Toyama Prefecture is located almost equal distance from Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya. It is approximately two hours on the Hokuriku Shinkansen between Tokyo and Toyama.
Nanto City in southwest Toyama is home to the Gokayama Gassho-style Villages, a registered UNESCO World Heritage site. The villages’ large ‘Gassho’ thatched-roof houses are thought to date back to the 17th century and are a unique architectural style of the Gokayama region, which is well-known as an area with some of Japan’s heaviest snowfall. People still live within the villages today and some still live a traditional lifestyle. Once you enter a village, you can see the beautiful scenery interwoven with mountains and fields; and in winter, a fantastic world of pure white snow awaits.
Travellers can enjoy many aspects of Japanese culture in the villages. In Ainokura Village, you can experience traditional washi papermaking. Gokayama’s washi paper has been made for over 400 years and is famous for the paper’s quality and integrity that remain unchanged even after a century. There are washi-made handicrafts available for purchase and are perfect souvenirs for travellers to take home. Ainokura also has a 300-year-old thatched-roof guesthouse where travellers can spend the night, sit around a traditional sunken fireplace, and enjoy local village cuisine made with ingredients from Gokayama.
Toyama Bay is known as Toyama’s nature preserve and is famous for Toyama Bay Sushi which uses fresh local fish. Surrounded by 3000-metre-tall mountains and a 1000-metre-deep bay, Toyama Prefecture harbours a variety of delicious fish and produces well-matured rice. In the winter months, travellers can savour winter Japanese amberjacks in their most fatty state and red snow crabs known as ‘Koshi red snow crabs’ that are caught along the Toyama Bay coast.
Toyama Prefecture has many more attractions to offer besides its Gassho Style Villages and seafood, so please come and explore them for yourself!
