Don’t Miss This Day Trip to Shirakawa-go, Japan

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When travelling to Japan, a place I’ve long wanted to go to, I was either excited for places or really excited for places on my itinerary. Shirakawa village was one of those destinations I was really excited by. Having seen photos of the traditional village, I made sure my recent trip allowed me to visit, with a day trip to Shirakawa-go from Kanazawa the best option I had.

Even with high expectations, visiting Shirakawa village lived up to the hype. Not everything went my way, but I thoroughly enjoyed spending several hours wandering around this cultural landmark and seeing it with my own eyes. Shirakawa-go may actually be one of those places that are even scenic than the photos make them out to be. If you’re in this part of Japan, here’s why you can’t miss adding this day trip to your plans.

Doing a Day Trip to Shirakawa-go

With a day trip like this, I think sorting out the logistics is so important that I’m going to take you through up front. Shirakawa-go is located up in the mountains and its remote location complicates the process of getting there. And one important note; when planning a visit, don’t confuse it with Shirakawa, a town in south Gifu. Always look for Shirakawa-go.

Due to its mountain location, going by bus or with a tour are your only options when not driving yourself. For a day trip to Shirakawa-go from Kanazawa, buses take just under 1.5 hours. The timetable for the bus is here, with buses to/from the village spread-out across the day. The bus terminal at Shirakawa village is at one end of the village, close to many of Shirakawa’s guesthouses.

The important thing to understand about taking the bus to Shirakawa village is the need to make a reservation. You need to reserve tickets on most buses and they sell out quickly, so organize it as soon as you arrive in Kanazawa. I left it to two days in advance, and was only able to get tickets for an afternoon visit. Oh and you can use a Takayama-Hokuriku Area Pass for the bus tickets, only needing to reserve your seat!

Now, while the bus route from Kanazawa to Shirakawa stops at Gokayama along the way, it’s not as simple as that. The Gokayama stop isn’t both drop-off and pick-up, meaning you can’t use it hopping on/off at each village. Instead, you’ll need to take a local bus, the information for which I couldn’t find.

Also worth knowing though, is that this isn’t the only bus route to Shirakawa-go. Buses also leave from Takayama and Takaoka, providing alternatives from the other direction to visiting Shirakawa-go from Kanazawa.

About Shirakawa-go

With that out of the way, let’s look at what makes Shirakawa-go so special. Because it is a special place and not just a picturesque one. Shirakawa is a historic village in the mountains of the Gifu Prefecture with ties to silkworm cultivation that has escaped modern development. Thanks to its untouched lifestyle and buildings, it’s earned the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

A quirk thing worth mentioning to avoid confusion is that Ogimachi is the specific village you want to visit. Because Ogimachi is part of the Shirakawa-go region, it’s just generally referred to as either Shirakawa Village or Shirakawa-go. There is more of Shirakawa-go beyond Ogimachi, but the houses and farmland you want to see are all in Ogimachi.

When visiting Shirakawa-go, some things worth knowing include:

• You can find tourist information at either the Bus Terminal or the car park near the Heritage Museum. Pick up a map and pamphlet, as you won’t find information posted about.
• I had almost three hours at Shirakawa and it was more than I need to be honest. Two hours would be ideal, but being there late in the afternoon was nice as it was much quieter then.
• As for when to go, spring is an interesting option. You do miss out on the snow and autumn colours, but the bursts of blossom on the trees liven up the rest of the nature that hasn’t woken from its winter slumber.
• Taking a guided tour may look expensive, but return bus tickets are actually a bit costly (¥2600 each way), so taking a tour like this may be worth it for some people.

Japan’s Gassho-Style Houses

The defining feature of Shirakawa-go is the village’s traditional houses, known as Gassho-style houses. Gassho translates as “praying hands” and refers to the shape of their typical roofs. The style relates to the large farmhouses topped by thatched roofs with a steep pitch, designed to help shed snow, preventing it from building up and seeping into or through the roof.

Gassho-style houses aren’t the only type of traditional house in Japan, simply the style found in Gifu Prefecture. And Shirakawa-go isn’t the only place in Japan or even this region where you can see Gassho-style houses. They’re also found at Gokayama, Shirakawa’s counterpart in Toyama Prefecture, as well as at the Hida Folk Village at Takayama, also in Gifu.

Since Shirakawa-go isn’t the only place where these buildings existed, what makes it special is the volume of these houses still standing. I imagine it is the village’s remote location that allowed them to preserve the style of so many homes.

What’s also special is that it’s a living village. That residents haven’t left it for bigger towns and cities is important to. Reading about the village’s history, the local economy thrived on the extraction of saltpetre for a time and now benefits from tourism.

The effects of tourism here are painfully obvious, with many houses now serving as guesthouses, shops, restaurants, and museums. Hopefully, tourism is managed there to prevent it ruining what makes Shirakawa village special. That said, by staying in the afternoon, I was able to see local kids running around and playing, showing it hasn’t lost its lived in feel.

Walking through Ogimachi Village

The main thing to do during a Shirakawa-go day trip is to walk around Ogimachi village. There’s no specific route you need to take through Ogimachi, so feel free to wander. While Ogimachi isn’t huge, you do realise it’s larger than you think as you walk around.

To explore the village, the main road right through is a natural starting point. But the main road is a little light on Gassho-style houses early on. Instead, I’d encourage you to deviate down the back streets or head out onto the paths and boardwalks that run through the fields. It’s these minor paths in the fields especially where you get the most rural feel from the village.

Wada House Museum

With the focus of Shirakawa village being its traditional houses, it’s no surprise that some have been opened to the public. Wada House is one such house museum and the largest Gassho-style house in the village. I definitely recommend taking a look inside if you’ve never been inside one before. Like each of the smaller museums, entry to the Wada House costs ¥300.

Inside the house you’ll find displays with information on the Wada family who have had long ties with Shirakawa. Yaemon Wada was even the village’s first mayor in 1888. There’s also other information relating to the village’s history, although most of it is in Japanese, but there photos from its “Water Hose Festival”, where the village’s fire prevention system of powerful hoses is tested.

The main reason to visit though is to see what the typical layout is like inside. Downstairs you see rooms with tatami mats and a section with the hearth. Head upstairs and you get to see the rafters, with their shiny black wood and all the ropes binding the roof together. There’s even a window for an elevated view of the neighbouring houses.

Ogimachi Castle Observation Deck

For views of Shirakawa-go, there’s really one place that gives you the view you’re looking for. The Ogimachi Castle Observation Deck may not show much sign of a castle these days, but it provides the ultimate panorama over the village.

To reach the observation point, you’ll need to walk up at the northern end of the village. There are actually two ways up, but the path north of the bus terminal was closed to the public, possibly due to the time of year. While there was no snow around, the waves of rain may have deteriorated the track.

Taking the main road up to the viewpoint isn’t too demanding, even for people with not much fitness. At the top, the views of Shirakawa-go are like ones you’d see on postcards and frequently online. You see all of the village, its farmland, and the main road carving through. But you also get to see the surrounding mountains looming nearby, reminding you how remote this place is.

Shō River

It may not be the focus of a visit to Shirakawa village, but you can’t ignore the presence of the Shō River. It separates the heart of the village from the Heritage Museum and the main carpark, with a suspension bridge joining the two banks. While the bridge is fun to walk across like any suspension bridge, the river scenery is just stunning.

So once you’ve seen everything you want to at Ogimachi, take a walk down to one of the bridges over the run. There you’ll get a view of the almost-turquoise river, the rocky cliffs along the banks, and more of a forest setting. The view felt like something more fitting to Canada than the alpine areas I visited in Japan.

Have you heard of Shirakawa village in Gifu before? Would you try visiting in spring or prefer to wait to see it in winter covered in snow? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.