Day Tour from Kanazawa OR Toyama: Snow Wall and Mysterious Valley
Description
The stunning Japanese Alps stretch from the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan with beautiful scenery throughout. The Northern Alps in Toyama is the famous Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route. This route stretches across a mountain range and goes over magnificent gorges, charming lakes and seemingly endless highlands. During the winter time this area is transformed into a white paradise, with snows walls that can stretch as high as 20 meters(60 feet). On this tour you will ride one of our company buses to get to Murodo, where you can walk along this snow wall and enjoy the other winter sights in the area. On the way there, we will have a brief stop in Ashikuraji, the traditional start of the climb to Mt. Tateyama. Learn about how people viewed heaven and hell and this mountains role in those. Let’s venture together into history and then the “Roof of Japan” and revel in this mountains region’s beauty.
Tour Options
Itinerary
After about an hour and a half we will arrive at the base of Mt. Tateyama at Oyama Shrine. This was where most hikers and pilgrims would start their ascent to the top of the mountain, the same area where we will be going later. Mt. Tateyama was worshipped as a place of hell and heaven and in this town, you can see the hell side of the mountain. Enma-do is unusual as it is a place to worship Enma, the god that decides who goes to heaven and hell. Down the ravine slightly is also the bridge that represents the divide between the world of the living and the world of the dead. After that little bit of exploration we will hop back on the bus and restart our journey to the top.
Arrive at Murodo Station. Walk along the intimidating snow walls and across the snow fields on the "Roof of Japan." Enjoy the winter wonderland at the top of the Tateyama mountain range. Vast amounts of snow fall on the landscape each winter making it inaccessible until spring brings warming temperatures and the chance to carve a route through the ice. Rising up to 20 meters above, the stunning snow corridor is one of Japan’s most iconic sights dwarfing people and tours buses alike! Your guide will allow you between 1.5-2 hours to stroll the area (depending on the pace of your), including time to explore the museum and surrounding area. At 15:30, group back up and begin your journey back to Tateyama Station. Arrive back at Tateyama Station and get on the tour bus back to Kanazawa Station as you edit the great pictures of all the natural beauty you saw during the trip. Estimated arrival time back at Kanazawa Station is 19:00
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Travel time is already included in the tour duration
- All listed events, activities, and experiences are subject to availability. Please note that while certain tour options may appear bookable through our platforms, this does not guarantee that every experience can be carried out as scheduled in the tour itinerary. Many activities require direct confirmation with our partner venues, and availability may vary based on the date and other factors. Should any part of your ordered itinerary require adjustment or deviation from the original schedule, or if a specific experience is unavailable, we will contact you promptly to discuss suitable alternatives or amendments.
Reviews(36)
Zack and Kaori were awesome for the Tateyama snow wall tour! I really enjoyed learning about the history/cultural significance of the mountain, and being given ample amount of time to explore as well.
We had such a great day tour to the alpine region of Mt Tateyama lead by the very knowledgeable Daniel and excellent driver Keira. Daniel explained our route and stops we would make along the way and what to expect. Really glad we chose this tour, which offered private transport all the way to the top at Murodo. We stopped at Oyama Shrine in Ashikuraji and walked down to the red bridge - a beautiful peaceful area, and visited another shrine nearby. Daniel explained the history and significance of the shrines and traditions still practiced today. Once we got to the top at Murodo Daniel showed us around and gave us all the tips to enjoy the free time to wander around the area. It can be very busy with lots of people but Daniel made it easy. We were shown the museum and replica Shrine, and learned more about the traditions of Mt. Tateyama, wildlife and flowers. There is the 'pond', which is amazing with beautiful water colours, and of course the snow wall. Gorgeous visitas everywhere around us! We even got to see snow monkeys on the way back down. Thank you Daniel!
Daniel and Kaori made this trip wonderful. Daniel was helpful, professional, and easygoing, while they were always welcoming with a warm smile. We truly appreciated their kindness and hospitality.
Great trip, very knowledgeable guide, safe driver and we were super lucky with the weather and seeing monkeys! Thank you
Tour guide Zack was very knowledgeable & friendly & helpful & informative. He shared a lot of relevant & important tips all d time. Excellent guide.
It was an interesting day because Daniel knows a lot to tell. He speaks good English and takes his time. The snow wall is impressive but because of clouds the surroundings could not be seen. There's nothing the guide can do about this.
Great day out to the snow wall. Andy was an excellent guide, friendly and easy to talk to. Instructions were clear and he took pains to explain the history of the shrine we went to. Our driver was also excellent. Steady at the wheel and patient. Stopping at various points to highlight scenic spots
Mr. Andrew, or Andy for short, did an excellent job. He provided detailed introductions for every attraction. Highly recommended!
we did a tour with Andy and it was great despite the weather!!! we learnt a lot about the area and had great conversations. Andy and Fujito-san went above and beyond and gave us good recommendations :-)
I booked a return tour from Nagano to the Tateyama Snow Wall and met my lovely guide Mr Naoya Harada (Hana) and I told him that I needed to end my trip at Toyama instead and he was really nice to link me up with Mike (this Scottish funny guy) who happens to be taking a group from Toyama. Both guides were so nice and helpful with our needs and take really good care of us during the times we are with them. Highly recommend this tour to save a lot of unnecessary waiting time and the journey was so smooth. I was so glad I booked the trip during this golden week in Japan.
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