In Japan now?
Practical guides for getting around, onsen etiquette and more.
From how to take a local bus to mastering the Japanese etiquette of baths.
How to ride the Toyama Chiho Railway between Toyama and Tateyama Station, the Toyama-side gateway to the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route: fares, train frequency, cash-only paper tickets, and why your JR Pass and Suica will not work.
Ride the Kita-Yatsugatake Ropeway to Tsuboniwa at 2,237m near Chino, Nagano: an easy loop walk over a lava plateau, moss forests, summit views, fares and timetables.
Murodo Station at 2,450m on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route: snow fields right outside the door in November, Tateyama panoramas, mountain huts, food, and what to wear.
Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route tickets explained step by step: web tickets, same-day purchase at Ogizawa, fares, baggage rules, luggage forwarding, and whether the Japan Rail Pass works.
Step-by-step route from Tokyo to Ogizawa Station, the eastern gateway of the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route: Hokuriku Shinkansen to Nagano, the Alpico express bus, and how to buy tickets.
Visiting Kurobe Dam, Japan's tallest arch dam on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route: the dam walk, observation deck, Lake Kurobe, discharge season, and how it differs from the Kurobe Gorge.
