Getting around Gifu

Getting inHow you arrive in Gifu

No airport — Nagoya is the gateway. Gifu-Hashima Station (shinkansen); Takayama by limited express

Confirmed journey times

Fastest services, checked on the date shown.

The shinkansen does not take you where you want to go: Trains stop at Gifu-Hashima, but the mountain towns are not on that line. For Takayama and the thatched villages, go to Nagoya first and change there — do not get off at Gifu-Hashima.
Checked 2026-08-16
Nagoya to Takayama: About 2 hours 15 minutes to 2 hours 40 on the Hida limited express, roughly one train an hour. The line follows a river gorge for most of the way; this is one of the best window seats in Japan, so do not take the night service.
Checked 2026-08-16
Takayama to the thatched village: Bus from Takayama Nohi bus centre, about 50 minutes. The same route continues to Kanazawa and Toyama, so you can arrive from one side and leave from the other rather than doubling back.
Checked 2026-08-16
About rail passes: The Hida limited express is JR, so a Japan Rail Pass covers it. The bus to the village is not JR and the pass does not cover it — and seats on that bus sell out in autumn and at New Year, so reserve it in advance.
Checked 2026-08-16

A Japan Rail Pass does not cover Nozomi or Mizuho. What a rail pass covers

An IC card works on most of them. Signs and station names are in English.

Worth it the moment you leave the main city. What you need to drive here

Permit neededDrive left

Clean, safe and metered. Show the address on your phone rather than saying it. Doors are often opened for you.

Show the address

City: Usually around midnight
Country: Far earlier — sometimes mid-afternoon. Ask at the stop when you arrive, not when you want to leave
If you miss it: Ask your inn to call a taxi before the last bus goes, not after

ATMs: Use 7-Eleven or Japan Post for a foreign card. Bank ATMs are hit and miss
Carry: ¥10,000–20,000 on a day out of the city. Rural areas have very little
Small places: Cash only is common. Ask “Card OK?” before you order

Lockers: At the main station, paid by IC card. They fill by mid-morning
Send it: Any convenience store will deliver it to your next hotel, usually next day. Cheaper than carrying it up stairs
At your inn: They will hold it before check-in and after check-out