I posted my tentative itinerary for a fall trip(mid to late November) a while back and I’m tweaking it based on feedback I got. We will be in Japan on my husband birthday so I want to do something special with him. It will be our third trip and he’s expressed wanting to go to the Go Nagai Wonderland museum in Wajima but he feelt like it’s too far so he didn’t say anything when I planned before. There seems to be some interesting things in the area so I think we can make it worth it.
I’m trying to figure out what’s the best way to get to Wajima since it’s not a usual touristy spot and we’ve never been to that prefecture. We will be spending 2 weeks in Japan, most of the time in Kansai, based in Kyoto and a couple of days in Tokyo. We’ll probably be getting a JR pass if it’s worth it overall, it should cover the trip to Kanazawa from either city from what I’ve found. Should we:
– go from Kyoto to Wajima by public transportation all the way, and stay in Kanazawa or any other neat acomodation in the area accessible by public transport
– go from Kyoto to Kanazawa by train, spend a night then rent a car the next day to drive to Wajima and back and sight see along the way
– go from Tokyo to Wajima on a domestic flight from Haneda to the noto peninsula airport (to avoid the 5+ hour train/bus rides)
– go from Tokyo to Kanazawa – Wajima by public transportation
Any feedback is appreciated, I can also add more details if needed.
3 comments
Wajima is on the Noto peninsula which has some nice things to see. You might consider visiting some of them as well, which could help inform your decision.
>go from Kyoto to Wajima by public transportation all the way, and stay in Kanazawa or any other neat acomodation in the area accessible by public transport
Easiest way is probably by bus from Kanazawa. [https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4255.html](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4255.html)
>go from Kyoto to Kanazawa by train, spend a night then rent a car the next day to drive to Wajima and back and sight see along the way
This would be my personal recommendation.
>go from Tokyo to Wajima on a domestic flight from Haneda to the noto peninsula airport (to avoid the 5+ hour train/bus rides)
You could do this, but between having to get to the airport a little earlier, check-in, etc., you may not end up saving all that much time. Also, it would not be covered by the JR pass, obviously, and I think it’s usually a good idea to get a JR pass if you’re near the break-even point, which means this could add extra cost to your trip.
>go from Tokyo to Kanazawa – Wajima by public transportation
This is the same as from Kyoto, as the JR line runs from Tokyo to Kyoto via Kanazawa anyway (Tokyo-Kanazawa Hokuriku Shinkansen, Kanazawa-Kyoto/Osaka Thunderbird Limited Express).
Also consider checking out the dinosaur museum in Fukui – I thoroughly enjoyed it myself. It’s a bit out of the way by public transport (but doable) but if you plan to rent a car, it’s probably easier. It’s in Katsuyama, a 1hr40m drive from Kanazawa. A couple other places that are nice to visit are Echizen and Tojinbo. Public transportation is available to both these locations but not the most convenient. It might be plausible to stay in Fukui for a night and rent a car for two days if you think you might do these things.
Given that this is your third time, I assume you’ve seen a fair bit of Kyoto/Tokyo so I think giving more time to the Hokuriku area, especially Noto peninsula, would be a great idea.
Train from Kyoto to Kanazawa, then rental car to drive all over the Noto Peninsula area (including Wajima). It’s a charming place with plenty of things to do, see, eat, etc. Other places within Noto I’ve been (and would recommend) are Wakura Onsen, Suzu, and the Chirihama beach drive (since you are taking the driving option).
Sidebar: Sea of Japan seafood is, IMHO, the best seafood in Japan, in terms of price/performance ratio.
I went to Wajima (and all of Noto) in October.
The public transit situation on Noto is VERY limited and you’ll want to see things at your own leisure because it’s a VERY beautiful region with a lot of interesting things to see/do **if** you’re able to reach said places.
As such: The best thing to do is to go to Kanazawa by Shinkansen (if you’ll have a rail pass) and then rent a car. Wajima is about 2hrs from Kanazawa.
Also, I suggest staying overnight at least one night in Noto. It’ll give you more time to see things and will eliminate issues with the drive time.