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Looking for a praying hands village free walking tour? You’re in luck! If you’re planning to visit Shirakawa-go Praying Hands Village, this is the perfect article for you. In this article, we’re going to share the route for a free self-guided walking tour of the village, including all of the highlights and some hidden gems around the village. We will share the best spots for photography, food, and exploration.
We absolutely loved exploring the Praying Hands Village with our own kids, and we have used our own first-hand research and experience to pull this article together. Our aim is to equip you to enjoy your own adventures in the Praying Hands Village and share the best bits so that you can make the most of your time.
Visiting the Praying Hands Village is likely to be one of your top highlights in Japan (it certainly was for us), so be ready to recommend taking some time to plan and prepare for your trip. Praying Hands Village may be epic, but it is also intense. This is a very popular attraction, and it is important to plan your visit carefully in order to make the most of your time, so please read this article carefully. A little research now can go a long way later.
STAYING IN NAGOYA? – If you’re staying in Nagoya one of the cheapest and most convenient ways to explore the Shirakawa-go Praying Hands Village is to book this Fantastic Praying Hands Village Tour on KLOOK – it is actually better value for money than doing it independently.
Self-Guided Walking Tour Summary
- Distance: 4.0 km (including the viewpoint)
- Approximate time: 4 – 5 hours
This walking tour is not too far; however, there is a lot to see and do along the way, so we recommend allowing a few hours. Along the way, you can visit a viewpoint, explore some house museums, and try some of the tasty local food available in the village.
Looking for a more in-depth guide? Don’t miss our Full Guide to the Praying Hands Village
Free Self-Guided Walking Tour of the Praying Hands Village
1 See the Beautiful Lily Pond
From the bus station, walk a few hundred meters south towards the Praying Hands Village. You will reach a beautiful lily pond (this is a great photo spot). Turn left at the lily pond and follow the road around, watching out for another left turn which leads up to the observation point (on the local signs this is referred to as “the observatory”).
2 Go to the Viewpoint (Observatory)
It takes around 20 minutes to walk up the hill to the viewpoint. Alternatively, if you want to take the free shuttle bus, you will need to wait at the bus stop which is situated just south of the restaurant Shirakawa-Go Irori. The shuttle bus to the viewpoint departs every 20 minutes, with the first bus at 9:00 am and the final bus departing at 3:40 pm (buses do not run over lunchtime; there are no buses between 11:40 am and 1:20 pm).
3 Try some local food
One of the main highlights of visiting Shirakawa-go is the wonderful selection of local food and drink to try. Along this walking route, you will see plenty of small shops and kiosks selling barbecue skewers, local snacks, local drinks, and ice cream. We recommend that you budget for some of this amazing food along the way. Examples of the things that you can buy in the village include Hida beef skewers, rice crackers, and traditional sweets.
- Barbecue Hida beef skewers 600 Yen (or £3 or $3.50)
- Barbecue sticky rice and miso sauce glaze 300 yen (£1.50 or $2.00)
- Hida beef sausage 500yen (£2.50 or $3.00)
- Sticky rice balls 300 yen (£1.50 or $2.00)
- Hida milk ice cream 500 – 1,000yen (around £2.50 – £5.00 or $3 – $6)
- Hot sweet Sake 400yen (very tasty) Around £2 or $2.50
4 Explore the Myozenji House Museum
We highly recommend that you stop by a house museum or two. We were particularly impressed with the beautiful Myozenji Museum. This house museum is very large (it is four floors high). There are large traditional beautiful windows and plenty of traditional exhibits and artifacts to look at. You can also take a tour of the attached temple. Most museums cost 400 yen for entry (and 200 yen for children). This is around £2 or $2.50. At present, there are six house museums in the village that you can look around: Wada House, Nagase House, Myozenji House, Ozuzaemon House, Tajima House, and Binen-Yumeromu House. We particularly enjoyed the Myozenji Museum.
5 Cross the Ogimachi Suspension Bridge
Keep following the walking route around the village. To the west of Shirakawa-Go Village, you can see the Sho River and an impressive suspension bridge. This is a great spot for a picnic, a short stroll, and some pretty photographs. If you cross the suspension bridge, you can also walk down to the riverbank. There is a nice grassy section to relax and enjoy the view.
6 Visit the 3 Houses view point
After exploring the bridge area cross back to the east bank and keep walking south to visit the beautiful and tranquil 3 houses view point. This is a lovely spot to get some photos and appreciate the unique scenery. Because this spot is more out of the way it is generally more peaceful and easier to get some uncrowded iconic praying hands house photos.
On your way back to the bus station, don’t miss the beautiful wooden walkway. This is a great spot for photos, normally quiet by around 4:30 – 5 pm, so you can get some iconic empty shots of the village.
How Do You Get to the Praying Hands Village?
1 From Nagoya (day tour)
If you’re hoping to visit the Praying Hands Village from Nagoya, we highly recommend booking the Takayama and Praying Hands Village Tour on Klook. This tour is great value for money (it is actually cheaper than doing a trip independently). This tour also includes a stop at Takayama Village, where you can enjoy the morning market and the cultural heritage street.
2 From Takayama
If you’re planning to visit the Praying Hands Village from Takayama, you can take a bus from the bus station situated outside Takayama Central Railway Station (Takayama Nohi Bus Station). Buses run throughout the day; however, this is a very busy route. If possible, we recommend going to the bus station the day before your trip to pre-book your bus ticket on one of the reserved buses (there are also some non-reserved buses, but these fill up, so you may end up waiting a long time to get a place if you do not pre-book).
Praying Hands Village by Bus – Details in Brief
- The bus journey takes around 1 hour.
- Bus tickets cost 2,600 yen per person (which is around £13 or $15 each way).
- Kids from 6 to 12 years old are half price.
- Purchase your tickets from the vending machine or at the desk (you can pay with cash or bank card).
- Buses start at 7:20 am and run throughout the day (roughly every hour).
- Some buses are reservation-only and other buses are open (reserved and non-reserved buses are the same price).
- Aim to arrive at least 20 minutes before your bus departs.
- During busy periods, the bus company normally provides additional buses.
- The final bus of the day departs from the Praying Hands Village at 7:43 pm.
LEARN MORE – Find out more about the Praying Hands Villages of Japan
