Route
Nikko
State and faith: why Ieyasu was enshrined uphill
About 300 km round trip; roughly three hours out
Length
10 hours
Distance
About 300 km round trip; roughly three hours out
Best season
New green in May and June, colour from late October; the colour season is also the worst traffic
Nikko was not chosen because the ground was holy. Tenkai stacked three conditions: a strongpoint north of Edo, an existing mountain cult at Futarasan, and terrain that looks down over the Kantō plain. Moving Ieyasu's remains here from Kunōzan was a political act.
The density of carving on Yōmei-mon is deliberate: power needs to be seen. The stone stair and the cedars of the inner shrine are just as deliberately quiet. A day that gets both has understood Nikko.
How the day runs
Times are indicative. They move with traffic, weather and your own pace.
Pickup in the city
Via the Tohoku Expressway, about three hours. Early to beat the crowds.
Tōshō-gū
Yōmei-mon, the sleeping cat, the dragon ceiling. About two hours.
Lunch: yuba
Nikko's speciality is bean curd skin, not soup.
Rinnō-ji or Kegon Falls
Buildings or water — pick one; both makes the day rushed.
Depart for Tokyo
Irohazaka is slower downhill than up; allow for it.
Drop-off in the city
In November's colour season, expect an hour or more of delay.
Which vehicle
Decided by headcount and luggage. A full car carries fewer bags.
Included
- Driver
- Consumption tax (shown in the fare)
Not included
- Expressway tolls and parking (charged at cost)
- Sightseeing admission
- Meals
- Personal purchases
- Special arrangements outside the operating area
On charters, expressway tolls and parking are charged separately at cost. Airport transfers are the other way round — those are included.
Cautions for this route
Nikko is the furthest of the four — about six hours of driving all in, a long day.
In November, Irohazaka and the Shinkyō area jam badly; a weekday is better.
Admission within the World Heritage area is paid by you.
The destination lies outside our operating area. Pickup and drop-off are both inside Tokyo's 23 wards and the Musashino–Mitaka area.