultimate Japan Travel Guide
- Is Japan Expensive? My EXACT Japan Trip Cost Breakdown Revealed
- 30 Unmissable Experiences for Your Japan Bucket List
- 15 Things to Know Before Visiting Japan for the First Time
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