Toyama Tourism Promotion Organization Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village, located in Nanto City, Toyama Prefecture, is lined with gassho-style buildings in a rich natural setting. It is truly an original Japanese landscape. Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village is the collective name for 40 small villages. Two of the villages, Ainokura and Suganuma, are registered as World Heritage sites. In this article, we will introduce how to get to Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village, recommended lunches, and spots with spectacular views! Click here for tours that stop at Gokayama!
Let's start here! What is Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village?
Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village in winter Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village still preserves the original Japanese landscape with its rows of gassho-style buildings, rice paddies, stone walls, and snow-covered forests to protect against avalanches. One of the charms of this area is that visitors can enjoy the seasonal beauty of its rich nature: cherry blossoms in spring, fresh greenery in summer, autumn leaves in fall, and snowy landscapes in winter. Why not visit a small mountain village where people's lives are still alive and experience the charm of a World Heritage site?
Access to Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village (World Heritage Bus)
World Heritage Bus The World Heritage Bus is a convenient bus that departs from Takaoka Station and travels via Shin-Takaoka Station, a stop on the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line, and JR Jobata Station on the JR Jobata Line to the Gokayama Ainokura and Suganuma villages and Shirakawa-go. It is also recommended that the buses run daily! In this article, we will introduce in detail how to get to the World Heritage bus stop from Jobata Station and how to get to the Ainokura Gassho-Zukuri Village after getting off at the Ainokura-guchi bus stop!
This is the place to get a panoramic view of the Ainokura Village!
Panoramic view of Ainokura Village The photo you often see of Gokayama is a panoramic view of the Gassho-Zukuri Village. Why not see it for yourself? The village is large, so if you don't know where the best spots are, this is a must-see! The viewpoint of the Ainokura Gassho-Zukuri Village is not a steep path. Our employee from Gokayama explains it in this video.
For a taste of Gokayama's local cuisine! Taste the delicacies of the mountains at "Teahouse Matsutsuya
Mountain delicacies The "Tea Shop Matsutsuya" is a restaurant and souvenir store located in the middle of the Ainokura Gassho-Zukuri Village. The "Matsuya Set Meal" is the most popular item at Matsuya, and includes fresh wild vegetables, local cuisine, and Gokayama's famous hard tofu! The menu changes four times a year to reflect the seasons! Many of our customers are regulars because they can enjoy new flavors each time.
Deep-fried Gokayama tofu Jippensha is a soba noodle shop located in the Kaminashi district on the way to Suganuma village from Gokayama's Ainokura village. Inside the warm atmosphere of the restaurant, lit by the lights of Gokayama washi paper, you can enjoy fried Gokayama tofu before your buckwheat noodles. Soba noodles are made every morning by grinding domestic buckwheat flour on a millstone and hand-pulling it in the delicious Gokayama water before it loses its aroma.
Gokayama washi paper, said to be durable for 1,000 years
Chinese zodiac dolls made of washi paper As a territory of the Kaga Clan, Gokayama had a thriving winter industry of "washi" (Japanese paper) production. Gokayama continues to develop as a production center for high quality washi paper. Gokayama washi is characterized by its white and strong texture. In Gokayama, a region of heavy snowfall, the Kozo, the raw material for washi, is exposed to sunlight by exposing it to snow, which removes chlorophyll and allows the paper to be strong, white, and beautiful.
At Suganuma village The Nanto City Tourism Association, where Gokayama is located, has started rental bicycles such as e-bikes and cross bikes! With a bicycle, you can explore the Ainokura and Suganuma villages, ride through the wilderness with a spectacular view of the Shogawa Gorge, and eat local delicacies scattered throughout the area.
A battle of the Warring States period in your mouth! Salt Nitrate Ice Cream
Saltpeter ice creamGokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village, registered as a World Heritage site, was recognized for having established three industries as a factory: first, sericulture on the second floor in the summer; second, making Japanese paper on the earthen floor in the winter; and third, making "saltpeter," the material used to make gun powder for flintlock rifles, under the floor of the Gassho-Zukuri, as a military secret of the Kaga clan. The third is the making of saltpeter, the material used to make gunpowder for firearms. You can experience the history of the Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village through the "saltpeter aisu" sold at the "Oyasudo Arai" (resting place).
Recommended inns in the area! Omaki Onsen Kanko Ryokan, accessible only by boat
Open-air bath for women The hot water of Omaki Onsen is popular as a therapeutic hot spring bath that is effective against all illnesses. The salinity of the spring's chlorinated spring water helps to block the pores of the skin, making it difficult for the water to cool down once it has heated up. Since it is an isolated inn with a quiet atmosphere in the mountains, you can leave the hustle and bustle of daily life behind and enjoy an extraordinary stay.
Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village", the original landscape of Japan
We have introduced the charms of the World Heritage-listed Gokayama Gassho-Zukuri Village. Not only can you enjoy the original Japanese landscape, but you can also enjoy local cuisine and traditional crafts. Why not visit Gokayama, where you can enjoy a variety of landscapes each season? Gokayama in the snow
Location
Ainokura, Nanto City, Toyama 939-1915
*The contents and services in this article are subject to change.
*All images are for reference only.
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