Recommended for first-time visitors! If you want to travel around Fukui Prefecture, take the Happi Bus!

  • Fukui
  • Sightseeing
HAPI BUS" that tours around Fukui Prefecture
Fukui Prefecture is attracting attention with the opening of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line in Fukui and Tsuruga in March 2024! Fukui Prefecture has many tourist attractions that you should visit at least once, such as Tojinbo, Eiheiji Temple, Maruoka Castle, Dinosaur Museum, and Kibi Jingu Shrine. If you are not sure where to go and would like to take your time to visit these sightseeing spots by bus without driving yourself, we recommend the Happibus.

Convenient "Happi Bus" for touring around Fukui Prefecture

The Hapi Bus is a sightseeing bus that began operating in conjunction with the opening of the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line in Fukui and Tsuruga. Hapibus offers two types of bus tours: a regular tour bus that runs every day, with a minimum number of participants of one, and can be booked on the day of the tour; and a general bus tour type that allows visitors to explore Fukui Prefecture in detail, although there are some restrictions on application deadlines. This time, we will introduce the "Nice to Meet You Fukui Famous Tour B Course," a regular sightseeing bus tour that visits three of Fukui Prefecture's representative sightseeing spots: Daihonzan Eiheiji Temple, the Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Restoration Townscape, and the Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Museum.
Dinosaur at Fukui Station (East Exit) and "Happibus
Happi Bus official website is here:

A half-day tour of the highlights of Fukui Prefecture! Nice to meet you Fukui Famous Tour B Course

The "Nice to Meet You Fukui Famous Tour B Course" is a half-day tour that starts and ends at Fukui Station and takes visitors to the Daihonzan Eiheiji Temple, the Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Restoration Townscape, and the Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Museum. The "Nice to Meet You: Fukui Famous Places Tour B Course" will operate on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays from March 16, 2024 to November 30, 2024. The tour fee includes a visit to Eiheiji Temple and the Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Museum, so you can start sightseeing immediately after arriving at your destination without waiting in line at the ticket booth.

As soon as the Happi Bus departs from the east exit of Fukui Station, a bus guide will start explaining the points of interest in Fukui Prefecture. The bus guide will explain about the scenery and tourist attractions that you might have missed without the bus guide's explanation, so be careful not to miss anything!

Feel the history of Daihonzan Eiheiji Temple

The bus ride takes about 30 minutes while listening to the bus guide's explanation. The 780-year-old Eiheiji Temple, the head temple of the Soto sect of Zen Buddhism, is a Zen training center where more than 100 monks, called Unsui, are still practicing their ascetic practices. The first stop on the Eiheiji tour is a place called Sanshokaku, where you will be overwhelmed by the sight of 230 paintings of flowers, birds, wind, and the moon that fill the ceiling.

After visiting Sanshokaku, visitors will finally visit the seven buildings called Shichido-garan, which are connected by corridors, in turn. Visitors can take their time to visit the Sanmon Gate, through which visitors are only allowed to enter the temple to begin their ascetic training and exit when they have finished their ascetic training, and the Shichido Hall, where Unsui (priests) live out their daily lives.
Karamon Gate, a symbol of Eiheiji Temple Photo courtesy of Daihonzan Eiheiji Temple

View from the train window "Ichijodani Asakura Clan Ruins Restoration Town

After visiting Eiheiji Temple, the next stop is the "Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Restoration Town". This is where the castle town built in Ichijodani by Asakura, a feudal lord who ruled Echizen Province during the Warring States Period, was excavated and restored. Since the tour takes a bus through the ruins, you will not be able to actually walk through the town, but you will be able to see the Karamon Gate, a symbolic building of the Ichijodani Asakura clan ruins, and the Plane Restoration Area from the bus window. The ruins are scattered on both sides of the road, but the bus turns around in the middle of the road and travels the same route twice, so you can take a good look at the ruins without worrying about your seat position on the bus.
Karamon Gate at the ruins of the Ichijodani Asakura clan Photo courtesy of the Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation

The Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Museum, which will open in 2022

The last stop on the tour is the "Ichijodani Asakura Clan Site Museum. Located a few minutes by bus from the "Ichijodani Asakura Ruins Restoration Town," which was visited from the bus window, the museum is characterized by its five triangular roofs lined up in a row. In addition to artifacts and other items that tell the story of life in the Warring States Period, the museum has an "Exhibition Room of Remains," where the remains found during excavations are preserved in their original state, and a full-scale reproduction of the Asakura's mansion where the Asakura clan lived. The Asakura residence has many attractions such as the flowerbed, which is said to be the oldest in Japan, a garden, and barrier paintings, etc. Visitors can walk around the residence and feel like a feudal lord of the Warring States period as they visit the various rooms.
Photo courtesy of Fukui Prefectural Museum of the Ruins of the Asakura Clan of Ichijodani

Enjoy Fukui to the fullest with the Happi Bus!

In addition to the "Hatsumeshimete Fukui Meisho Tabi (Nice to meet you) Fukui Famous Places B Course" introduced here, the Happi Bus also offers various other courses. You can apply for the regular sightseeing bus on the day of participation, so if you have come to Fukui Prefecture but are not sure where to go, or if you would like to enjoy Fukui Prefecture from a different perspective, we encourage you to try the Happi Bus!

Enjoy "Free Plan in Fukui for 3 days" with package tour booking site of JR East View Tourism & Sales!

Includes a sightseeing bus to visit famous places in Fukui! Enjoy Fukui Free Plan.
With the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line, Fukui Prefecture has become much closer and more popular.

For hands-on tour activities, try VELTRA!

Let's combine your favorite train and lodging to save money!

You can make your own original trip!

JR East View Dynamic Rail Package is a variable price individual travel product available only on the web. Depending on the timing and conditions of your application, you may be able to save even on the day of departure at the earliest! Enjoy your own personalized trip according to your schedule and purpose.
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