Koyasan to Miyajima - a journey worth taking?
 

Just over 2 1/2 months to go and finalizing some of the details for our first Japan trip.

Something that's got me a bit unsettled is our planned trip to Koyasan. Everyone raves about Koya...and I'm admittedly super-excited for this portion...the idea of the moss covered forests and the meditative silence of Buddhist holy areas seems like it's going to be a highlight of our trip. But we only plan to be there for a day (too late to make it more than that--it'll throw the whole itinerary off.) Two full days and nights there would've been too much for us--and now that we have that day booked and I'm looking at train schedules, what's making me slightly worried is the amount of travel time to and from (mostly from.)

We'll be heading to Koya from our 4 night stay in Kyoto (and before we head to Miyajima and then Hakone and Tokyo.) We'll leave Kyoto around 8 AM and get to Koyasan just before 11 AM. That'll allow us the entire day to enjoy the scenery, spend the night at a monastery (Shojoshin-in) before having to head to Miyajima in the morning the next day.

What has me uneasy are the travel times for our departure from Koyasan to Miyajima. It looks like an awfully long journey (with multiple tight connections--ripe for a missed train.) Reading the Hyperdia schedule it would go something like this:
Koyasan > Gokurakubashi > Hashimoto > Namba/Nankai > Shinosaka > Hiroshima > Miyajimaguchi > Ferry to Miyajima

This is a total of a 5 hour journey.

Guess my question is: is it worth it?

I loved Koyasan, it was one of the highlights of our time in Japan. We stayed for 2 nights and I do recall that the train trip , which for us was from Nara, did take ages and included several connections, some tight, but all of which we made. The last train ride which rises steeply up through the mountains is spectacular. There is a lot to see there and the best way to see the place is to get one of the free (a donation is expected) guide, in order to make the most of your limited time. The veggie food in our temple (Eko in)was memorable. The early morning Shinto ceremony is definitely worth seeing.


For our two days the it was most definitely worth it, but for 1 night I am not sure I would be prepared to spend a whole day on the train getting there and on to Miyajima. Unless you really enjoy train travel I think I would give it a miss.

if it is the first half of april, i guess the mountains of Koyasan would be still in the closing days of winter; flowerless, leafless, snowless, and therefore a bit dreary. meanwhile, down in lower places (Kyoto, Kanazawa, Nara, Miyajima/Inland Sea, Hikone, and even Mt.Yoshino, etc., etc.), scenery/ambience could be fabulous http://www.google.com/images?um=1&hl...&aqi=&aql=&oq= amidst spring festivities. (this 夜桜/Yozakura means night-time view of cherry blossoms, typically illuminated by paper lanterns). if i were you, i would spend as much time as possible at these lower places in early april, rather than in the top area of such high mountains. if it is late april, i would be jubilant to stay in koyasan. considerable difference in scenery and ambience between early and late april.

just wish to add that if this year's spring is a warm, early one, mid-April in Koyasan (about 800-1,000 metres above sea level) would be really beautiful. simply impossible to predict at this point. (and, i do not know when in April you plan to go there.)

I've been to Koyasan twice, each for an overnight stay, and think it is an unparalleled experience. The huge coniferous trees would not suffer from being "leafless."
Though the train trip looks intimidating, you'll find that each step follows logically. I'd go.

I did it in the opposite direction - Miyajima->Koyasan. Since I got there in the afternoon I did stay two nights as my next stop was a long trip to Tokyo. But since you will get there fairly early in the day I think it is quite doable. I recommend that you go as planned...enjoy!

Can't say anything about Kyoasan, but Miyajima is spectacular and in April last year, the moss-covered mountains and buddhist temple in Miyajima quite spectacular. although it is a small island, there would be enough hiking there that maybe you could spend a night there instead of going further afield. We opted to go there for a half day on our Hiroshima part of the trip. Spent 2 nights at a in Hiroshima (name escapes me) and it was the nicest hotel of our whole stay. I would generally not worry about missing trains, though. The Japanese are notoriously punctual.

<b>YES Miyajima is defiantly worth it!</b>

That said you do realize that you <b>cannot</b> use your JR pass for most of the trip up and down Koyasan? Your JR pass will be useless to you after you get to the Shin-Osaka station. You will then probably take the subway to Namba station where you will have to walk to the Namba Nankai line where you will have to transfer to a Nankai Line train and pay their fares. There is also the bus ride from Koyasan station to the town that needs to be payed for.

When you get to the Namba Nankai station the transport becomes easier as the timing of the trains, cable car and buses align with each other as WillJame mentions so you will be basically getting off of the train and on to the next cable car then the next bus and so forth. It's the subway and direction of the walking to the Nankai station that might confuse or delay you. The good thing about doing it this way is that when you leave Koyasan for Miyajima, you will already know the way back to Shin-Osaka so no problems there, just retrace your previous days steps to get back to Shin-Osaka. After Shin-Osaka you will take the shinkansen and get off at the JR Hiroshima station. Walk out of the shinkansen gates and turn left to the small local line gates. There you would get on the next train towards Miyajimaguchi( a twenty minute ride). There are no reserved seats on this local train so just get on and find a seat for the short ride. When you get off at Miyajimaguchi you walk across the street and down a short shopping dori(street) that leads to the two big ferries that will be in the little ferry landing. There is one JR ferry and I forget the name of the other but you cannot use your JR pass on the other one. Then its a short ten minute boat ride to Miyajima.


All that said there is an easier way to get to Koyasan from Kyoto ;)

You might pick up a World Heritage Pass or a Kansai Thru pass which would allow you less changes and more options.......well too much to type so read here and change the button on the top to read To/From Kyoto:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4904.html

The Kansai Thru Pass could also be used for a day of Kyoto's city travel or a whatever.

Don't know what the talk about leafless trees on Koyasan and not being able to predict when the sakura will bloom is all about.....

Aloha!

hehe. i admit "leafless" was a bit of distortion.
it's even possible that snow would be falling on Ume flowers in early April, as is shown in the Koyasan pic below.
http://koya-forest.jp/blog/2010/03/25/DSCN1651.JPG

but, i still believe that early april high up in the 1,000-metre koyasan would not be good enough to sacrifice the most beautiful, festive scenes/ambience of cherry blossom viewing in many other places.

just for your reference, typical temperature of Kyoyasan (in the lowest point --795 metres above sea level) on April 10th is 8.1℃ (average of 1971-2000), and it is equivalent to March 10th of Tokyo, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency data. 　http://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/...day=01&view=p1
http://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/...day=01&view=p1
as a matter course, no one know the weather of this coming spring, and it's often volatile, especially at such a high elevation.

hawaiiantraveler on Jan 23, 11 at 1:44am; "Don't know what the talk about leafless trees on Koyasan and not being able to predict when the sakura will bloom is all about.....
Aloha!"

i am afraid i do not know much about the hawaiian perceptions of seasonal things, but typical japanese like myself tend to be obsessive about them, as you know. 　どうも。

I don't knoe if obsessive is the right word, but HawaiianTraveler is pretty akamai when it come to Japan weather and sakura!

OK.
he is akamai about weather/Sakura, and i am obsessive about weather/Yozakura(夜桜）　http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/%E...C/interesting/

pictures of Koyasan in spring
http://www.geocities.co.jp/SilkRoad/.../sanmai06.html (early May)
http://www.geocities.co.jp/SilkRoad/...akura06-2.html (late April)

leafy Koyasan
http://www.geocities.co.jp/SilkRoad/...ori/midori.htm

difference from a bit dreary winter in early April seems undeniable.

you're as close as 2.5 months.... time to cancel

Bob, I know a Bali jab when I see one...nice.

Everyone else, thanks for the input. I guess we'll stick with it for now. We'll be there in mid-April, so leafy or not, it's still somewhere we want to see. We've got 2 nights in Miyajima, so wouldn't add another there. I guess that leaves us with, at the very least, an adventurous 24 hrs.

have fun...

I spent only one night and part of one day in Koyasan and am very, very glad I did, even though it did mean spending a lot of time in transit. For me, it was definitely worth it! Hope you enjoy your journey.

mid-april might turn out to be nice.
http://koya-forest.jp/blog/2010/04/15/DSCN1706.JPG
(snow falling on early bloomer on April 15th, 2010. pic blog of Koyasan's forestry section)