Takayama Things to Do

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The hiking trail starts in Teramachi temple district. Around here there's dozens of temples and shrines. It is then taking you past rural suburbs and through the hills of Shiroyama Park where you'll find the ruins of Takayama's castle. The trail is about 3,5km and you don't need a map, there's signs all the way leading you right.

The walking course was a nice way to spend a few hours after the crowds in Sannomachi area. The view from Shiroyama Park is nice but not breathtaking. However it was from up there I discovered the golden roof of The Mahikari Main World Shrine and I had to extend the walk across whole of Takayama to get a closer look. (See seperate tip.)

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ASAICHI - morning markets.

The markets open already at 6am and its a great experience strolling past the small booths together with the residents of Takayama. Whats on offer is mostly vegetables, flowers, clothes and local handicraft. Of course hundreds and hundreds of Sarubobo's are to be found in various sizes and colours. (For Sarubobo, see seperate tip..)

Markets end around 10am. They're on 7 days a week (I think they're on Sundays too..). You will find them around Miyagawa area (river area).

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This part of Takayama dates back to the as early as the 1600s to 1870 (Edo period). This was a time when the area was full of wealthy merchants. Today there's lots of coffeehouses, sake breweries, traditional shops, old homes and a few museums and galleries where you can see local craft and arts.

Not to be missed:
Takayama Jinya - a traditional building which used to be the government building.
Sake Breweries - look for the sugidama hanging over their entrances. Sugidama is balls made of cedar branches.
Fujii Art (or Folk) Gallery - exhibits household items and art objects.
Hirata Kinenkan - a former merchant home now open to the public.
Kusakabe Heritage House - one of the oldest homes in Takayama.

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This is an open-air museum of 30 traditional farmhouses surrounding a small lake, or large pond. This was a pleasant way to spend an afternoon. Most of the old farm houses are open so you can get a sense of how they lived back then. There are also some other antiques, such as fire-fighting equipment and sleighs. Our four year old daughter also enjoyed it.

We were there in April. There was still some snow on the ground and it was quite chilly. There is a sitting room by the entrance that has a couple of heaters going to warm you up.

There are two parallel streets which run about 4 blocks or so filled with 18th century homes and merchant shops. The historic district is called Sanmachi Suji and is worth a half day of strolling and browsing. There are antique shops, sake shops, and stores selling handicrafts. etc.

So you've taken the bus out to Hida Folk village and been charmed by the timeless tradition of it all. Now, walk down the hill for about five minutes - past the cheesy teddy bear centre, and take the drive up to the Hida Takayama Museum of Art. Quite an astonishing find, a wonderful collection of glass art and Arts and Crafts Furniture. The staff were even kind enough to call us a taxi back down into the city centre when we'd done. Allow 30-40 minutes to see the whole place - NB this doesn't always fit brilliantly with the round trip bus timetable, but it's a cheap trip in a taxi back to the station.

Takayama's main attraction is its old merchants' houses, which are clustered together in San-machi Suji on three narrow streets called Ichino-machi, Nino-machi, and Sanno-machi. It's nice to stroll along these streets and enjoy the ambience of an old era.

In addition, there are also shops selling Takayama's specialties, including sake, yew wood carvings, and a unique lacquerware called shunkei-nuri.

For more pictures, please see travelogue.

We woke up early in Takayama and feeling hungry, we headed to Miyagawa morning market. It's very picturesque, with cloth-covered stalls selling fresh vegetables, flowers, pickled vegetables, locally made crafts, tidbits and toys.

We love the Japanese snack shops selling local tidbits like crackers and nuts as they allow us to sit down, sample as much as we want and even provide green tea to wash everything down.

You can say that we had breakfast on the move! Go between 7.30 - 11.30am to get the most out of its atmosphere.

The market stretches on the east bank of the Miyagawa River between Kajibashi and Yayoibashi bridges. It's just 10 minutes from the train station.