Oku-Hida Onsen Villages

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The Oku-Hida Onsen Villages (?????? Oku-Hida Onseng?) are a group of 5 remote hot spring (Jp. onsen) villages, nestled deep in the Japan Alps of Gifu prefecture.

From north to south, the five villages are Shin-Hotaka (???), Tochio (??), Shin-Hirayu (???), Fukuchi (??) and Hirayu (??).

	oku-hida Travel Guide : 1 Get in and around 2 See 3 Do 4 Buy 5 Eat 6 Drink 7 Sleep 8 Get out 9 External links

Get in and around

Travel to and between any of the 5 villages will require a vehicle of some sort. The easiest option is a direct bus from Shinjuku in Tokyo (4.5h, ¥5700). Alternatively, take a train to the nearest stations Matsumoto (if coming from the east) or Hida-Takayama (if coming from the west), then hop on a bus for the final leg (1.5h and ¥2300-2800 from Matsumoto, 50 min from Takayama).

To free yourself from limited bus schedules, this is one of those few places in Japan where renting a car may be a good option. Note that the mountain roads, while often scenic, are slow, twisty and tiring to drive, and are not a good place to learn to drive on the left.

See

• Every village has an open-air bath (???? rotenburo) open to the public for free or a token fee. Note that these are communal and mixed, ladies wishing to retain their modesty may wish to bring a bathing suit.

• Hirayu Waterfall (???? Hirayu ?taki) is a 64-meter high waterfall a few minutes south of Hirayu by car. Well marked and easily accessible along a short path, in winter the frozen waterfall is illuminated. Occasional buses, but check schedules carefully so you don't get stranded.

Do

Being located in the heart of the northern Japan Alps, there are copious opportunities for hiking in the area, but do your research beforehand as many of the mountains are quite tough and the climbing season is very short — many peaks will still be covered in snow in June. A popular, if fairly challenging, three-day course is to scale all three peaks listed below in a row, crossing over from Oku-Hida to Kamikochi (or vica versa).

• Mt. Yarigatake (???, 3180m), which means "Spear Mountain" for a reason, is occasionally dubbed Japan's Matterhorn.

• Mt. Okuhotakadake (????, 3190m) is the third-highest mountain in Japan.

• Mt. Nishi-Hotakadake (????, 2908m) is easier than most thanks in no small part to the cable car from Shin-Hotaka which takes you halfway up (¥1500/2800 one-way/return, plus ¥300 for large packs).

Buy

Eat

The Hida region is well known for its fatty, well marbled beef and you are practically guaranteed to get a taste of it at dinner. Prices tend to be fairly stratospheric though.

Drink

Sleep

There are plentiful accommodation options in the villages, but most of it is distinctly high-end. Pretty much the only budget option is camping... but, then again, if you're going to splurge one on your Japan trip this is quite possibly the best place to do it. Unless otherwise noted, all prices listed below are per person with two meals included.

• Yari-no-Sato (???, tel. 0578-9-3434, 1 (http://www5.ocn.ne.jp/~yari/)) in Shin-Hotaka is an outstanding little inn featuring no less than 2 indoor and 3 outdoor baths, with all outdoor baths reservable for private use for you and yours. Note that, unlike most lodgings in the area, the rooms here are Western style (beds, not tatami) and the lodge itself is a Japanese fantasy of a Swiss chalet. ¥13000 and up.

Get out

External links

• Oku-Hida Tourism Association (http://www.okuhida.or.jp/) (in Japanese)

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