Lake Biwa

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Lake Biwa (??? Biwa-ko) is Japan's largest freshwater lake and the defining feature of Shiga prefecture.

	lake biwa Travel Guide : 1 Understand 2 Cities 3 Other destinations 4 Get in 4.1 By train 5 Get around 5.1 By train 5.2 By boat 6 See 7 Do 8 Eat 9 Drink 10 Sleep 11 External links

Understand

The lake is most likely named after the Japanese stringed instrument biwa, whose shape resembles the lake. The entire lake is now designated as a protected Quasi-National Park.

Cities

• Hikone — an old castle town on the route between Kyoto and Nagoya
• Otsu — the capital of Shiga prefecture
• Sakamoto — gateway to Mount Hiei

Other destinations

• Mount Hiei — temple complex home to the esoteric Tendai sect of Buddhism
• The islands of Chikubu and Okishima in the lake are popular spots of pilgrimage.

Get in

By train

The JR Tokaido Main Line and the Tokaido Shinkansen lines run more or less along the southern and eastern coasts of the lake, connecting Otsu and Hikone to Kyoto and Osaka in the west and Nagoya in the east. The private Keihan Keishin Line (?????) provides the cheapest way of getting from Kyoto to Otsu and onward with a change of train to Sakamoto.

Get around

By train

The quieter western and northern coasts are covered by the JR Kosei Line (???).

By boat

Cruises around the lake and ferries to Chikubu and Okishima depart from Otsu and Hikone. The main operator is Biwako Kisen, 1 (http://www.biwakokisen.co.jp/) (Japanese only).

See

Largely covered in thickets of reeds, it would be a stretch to call Lake Biwa particularly scenic, but it attracts many birds and along with them birdwatchers.

Do

Lake Biwa's tourism industry subsists on fishing, boat rentals and a tame assortment of watersports, including even scuba diving for those who want to plumb the depths of this rather murky lake.

Eat

Drink

Sleep

• Wanihama Seinen Kaikan (???????). Tel. 077-594-4203, 2 (http://www.jyh.or.jp/english/kinki/wanihama/). If you want to experience truly rural Japan, this is it. The hostel is a huge, rambling, decrepit complex of buildings maintained (in the loosest sense of the word) by an old couple, who add up your bill with an abacus! Located inconveniently 1.5km through rice paddies from JR Wani station, on the western shore of the lake. The upside is the price: one night costs just ¥2800 for HI members, and odds are you'll get your own room complete with private bathroom and TV for this.

External links

• Department of Lake Biwa and Environment, Shiga Prefecture (http://www.pref.shiga.jp/biwako/koai/english/eng_top.htm)
• Lake Biwa Research Institute (http://www.lbri.go.jp/lbri/default.htm)

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