Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [223]
Magome-Chaya (; 59-2038; www.magomechaya.com; s/d ¥5250/8190) This friendly, well-kept restaurant and minshuku is in the centre of Magome, near the water wheel. Japanese-style meals (reservations recommended; breakfast ¥1050, dinner ¥3150) are quite large.
Minshuku Daikichi (; 57-2595; fax 57-2203; r per person ¥9000) Popular with foreign visitors, this place feels very traditional – with handsome tatami rooms and fine wood features – despite its 1970s construction. All rooms have a view. It’s at the edge of Tsumago (take the right-hand fork uphill from the centre).
Matsushiro-ya (; 57-3022; fax 57-3386; r per person ¥10,500; Thu-Tue) One of Tsumago’s most historic lodgings (parts date from 1804), Matsushiro-ya sits on the village’s most picturesque street and offers large tatami rooms.
Fujioto (; 57-3009; www.takenet.or.jp/~fujioto; r per person ¥11,550) Another much-photographed, excellent ryokan, this place has impressive old-style rooms and a graceful garden, which you can enjoy over lunch such as Kiso Valley trout (teishoku ¥1500). It’s a few doors down from the Waki-honjin in Tsumago.
Stalls throughout Tsumago sell street foods, and there are a few little shokudō (all-round restaurants) near the path to the car park. Yoshimura-ya (; 57-3265; dishes ¥700-1500; lunch, closed Thu) is typical and has an English menu; its speciality is handmade soba – try it with tempura.
GETTING THERE & AWAY
Nakatsugawa and Nagiso Stations on the JR Chūō line serve Magome and Tsumago, respectively, though both are still at some distance. Nakatsugawa is connected with Nagoya (tokkyū, ¥2740, 47 minutes) and Matsumoto (tokkyū, ¥3980, 1¼ hours). A few tokkyū daily stop in Nagiso (from Nagoya ¥3080, one hour); otherwise change at Nakatsugawa (futsū ¥320, 20 minutes).
Buses leave hourly from Nakatsugawa Station for Magome (¥540, 30 minutes). There’s also an infrequent bus service between Magome and Tsumago (¥600, 25 minutes), via Magome-tōge.
Buses run between Tsumago and Nagiso Station (¥270, 10 minutes, eight per day), or it’s an hour’s walk.
Highway buses operate between Magome and Nagoya’s Meitetsu Bus Centre (¥1810, 1½ hours), as well as Tokyo’s Shinjuku Station (¥4500, 4½ hours). These stop at the nearby interchange (Magome Intah, ), from where it’s about 1.3km on foot uphill, unless it’s timed with the bus from Nakatsugawa.
Kiso-Fukushima
North of Tsumago and Magome and considerably more developed, Kiso-Fukushima’s historical significance makes it a worthy few-hour side trip en route to these towns or from Matsumoto. It was an important checkpoint on the Nakasendō, and the town centre boasts a picturesque district of old residences.
From the station, cross the street and pick up an English map at the simple tourist office (; Kisomachi Kankō Kyōkai; 22-4000; 9am-4.45pm), and head down the hill towards the town centre. Sights are well signposted. To your right, between the Kiso-gawa and the train tracks, is Ue-no-dan (), the old historic district full of atmospheric houses, many of which now serve as shops, cafes and galleries.
Another several minutes’ walk leads you to the Fukushima Sekisho-ato (; Fukushima Checkpoint Site; 23-2595; adult/child ¥300/150; 8am-5.30pm Apr-Oct, 8.30am-4.30pm Nov-Mar), a reconstruction of one of the most significant checkpoints on the Edo-period trunk roads (see the boxed text). From its perch above the river valley, it’s easy to see the barrier’s strategic importance. Displays inside show the implements used to maintain order, including weaponry and tegata (wooden travel passes), as well as the special treatment women travellers received.
Kurumaya Honten (; 22-2200; mains ¥577-1575; 10am-5pm Thu-Tue) is one of Japan’s most renowned soba shops. The classic presentation is cold mori (plain) or zaru (with strips of nori seaweed) on lacquer trays with a sweetish dipping sauce, or try it with daikon orishi (grated daikon radish) or hot with jidori (free-range chicken). It’s just before the first bridge at the bottom of the hill from the station – look for the gears above the