VISIT KANAZAWA, JAPAN - Official Travel Guide

The top three popular sights of neighboring prefecture Fukui would be Eiheiji Temple, head temple of Soto School of Zen Buddhism, the Tojinbo Cliffs that jut into the Japan Sea and the Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum, one of the world’s top three dinosaur museums. To get to Tojinbo, take a bus from JR Awaraonsen Station and for Eiheiji, catch a bus from JR Fukui Station. They are both around 1.5 hours from Kanazawa Station. The dinosaur museum is about 2 hours from Kanazawa as there is a train change at Fukui Station followed by a bus ride. By car, it is possible to tour all of these destinations in a single day from Kanazawa. 

For those who like old townscapes and buildings, we recommend sightseeing in the three gassho-zukuri villages registered as World Heritage Sites. From Kanazawa Station, Gokayama is one hour away by express bus and it takes one hour and 15 minutes to reach Shirakawa-go, so they are truly close by. The largest of the villages is Ogimachi Village in Shirakawa-go, where the view from the lookout is sensational. The two villages of Gokayama are not as big, but offer a more rustic atmosphere. From Shirakawa-go, you can take an express bus to Hida-Takayama, getting there in an hour.

Ride the local train about 30 minutes from Nomachi Station in Kanazawa and you will arrive at Tsurugi Station, last stop on the line. Then set out along the road toward Shirayama Hime Shrine, where you will find a lineup of highly appealing little shops such as sake breweries, koji shops and hardware stores. A city bus will also take you to the shrine, but be sure to walk one way at least (it takes approximately 30 minutes). There is plenty else to see here too: the Ishikawa Insect Museum, where butterflies are in flight year-round, Kinkengu Shrine, a famous power spot to seek improved financial fortunes, and Jumoku Park, where you can enjoy different satoyama landscape in every season.

The four hot springs that make up the Kaga Onsen area are Awazu, Katayamazu, Yamashiro and Yamanaka. Each of these spa towns has its own unique “soyu” or public bath, which you must see for yourself. Another delight here is the profusion of galleries, museums, kilns and shops offering ceramic painting, because it is here that Kutani ceramics are crafted, now and in centuries past. The most convenient transport option to tour the area by far is the CANBUS tour bus, which departs from JR Kaga Onsen Station on a circuit taking in the sights of Kaga and Komatsu.

Characterized by a satoyama and satoumi socio-ecological production landscape, the Noto Peninsula is a registered site of Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS). To reach Wakura Onsen, the hot spring town perched on the calm waters of Nanao Bay and Notojima Aquarium, where dolphin encounters await, catch the bus from JR Wakura Onsen Station. If heading for the Okunoto area including Wajima and Suzu, the express bus from Kanazawa Station is the most convenient option. If driving, we recommend taking your car onto the Chirigahama Nagisa Driveway for a once-in-a-lifetime experience, then linking up to the route along the jagged coastline of the Noto Kongo featuring cliffs and rocks eroded remarkably by millions of years Japan Sea wave action. This is especially romantic late in the day.