Shirakawago and Hida Takayama Day Trip from Nagoya

Wonderful place

Our meeting place at ESCA mcdonalds. Staffs are great and our trip was not tiring and we were given enough time to relax and explore the place.

Response from the operator: Thank you for the positive review. We are glad to hear you had a good time and that the staff were friendly and attentive to your needs. We look forward to serving you again in the future!

via Viator

If you want a Transportation Tour this is Perfect

I booked the Day Trip for Takayama and Shirakawa-Go online on the Yokoso website for 17000 yen per person. This price included a lunch with chicken. I corresponded with them with a few questions prior to booking and responses were very quick which I appreciated. Full payment was made online and with a credit card. I had no issues paying with a US credit card. There was a clear map of where to meet at 7:50 am on the day of our tour. We were staying at the Marriott Nagoya so getting there was a breeze. We even did a dry run the day before to make sure we knew where it was. On the day of the tour, there was much activity because not only does Yokoso meet here (in front of McDonald's) but since Yokoso has multiple tours, there were a ton of people there. We were returned back to Nagoya Station at around 7:30 pm. It looked like there was 1 bus of Japanese speaking tourists and another for us - English and Chinese. We had a full bus and it was one of those mega buses. We booked this tour Saturday, January 4. We had around 40 people on the bus but everyone respected each other's time and came back when our tour guide told us to. Also, they give you seat assignments which I really liked since there is no fighting for seats. The seats were OK. Not overly spacious. Here is how our day went: 8 am - left Nagoya Station 9:30 am - first toilet stop for 20 minutes 11 am - arrive at lunch. The lunch included a small portion of chicken cooked over your own pot. It would have been nice if beef was offered since this area is known for Beef Noon - depart from lunch 12:10 pm - 1:50 pm - 1 hour 40 minutes for Takayama 2 pm - leave for Shirakawa-Go 3 pm - 5 pm - 2 hours for Shirakawa-Go 7:30 pm back to Nagoya Station with 1 restroom break This is not a guided tour. You are given a walking map and a brief description and you are off to wander on your own. Very little information was given by our guide. On the bus, our guide asked if we needed them to get us tickets to the Shirakawa-Go open air museum for 600 yen per person. We did end up having them do this but it is not necessary. You can get this ticket yourself. Also, in Shirakawa-Go, you can walk 15 minutes from town and go up to the observatory which gives you a higher view of the town. I thought overall, this was a good tour for us because we like to walk around on our own without following a guide. And we didn't have to worry about transportation and getting from Takayama to Shirakawa-Go. The time given was perfect. I would recommend doing a little bit of research before hand since it is not a guided tour. You might want to tag some places for a snack.

Response from the operator: Wow, thank you for such a detailed and wonderful review! I'm sure many customers thinking of joining this tour will really appreciate this review. We are glad that you mentioned that this is not a guided tour, which is important to be aware of. The tour conductor ensures that the tour goes smoothly, but they are not a qualified sightseeing guide, so are not required to provide detailed sightseeing information (they can of course if they wish!) We hope to be able to serve you again in the near future.

via Tripadvisor

A long day, but good way to see sites for quick visit

Enjoyed this tour overall. Took the English tour which was really a combination Japanese/English tour.There was also one bus which was mostly Chinese visitors. The guide was average in English proficiency. Felt like much more information was given for Japanese speakers. It would be much better if a reading guide was provided, maybe a re-usable laminated sheet which includes information on the areas, history, construction methods of the Shirakawago village, etc. The meal provided was excellent, the stop was prepared and ready with food hot and it was ready to serve. It also has a gift shop on one floor. There are no toilets on the bus, but it does make one stop along the route. The time in Takayama was short, just long enough to go up one shopping street and back.There was not information given about Takayama and found out days later it was known for furniture artisans. Shirakawago stop was 2 hours, the only recommendation would be for the bridge to walk into the village to be cleared of ice and snow daily. It was very slick the day we went and crowded. People stop on the bridge to take pictures and made it even more hazardous to walk across. There are about 45 people per bus when the tour is full, which is fine except when some don't get back to the bus at appointed hour. Despite minor problems this trip is recommended.

Response from the operator: Dear MrsGTravel Thank you very much for your review. We are glad to know that you enjoyed the tour. The tour you joined was a mixture of Japanese and non-Japanese customers with English language support. Although our language support service does not cover guiding at sightseeing spots,​ we are sorry that we made you feel that you were less informed during the tour. We will take your review seriously for our future service and consider your suggestion of an information sheet for non-Japanese speakers. Also, thank you very much for your opinion that the time schedule at Takayama was tight and the situation at Shirakawago. We appreciate your honest review and it will be a great help for creating a better itinerary as we believe that the customer​s'​ honest voice​ is the most valuable resource for improving our service. Please keep in touch with YOKOSO Japan customer service and we look forward to serving you on your next journey. Sincerely,

via Tripadvisor

Overwhelmed with snow

We went on this trip to Shirakawa in late December, precisely to appreciate it amidst wintry scenery. But on the day of our on 28 Dec 2018, the snowfall was heavy and it was -8C. Very cold.The grounds in several parts became slippery, and because we only had 90 minutes for the tour, plus the fact there were so many tourists that day tiptoeing across the bridge (to avoid falling or sliding down the slippery trail) to go to the other side of the village where the renowned Wada house is located, we confined ourselves within the area with less houses. No way we could go to the observatory. Anyway, it was enough experience under such weather conditions. Takayama, which was the first stop and was allocated almost an hour, was not easy to visit on a go-around-by-yourself basis. The map provided by the guide was not detailed enough - not all streets both on the map and the actual ones themselves were labelled with names. Or if there were street signs, they were in Japanese characters. Difficult and troublesome! because of time limitation, we could not find two places we wanted to see and we just headed back to the tour bus lest we be left behind.Despite the minor disappointments, overall the trip was alright. The tour gave us a sense of Takayama and Shirakawa. A final note: lunch was quite good. Quantity, taste and presentation were adequate. No issues.

via Viator

Bus Trip to an otherwise out of the way destination.

I enjoyed this trip and was especially impressed by the village of Shirakawago. I attended with my partner. These are the top 3 things we loved; 1. Spending two hours in Shirakawago and entering all the traditional homes. 2. The kindness of the guide. 3. The lunch whic was traditional and an unique experience which left you very full!The only down sides: 1. From an english only speaker point of view I wish our guide could communicate more detailed explainations about the places we were going in english. He had effective english but not enough to go into the finer explainations of places and details that we asked about. We didnt have an english helper on our trip. 2. I wish had arrived earlier in Takayama in order to attend the the 2 local markets. Over all a super relaxing and well organised day. I recommend.

via Viator