Nikko and Getting to the Ryokan

November 3, 2025 - From the itinerary (am copying in its entirety because I was kind of confused..).  Tokyo to Honke Bankyu Ryokan

This morning, begin your journey north toward the mountains of Tochigi Prefecture.

Route Overview:

• Take a short metro or taxi ride from your hotel to Tokyo Station.

• Board a JR Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo Station to Utsunomiya Station – approximately 52 minutes.

• At Utsunomiya, transfer to the JR Nikko Line for Nikko Station – about 42 minutes.

  (Both trains are covered by your JR Pass.)

• From JR Nikko Station, walk a few minutes to Tobu Nikko Station and purchase a local ticket for the next segment (JR Pass not valid).

Tobu Railway Connection:

• Depart Tobu Nikko Station at 15:57 on the Tobu Express “Nikko #22” to Shimo-Imaichi Station (arrive 16:04).

• Transfer to the Tobu Liberty Aizu #131(bound for Aizu-Tajima) departing 16:13, arriving Yunishigawa Onsen Station at17:04.

• From here, take the local bus at 17:15 to Honke Bankyu Ryokan, arriving around17:35.

Please note this is the last bus of the day. If you happen to miss it, a pre-booked taxi is required (approximately 45 minutes).

Dinner at Honke Bankyu begins at 6:00 PM(last order at 6:30 PM), so it’s best to plan arrival before 5:30 PM. Enjoy a relaxing evening in the countryside with a traditional multi-course kaiseki dinner and soak in the onsen.

*This is the last local bus to the ryokan. If you miss this, please take taxi.

• By taxi, it will take 45 minutes to HONKE BANKYU

Honke Bankyu Ryokan. ($200+)

Nestled in the picturesque Yunishigawa Onsen area of Nikko, Honke Bankyu Ryokan has been welcoming guests since 1666. This historic ryokan offers a unique blend of traditional Japanese hospitality and modern comforts, making it an ideal retreat for those seeking relaxation and cultural immersion

Sorry for all the words, but this place wasn’t easy to get to. One connection was only 3 minutes and I was lead to believe I had to buy my ticket at that cross over point - there was no way I was going to make a connection if that was the case. At one point I agreed to pre-book a taxi, but then was told that wasn’t possible. I’m getting ahead of myself.

Yesterday I did some further planning and realized I could take a train an hour earlier than suggested which would get me into Nikko at 10. This would give me about 2.5 hours to sightsee before catching the train at 1:39 with connection at 2:51, arriving at my bus transfer point by 2:25. If I missed any connection I would still be able to take a later train/bus and not have to try to worry about a taxi. Further, I remembered a wonderful Japan transportation app that gave all the options for bus/train travel. It was through this app that I was able to find a special on the bus ticket for a 2 day hop on/hop off pass. Instead of paying Y2050 one way I paid Y500 and can go places tomorrow on the same ticket.

Before I go much further, I think I forgot to add photos of last night's dinner with Sasha and Jake in the vegan Heavenly Pancake restaurant with pancakes that were like very heavy biscuits.

This earlier train meant a room service breakfast delivery (breakfast was pre-paid) which was the same as yesterday’s. I gobbled that down in 10 minutes flat and raced to the train station for an 8:26 bullet train departure. I forgot/didn’t realize that the hotel had a special direct entrance from the Metro which is how I left. Would have been nice to know because it would have saved me some steps getting here when I arrived.

Today is “Culture Day” a federal holiday in Japan. I wasn’t aware of any festivities, except that many offices are closed - I wasn’t sure if that was going to effect anything thing - except there were incredible lines later on (see below).

The weather was good on the 3rd, but deteriorated on the 4th becoming quite windy with some rain.

The bullet train is always amazing and I passed a pleasant hour. 

My connection was a local train and I wasn’t offered a seat for the 43 minutes voyage to Nikko. A group of 10 Italians took all the seats. I decided I was happy that I didn’t look as though I needed to sit down.

Once in Nikko i spent some time at the tourist office buying my onward ticket. Turned out I could buy a through ticket and NOT need to buy a ticket during the 3 minutes transfer time. I was also able to store my luggage during my fast sightseeing adventure.

There are about 7 must-see things in Nikko. The journey starts with the Shinkyo Bridge. I decided to walk the mile to the bridge because a) the line for the buses was very long and b) it was a beautiful day. I realized I hit Nikko just right for the other attraction in the Fall - the leaves turning in Autumn. It was glorious. But back to the bridge. Of course there’s a legend about a God coming down to help the local guy and his party to cross the Daiwa River. The God released 2 serpents to act as a bridge for the party to pass. Since then it‘s been called the Serpent Bridge. It was red lacquered wood and stone bridge built 1636 and is very pretty.

Just across the road is the World Heritage Site called the Shrines and Temples of Nikko, a complex of about 10 shrines and temples.

I was able to get to most of them with the exception of the Villa where the royal family lived in 1600 and something and inside the Toshogu Shrine, Tamozawa Imperial Villa and the Goju-no-to pagoda. The line was about 2-3 blocks long just to wait for tickets. The outsides were nice enough.

Photo on left was the start of the line, middle is the end of the line, right is the pagoda.

First was the Shoyoen Garden and Rinnoji treasure house. Rinnoji had some artifacts from the year 800 which were in amazing condition and fascinating to see - no photos allowed in any of these places.

Attached to this was the garden which was truly amazing. The colors were perfect. I was even able to get a close of of a carp which posed for me, probably thinking he was going to be fed.

From there I went over to the Rinnoji Temple Which had some amazing gold Buddhas.

At that point time was getting short and saw everything but the villa from the outside. On my way back to the train I couldn’t resist getting some street food - a pancake wrapped around chopsticks with BBQ sauce and mayo. She melted cheese on top with a blow torch. It would have been good if she left off the BBQ sauce….

Back to the train station and marveling at the colors along the way. There were no issues with the first train. The 3 minute connection time went almost without a hitch and the train guard was very attentive that all the passengers made it. 

While waiting for the bus a steam train pulled into the station - maybe that was something to do with the holiday - not sure, but fun to look at while waiting.

The bus trip was beautiful - more fall color and mountainous roads. While we were making the 50 minute drive the weather deteriorated and it started to rain. Amazingly about 10 people got off at my stop for my ryokan, but no one had the coupon - what a win for me!

The ryokan is amazing and very old. My room is in the Japanese style - mattress. Here is the room before and after the bed is made up.

Dinner was across a suspension bridge. I reserved a private onsen for tomorrow, more on that tomorrow. The temperature dropped by about 15-20 degrees and it was very cold by the time I got to my room. Snow and bad conditions were reported in my alpine stop a few days from now, but that’s an adventure for another blog. I was just happy to have made it in one piece and in time for dinner.

Dinner started with a dramatic walk over the swing bridge.

This began a 10 course feast, complete with venison, pork, chicken, river trout, small vegetables delicacies, sashimi, rice, miso soup, fruit, etc, etc. It was initially so cold in my private cell that I could see the waitresses breath when she was explaining the menu. Thankfully it warmed up because so was there in only a cotton kimono.

After dinner I tried out the onsen - both inside and outside. It was so hot I preferred the outside option. No photos, but tomorrow I will be able to add some since I’ll have it all to myself.