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If you’re a traveller planning on visiting Japan, you’re no doubt going to want to be aware of potential destinations to add to your itinerary. One city you might not know of already is Takayama, often known as Hida Takayama to identify its location in the Hida region.
Adding Takayama to my recent Japan trip was an easy decision. It not only was close to other destinations I wanted to visit, such as beautiful Kanazawa, it’s also not an overly popular place to visit. Don’t get me wrong, there were a fair amount of tourists around while I was there, but nothing compared to big name destinations.
My time in Takayama made it clear to me that visiting was definitely the right choice. If you’re wondering why that is and why I, or any tourist, should want to visit Takayama, allow me to show you.
See the Streets of Takayama Old Town
The main attraction in Takayama and the first place most visitors head to is Takayama Old Town. Historical centres in Japan where you can see authentic traditional buildings are always a hit with tourists and Takayama’s is no exception.
While the old town of Takayama is technically divided into three districts, they each connect in such a way that you wouldn’t know it when moving from one to the next. The old town covers the eastern side of the Miyagawa River, but the extent of it isn’t as obvious when looking at a map.
Most visitors focus on the southern end of the Old Town, where you’ll find what’s known as the Sanmachi Historical Houses Preserved Area. The area features rows of old-world buildings from Japan’s Edo period, but also a small canal down the street, providing that calming sound of trickling water.
For more streets with old-fashioned buildings, head north from the busy area of Sanmachi Suji up to and past the Enako river. There you can wander the old streets in peace, and even find little cafes inside the buildings. Be sure to visit Tori Coffee if you’re up that way; they hand out puzzles and other gifts, and also make nice coffee too.
Walk through the Hida Folk Village
When I was planning my trip to Takayama, it wasn’t Takayama Old Town that caught my eye. In fact, it wasn’t even an attraction in the city centre. Where I wanted to go was a place to the southwest of the city on its outskirts – the Hida no Sato Folk Village.
At the time I thought this was where the city’s heritage was being preserved. And I wasn’t far off, as Hida no Sato exists to preserve traditional buildings from across the Hida region.
Like at Shirakawa-go, the focus of preservation are the traditional Gassho-style houses. At the Hida Folk Village, they’ve relocated houses from all over Hida to this hilltop site where Matsukura Castle once stood.
The folk village began out of a mission to preserve houses due to be flooded by the creation of dams in the region. Today, this open-air museum features over 30 traditional houses around Goami Pond.
Not only do you get to see the houses and their design, but many feature exhibitions that look into how people lived in the Hida region. You can read about different aspects of the region’s history, from the importance of silk to aspects of daily life. A visit here isn’t just scenic, it’s enlightening too.
Go Inside the Takayama Jinya
Seeing a government administration office probably isn’t your idea of a fun activity, right? But give me a chance to explain why it’s worth visiting the Takayama Jinya, a historic magistrate’s office.
From 1692 to 1869 this building was the seat of the region’s magistrate, the representative for the shogun, the military leader of Japan. And this is the only one of its kind from the Tokugawa Shogunate still in existence. This means it offers a unique insight into that period of history.
Touring Takayama Jinya, not only do you get to see its preserved buildings, but there’s quite a lot of information and artefacts to look at. You can learn a little about how society was governed at the time and how things were taxed, as well as look at old maps of the region.
It makes a nice break from temples and palaces, while still giving some historical context to what you’re seeing in Takayama.
Try Hida Beef
Everyone at this stage has heard of Kobe beef, the famous marbled meat raised in the region around Kobe. But travel north to the Hida region of Gifu Prefecture and Hida beef is all you’ll be able to find. Walk around Takayama and Hida beef will be advertised to you in all sorts of ways.
Probably the most common way of trying Hida beef in Takayama is to visit a barbecue restaurant. However, these restaurants are quite expensive compared to normal Japanese food prices. Given how prized Hida beef is, the high price of trying it makes sense.
Travelers looking to spend less on trying the local delicacy do have options though. Small kiosks around the old town sell grilled cuts served on small crackers for a few hundred yen.
There are also several burger joints around town, including one by the train station, that sell burgers made with Hida beef. Again, these burgers are actually pretty expensive, but nowhere as bad as buying a full Hida steak.
Walk along Takayama’s Riverfront
If there’s an attraction in Takayama that doesn’t get enough credit, it’s the Miyagawa River. You really can’t miss it if you go anywhere near the city centre or Old Town. Maybe that’s why, but I still think the scenery along the river deserves mentioning.
It helps if you’re visiting Takayama in spring. Cherry blossoms tend to make everything look amazing, including the banks of the Miyagawa River. Like many city rivers in Japan, it wasn’t raging and had a rather low-maintenance aesthetic. But with its greenery and the traditional red railings of the Nakabashi bridge, it’s definitely worth stopping to admire for a bit.
Check out the Retro Museum
Not every attraction in a destination is going to appeal to you. In Takayama, the Retro Museum was the one for me. I’m generally not a fan of kitsch and this museum screams kitsch. This museum brings back life in the 1950s, showcasing life and culture from that era. Inside there are lots of recreations and pop culture items from the Shōwa era, so if you’re curious at all about 20th century Japan, this could be very enlightening.
I suppose the museum also has a nostalgia element to it, but that is certainly more for Japanese visitors than international ones. In the end, I simply wasn’t interested in paying 800 yen to see something I had little interest in. But if might be right up your alley, so don’t let my personal preference put you off.
Find the Shrines of Shiroyama Park
While there are mountains in the region surrounding Takayama, Shiroyama Park sits on a hill directly overlooking the city’s historic centre. Among the park’s forests are several places of worship, as well as the ruins of Takayama Castle. The castle ruins are a bit more hidden, but you won’t have any trouble finding Shoren-ji Temple, Hida Gokoku Shrine, or Hie Shrine.
To me, the Hie Shinto shrine is the standout attraction in the area. It’s a little farther from the main park, but it’s worth the walk. The structures of the shrine aren’t especially different to other Shinto shrines; it’s the setting that really makes this place interesting.
All around the Hie Shrine you’ll find beautiful, old cedar trees, including the Great Cedar of Hie Shrine that stands 39 metres tall and has a diameter of 7 metres. I’m sure there are plenty of other cedar forests in Japan, but the trees really stood out here.
Relax at Takayama Onsen
Want to experience a typical Japanese onsen somewhere in the mountains? Well, you can with just a quick trip from Takayama up to its local cluster of onsen towns at Okuhida. There are hotels in Takayama that offer spa/bath facilities, but they are generally the modern kind and lack the mountain atmosphere.
Okuhida is the name of the valley where the countless hot springs are found, but Hirayu Onsen is the main onsen town of Okuhida Onsengo. For my trip, I went to one of the smaller towns, Shin-Hotaka Onsen near the mountain ropeway. There, I stayed in a traditional ryokan for the night, soaking in a private bath and dining on a large prepared meal.
Visit Hida Furukawa
Takayama may be the star attraction for this part of Gifu, but it’s certainly not alone in the area. Just look a little north and you’ll find Hida Furukawa, a smaller town that’s easy to visit as a half-day trip from Takayama.
If you liked Takayama’s old town and want more of it, this is the place to go. Hida Furukawa has more of the street canals and traditional buildings that make that area so interesting. But the canals here is much wider, and full of carp. Hida Furukawa also has its own riverfront that is especially pretty come spring and cherry blossom season.
Of course, you’ll find temples and shrines around Hida Furukawa. The town also has museums such as the Hida Crafts Museum to visit. But for me, the main appeal was its historic character and the almost complete absence of other tourists.
If you do visit Hida Furukawa, definitely pop into the Fab Hida Cafe. Besides the interesting interior, their spicebush coffee is delicious.
The Takayama Festival
One of Takayama’s main claims to fame is the city’s centuries old festival, simply known as the Takayama Festival or Takayama Matsuri. The festival is held twice a year, spring and autumn, and features performances and processions of large floats. My timing was off so I was about a week early for the spring festival.
However, it is possible to get a taste of the festival, even if it’s not on when you visit Hida Takayama. The train station is actually decorated with several displays that showcase items from the festival. Then there is the actual museum for the festival, the Takayama Matsuri Yatai Kaikan. There you can see the large floats on display within its exhibition hall.
Travel Tips for Visiting Hida Takayama
One challenge of travelling to Takayama is simply getting there. Its location in Gifu doesn’t put it along the usual travel routes and its train connections are limited.
For train travel, you basically have the north-south train route from Toyama to Nagoya to work with. Complimenting that, you have the bus routes going west from Takayama to Kanazawa and east from Takayama to Matsumoto.
Your JR Pass will cover your train trips and the bus to Kanazawa, but so will a Takayama-Hokuriku Area Pass. This more-targeted regional pass connects to all the cities mentioned other than Matsumoto.
As for where to stay in Takayama, I’d generally recommend picking somewhere east of the train station. This area puts you closest to most of the city attractions, helping you cut down on unnecessary walking. Not that my hotel, the Hotel Kuretakeso Takayama ekimae, was a bad choice, as it was perfectly comfortable and well-priced. I just grew a little tired of having to cross the train line repeatedly.
Have you seen or visited Takayama in Gifu before? What do you think would be the first thing you do there when visiting? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
