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2024 edition [Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture] Summary of access methods from Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, and Kanazawa to Tsuruga, the "town of railways and ports"
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Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, known as a railway and port town, is a popular tourist spot for railway heritage tourism, Japan heritage sites (Meganebashi, former Owada Bank headquarters), and seafood from the Sea of Japan. Tsuruga in Fukui Prefecture, known as a railway and port town, is full of railway heritage tourism, Japanese heritage sites (Meganebashi, former Owada Bank headquarters), and local gourmet food such as seafood from the Sea of Japan! On March 16, 2024, the Hokuriku Shinkansen ...
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On March 16, 2024, the Hokuriku Shinkansen opened between Kanazawa Station and Tsuruga Station. Tsuruga Station will be the terminus from both the Tokyo and Kansai areas, and is attracting a lot of attention. Tsuruga is a city of railways and ports, and the Shinkansen opened in the town where the first railway ran on the Sea of Japan side, so it is popular among people other than railway fans. There are many tourist spots scattered around, and after the opening of the mountain-side Japan Heritage Old Hokuriku Line Tunnels Heritage Group, the direct train "Europe-Asia International Express" ran to Tsuruga Port, which developed into one of the leading international ports on the Sea of Japan side. We will continue to offer route buses and tour plans, such as new tourist routes of Japan Heritage on the sea side along the Tsuruga Port Line. Come and go on a trip with exciting experiences beyond your imagination.
Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture - A Place Full of Retro Charm
Tsuruga is located in the central-southern part of Fukui Prefecture and has been a key port for maritime traffic with the continent since ancient times. It was the first town on the Sea of Japan coast to have a railway, and is a Japanese heritage site called "Railway Beyond the Sea: A Miracle of Railways Connecting the World." It is full of tourist spots such as the Railway Museum, red brick warehouses and other buildings overflowing with retro romance, as well as beautiful shrines and temples. Furthermore, facing the Sea of Japan, you can enjoy fresh seafood.
Check out Tsuruga's tourist information!
How to get to Tsuruga from Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, and Kanazawa
Tsuruga City in Fukui Prefecture can be accessed by air and land from major cities. Here we will introduce how to get to Tsuruga from Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, and Kanazawa.
How to get to Tsuruga from Tokyo
If you are traveling by plane, bus, or train: Use Komatsu Airport
From Haneda Airport (ANA/JAL), take about 1 hour 5 minutes to Komatsu Airport. Take a bus for about 12 minutes to JR Komatsu Station. Take the JR Shirasagi Express for about 1 hour 4 minutes to JR Tsuruga Station.
By train :
・From Tokyo, take the Tokaido Shinkansen Hikari to Maibara Station in about 2 hours and 15 minutes. Transfer to the JR Shirasagi Limited Express to Tsuruga Station in about 25 minutes.
・[After March 16, 2024] After the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen from Kanazawa Station to Tsuruga Station opens, you can travel from Tokyo to Tsuruga Station on the Hokuriku Shinkansen Kagayaki in approximately 3 hours and 8 minutes without changing trains.
Directions from Tokyo are also listed here.
If you have a Japan Rail Pass, you can travel at a discount
If you are a tourist visiting Japan and have a Japan Rail Pass (JR Pass), you can use JR lines and Shinkansen trains as much as you like, so we recommend it to save on transportation costs. In addition, when using the JR Pass, you can use the "Hikari" train on the Tokaido Shinkansen. *You cannot ride the Nozomi train. However, you can use the "Nozomi" train on the section and facilities you purchased only if you purchase a Nozomi ticket separately before boarding and use it together with a valid Japan Rail Pass.
If you take an express bus :
It takes about 6 hours and 30 minutes from Tokyo to Tsuruga.
If you are using a car/rental vehicle :
From Tokyo, take the Tomei Expressway ⇒ Meishin Expressway ⇒ Hokuriku Expressway to Tsuruga in about 6 hours 30 minutes to 7 hours.
How to get from Osaka to Tsuruga
From Kansai Airport :
From Kansai Airport Station, take the JR Haruka Express to Kyoto Station in about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Transfer to the JR Thunderbird Express to Tsuruga Station in about 53 minutes.
From Osaka Station :
JR Thunderbird Express to Tsuruga Station in approximately 1 hour and 25 minutes.
How to get from Kyoto to Tsuruga
From Kyoto Station :
JR Thunderbird Express to Tsuruga Station in approximately 53 minutes.
How to get from Nagoya to Tsuruga
From Chubu Centrair International Airport :
From Chubu Centrair International Airport Station, take the Meitetsu train for about 50 minutes to Meitetsu Nagoya Station. Transfer to the JR Shirasagi Limited Express and head to Tsuruga Station for about 1 hour and 37 minutes.
From Nagoya Station :
・JR Limited Express Shirasagi - No transfers required, takes approximately 1 hour and 37 minutes to Tsuruga Station.
・Take the Tokaido Shinkansen Hikari to Maibara Station in about 28 minutes. Transfer to the JR Shirasagi Limited Express to Tsuruga Station in about 35 minutes.
How to get from Kanazawa to Tsuruga
From Kanazawa Station :
Take the JR Limited Express Shirasagi or Thunderbird to JR Tsuruga Station in approximately 1 hour and 25 minutes.
Enjoy your trip to Tsuruga using an access method that suits your travel style!
This time, we introduced how to get to Tsuruga from Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Aichi, and Kanazawa. Find the transportation method that suits your itinerary, budget, and travel style, and enjoy the charm of Tsuruga!
For an introduction to Tsuruga's recommended gourmet foods, please click here.
List of recommended sightseeing spots in Tsuruga
Kehi Shrine
11-68 Akebonocho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture 914-0075
Founded in 702 AD, Kehi Jingu Shrine in Tsuruga City is one of the three major torii gates in Japan and welcomes you with its 11-meter-tall torii designated as an important cultural property. It is also famous as a power spot, and there are many places full of energy in the precincts of the shrine.
Hotels near Kehi Shrine
Tsuruga Railway Museum
914-0079 1-25 Minato-cho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
A museum that recreates the former Tsuruga Port Station. Displays materials and train models introducing the history of Tsuruga's railways.
Reproducing the departure and arrival station of the "Europe-Asia International Connecting Train," the shortest route to Europe in the past.
Tsuruga, a town that has grown together with railways
Railways opened in Japan about 150 years ago. Tsuruga was the first town on the Sea of Japan side to have a railway built, and the first full-scale AC electrification in Japan was completed in 1955, and the Hokuriku Tunnel, the largest tunnel in Japan at the time and the fifth largest in the world, opened in 1966. , Tsuruga used to be a transportation hub on the Sea of Japan side, with railways and ports.
Hotels near Tsuruga Railway Museum
Former Tsuruga Port Station Lamp Hut
914-0072 1-19 Kanegasaki-cho, Fukui Prefecture
A lamp hut that still conveys the bustle of those days.
Tsuruga Port Station was originally called Kanegasaki Station. From the end of the Meiji period to the beginning of the Showa period, the Europe-Asia international train operated here and was a bustling place. Lamp sheds were once common at major train stations as oil depots to store the cantera fuel used to light trains. However, as the light source changed to electric lights, their use disappeared, and they rapidly disappeared due to station expansion and renovation.
It was built around 1882 (Meiji 15), and unlike modern concrete block or slate structures, the carefully stacked bricks and arches at the openings have a unique charm. The brick has small square letters engraved here and there. This is like a signature of the craftsman who made the brick.
Tsuruga Red Brick Warehouse
914-0072 4-1 Kanegasakicho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
Modern warehouse built in 1905 by the Standard Oil Company
When it was built, it was used as an oil storage facility, and until a few years ago, it was also used as a kelp storage facility. In 2015, a ``railroad and port diorama'' that recreates Tsuruga's townscape from the late Meiji period to the early Showa period, combining historical facts and entertainment, and ``an attractive restaurant unique to Tsuruga'' were installed, and the building is a place that combines history and culture. It has been reborn as a new tourist facility where you can enjoy food. In addition to this brick warehouse, there is also a group of active warehouses with a retro Showa atmosphere on the side of "Kirameki Minatokan".
Hotels near Tsuruga Red Brick Warehouse
Port of Humanity Tsuruga Museum
914-0072 23-1 Kanegasakicho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
A museum that conveys the historical facts of Tsuruga Port to future generations
Tsuruga Port served as a hub for transportation with Europe from the Meiji period to the early Showa period, and is the only port in Japan where Polish orphans landed in the 1920s, and Jewish refugees with ``visas for life'' landed in the 1940s.
The museum ``Tsuruga Museum, Port of Humanity'' focuses on the historical facts of Polish orphans and Jewish refugees who overcame numerous hardships to arrive in Tsuruga, as well as testimonies and episodes from Tsuruga citizens at the time, as well as relationships with those involved that continue to this day. We introduce heartwarming exchanges and convey the importance of life and the preciousness of peace.
The exterior of the building is a reproduction of the one that actually existed at Tsuruga Port from the Taisho period to the early Showa period, and exhibits include a theater and animation that introduce the history of the port of humanity.
Hotels near Port of Humanity Tsuruga Museum
Tsuruga Museum Street
914-0062 7-8 Aioimachi, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
A charming street lined with nostalgic buildings
Tsuruga Museum Street is a street where historical buildings such as the Tsuruga City Museum (former Owada Bank headquarters) and a sake brewery remain. There are cafes that serve natural food menus using organic and pesticide-free vegetables, and stores that sell pottery and miscellaneous goods from overseas.
Hotels near Tsuruga Museum Street
Tsuruga City Museum
991-0062 7-8 Aioicho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
Important Cultural Property Former Owada Bank Main Branch Main Building
Retro exterior and entire building history of Tsuruga
This building utilizes the Owada Bank head office, which was built in 1928 by the second generation Sōshichi Owada. Equipped with Hokuriku's first elevator, restaurant, guest room, and meeting hall, it can be said to be an advanced building for Tsuruga at the time. It has been designated as a national important cultural property, and you can feel the vestiges of the bank that was popular among citizens in its stately structure and Western-style decorations, as well as the underground space and auditorium on the third floor. Masu.
Hotels near Tsuruga City Museum
Minato Tsuruga Dashi Hall
914-0062 7-6 Aioimachi, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
Famous for Tsuruga's biggest event "Tsuruga Festival"
It houses six magnificent and magnificent floats that parade during the Tsuruga Festival, and three of them are on display. In addition to exhibiting areas such as warrior dolls, real armor and helmets, and Noh masks, there is also a permanent exhibition area called ``Yoshitsugu Otani, Lord of Tsuruga Castle.'' You can also watch the impressive float parade using a video projector and slides.
Hotels near Minato Tsuruga Dashi Hall
Former Hokuriku Line tunnel group
914-0313 Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture (Tone, Tsuruga City, Habara, T...
Railway ruins spanning Tsuruga City and Minamiechizen Town
Nationally registered tangible cultural property
In 1892, the Tsuruga-Fukui section of the former Hokuriku Line opened. Thirteen tunnels were dug between Tsuruga and Imajo, where the most difficult pass is, and 11 of them still remain today. There are many civil engineering structures of the time, such as embankments, bridges, and culverts, including the Trap Mountain Valley Culvert, the longest culvert on the former Hokuriku Line, and the Yamanaka Rock Shed, which is Japan's first prestressed concrete rockfall lining. The remains of 13 civil engineering structures have been designated as nationally registered tangible cultural properties (buildings). The former Hokuriku Line site is currently used as a community road, and can be accessed by car or on foot.
Kanazaki Shrine Flower Exchange Festival
914-0072 1-4 Kanegasakicho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
Kanegasaki Senbonzakura where you can see the Sea of Japan. Now your love story will bloom
Entrust your love to Twig and have eternal happiness
This is a romantic festival where men and women watching cherry blossoms say to each other, ``Let's exchange flowers,'' exchanging cherry blossom twigs to confirm their feelings for each other. It is said that couples who exchange flowers will be blessed with happiness in the future, so many young people visit this place every year.
saifukuji temple
914-0824 13-7 Hara, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
The 1,400 tsubo Shoin garden has been designated as a national scenic spot.
This is one of the most famous temples of the Jodo sect, built by Ryonyo Shonin, a famous monk who was active in the 14th century. It is also a place connected to the Tokugawa family, where a shoin was built with a donation from the lord of Fukui Castle, Hideyasu Yuki, and the shoin garden, which stretches over 4,000 square meters, is designated as a national scenic spot. The Shoin Garden is said to be a representation of the Pure Land on earth, and especially the fresh greenery and autumn leaves that shine against the morning sun look like something out of another world. Many cultural properties were relocated from the capital to avoid the Onin War, and the area is characterized by the presence of many important cultural properties. It shows different expressions depending on the season.
Seimei Shrine
914-0062 8 Aioicho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
Connection to Onmyoji “Abe no Seimei”
Without seeing this, we cannot talk about the ``truth of Seimei''.
Since then, Seimei Shrine has been worshiped as the god of fire prevention, a shrine that was fiercely protected from the Battle of Kanegasaki during the Nanbokucho period, as well as the war between Oda Nobunaga and the Asakura clan. This shrine is named after Abe Seimei, who studied with Tadayuki Kamo and Yasunori Kamo and became a master of Onmyodo. In the worship hall, there is a ``prayer stone'' that is said to have been used in the study of Onmyodo.
Hotels near Seimei Shrine
Shibata Family Garden (Amantoen)
914-0124 1-18-2 Nonocho, Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture
Strolling-style forest garden with Mt. Nosaka as a backdrop
This is the former home of Gon'emon Shibata, a wealthy Tsuruga farmer who was commissioned by the Obama feudal lord to develop new rice fields in the area during the Edo period. It was built in the early Edo period, and is also known as Kantoen. It also served as a resting place for the Obama feudal lord during the shift of Sankin. With the backdrop of Mt. Nosaka, the symbol of Tsuruga, the simple old-style shoin structure and garden create a calm space, and it has been designated as a national scenic spot.
On March 16, 2024, the Hokuriku Shinkansen opened between Kanazawa Station and Tsuruga Station. Tsuruga Station will be the terminus from both the Tokyo and Kansai areas, and is attracting a lot of attention. Tsuruga is a city of railways and ports, and the Shinkansen opened in the town where the first railway ran on the Sea of Japan side, so it is popular among people other than railway fans. There are many tourist spots scattered around, and after the opening of the mountain-side Japan Heritage Old Hokuriku Line Tunnels Heritage Group, the direct train "Europe-Asia International Express" ran to Tsuruga Port, which developed into one of the leading international ports on the Sea of Japan side. We will continue to offer route buses and tour plans, such as new tourist routes of Japan Heritage on the sea side along the Tsuruga Port Line. Come and go on a trip with exciting experiences beyond your imagination.
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