Japanese Alps: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route

  Day 4: Nagano
Arrived in Nagano, we decided to take the day slow. Initially we thought of visiting the ninja temple which is  at least 1 hour away from Nagano town. After considering that we still had a few busy day ahead, we decided to just "lepak" in Nagano for the day and it turned out to be a wise decision. We manage to get lots of things done, and get adequate rest for the second leg of our journey.

Abest hotel may not score very high among certain website, but we had nothing but praise for this hotel. Just across the station, it is a stone throw away. The staff is so helpful that they help us save quite a bit using normal taikubin baggage delivery instead of the same day delivery recommended by the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route website. We just need to send our luggage a day earlier which is fine with us. The hotel also comes with free dinner. Yes, FREE dinner. And the room is comfortable with adequate room to move around.

Zenkoji Temple: We still manage to visit Zenkoji temple., Although with lots of Buddhism significance, after numerous temple that we visited in Japan, it did not impress me as much. I would still prefer the crowded Asakusa or the ones in Kyoto.

Day 5: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route
The actual day itself excites us a lot. We bought out Tateyama Kurobe Option ticket in Tokyo, so this is the time we put it into full use. Note that the ticket covers all the transport from Nagano to Toyama. Prepare for lots of transport changing, and using the option ticket, we do not need to buy any extra ticket. We could not book any of the transport ahead though. However, fear not, as being individual visitor, there is a separate line, and most of the bottle necks are stuck with groups. Do come early though so there will be more time to appreciate the Alps.


The highlight would be Tateyama snow mountain. From April to July, the authorities manage to dig a path among the thick snow for a road for buses. Walking along the majestic path is awesome, the highest point of the snow wall during our visit was 16m. There is even a snow maze for the inner child, and there are plenty of snow photo opportunity

The route ended in Toyama, it is time for us to rest. Being a firm believer in Toyoko Inn chain, the hotel is very tourist friendly and comfortable as long as we do not expect a huge room.

Link:
Introduction
Leg 1: Tokyo to Nagano
Leg 3: Visiting Chubu