Guides
Trip essentials
Tickets, driving, lodging, food and luggage for a Yamanashi trip.
What each guide answers
- Trains and ticketsLimited express Azusa and Kaiji have no unreserved cars. South of Kofu you leave JR East for JR Central, and IC cards stop working at the stations you need.Seat rulesTicketless bookingRail passesIC card limitsUnstaffed stationsRead
- Renting a carWhat counts as a valid licence in Japan, what the two rental offices in front of Kofu Station include in their cover, and what to know before you drive on the left.Licence rulesInsuranceETC tollsRoad rulesWinter tyresRead
- Where to stayWhere you stay makes a big difference to how much time you have the next morning. The guide compares the hot spring towns, the lakeside cabins and the station hotels for each way of travelling.Shimobe-OnsenIsawa-OnsenKoanKofu StationBooking notesRead
- Luggage and hands-free travelThe stations at the Yamanashi end have stairs and no lockers. Where to leave the large case in Shinjuku, what it costs, and the closing time that catches people out on the way back.Station lockersStaffed counterShop storageLate returnsWhat to carryRead
- Where to eatThe places from the series, the regional dishes worth the detour, and — more usefully — which of them close on the day you were planning to go.Closing daysCash onlyDinner near your hotelBackup optionsRead