Introduction To: Matsumoto

Matsumoto (松本) is a city in Nagano Prefecture.  Before the Meiji restoration, it served as the capital city of Shinano Province.  Its chief attraction is the eponymous Matsumoto Castle, one of the twelve original castles to have survived intact since the feudal era.  Situated at the eastern base of the Japan Alps, Matsumoto is also an ideal base for excursions into outdoor treasures like Kamikochi Park and the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route.

Main Attractions

The main keep of Matsumoto Castle, accessible from Matsumoto Station.
Taken on Saturday, 19 May 2018.

1) Matsumoto Castle: A black-walled castle that has survived since the late 16th century.

2) Nakamachi District: A neighbourhood of old white-walled merchant's houses and unique museums.

By 663highland [GFDL, CC-BY-SA-3.0 or CC BY 2.5], from Wikimedia Commons

3) Matsumoto City Museum of Art: A museum of modern art, with a particular focus on local-born artist Yayoi Kusama (草間 彌生, b. 1929).

By Saigen Jiro [CC0], from Wikimedia Commons

4) Koboyama Park: A park on the city's outskirts built on top of a former burial mound, adorned with thousands of cherry trees.

By photo: Qurren (talk)Taken with Canon IXY 10S [GFDL or CC BY-SA 3.0], from Wikimedia Commons

5) Japan Ukiyo-e Museum: An outlying museum about Japanese woodblock-print art.

By Wiiii [GFDL or CC BY-SA 3.0], from Wikimedia Commons

6) Kaichi School Museum: One of Japan's first school buildings, preserved from the Meiji Period (late 19th century).

mapplefan8 [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

7) Asama Onsen: A hot-spring town within Matsumoto's city limits.

Orientation

Matsumoto Station stands to the east or southeast of most of the city's attractions.  For avid walkers, many destinations, including Matsumoto Castle, can be reached on foot within 15-20 minutes.  For everyone else, there is a network of tourist-oriented loop buses called the Town Sneaker buses.  There are four Town Sneaker routes: North, East, South, and West.  Of the greatest import to tourists are the north bus, which stops at the castle, and the east bus, which stops at Nakamachi and the Matsumoto City Museum.  They cost ¥200 per ride, or ¥500 for a one-day pass (which includes discounts at various spots), and buses arrive every 20-30 minutes.  More information: (Japanese)

Access

From Tokyo, the most direct way to get to Matsumoto is by the Azusa limited express train, along the Chuo Main Line.  The one-way journey from Shinjuku Station takes 2½ to 3 hours, and costs ¥6,620 for a reserved seat.  From Tokyo Station, it may be faster to take the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Nagano (80-100 minutes), then the Wide View Shinano limited express to Matsumoto (50 minutes).  In total, this costs at least ¥10,300 (reserved).  Both options are fully covered by the Japan Rail Pass and the JR East Nagano-Niigata Pass.  From western cities, take the Tokaido Shinkansen to Nagoya, then the Wide View Shinano limited express to Matsumoto (120 minutes, ¥6,410 reserved).

Highway buses, operated by Alpico Kotsu, are available to and from Tokyo's Shinjuku Station (3 hours, ¥3,800), Takayama (2½ hours, ¥3,250 one-way / ¥5,760 round-trip), and more.  If you have a JR East Nagano-Niigata pass, you can buy a round-trip bus ticket from Matsumoto to Takayama for a discounted ¥4,500.  More information: (English) (Japanese)

There is also a small airport, Shinshu-Matsumoto Airport (IATA code: MMJ), 8km (5 mi) south of the city.  It only serves a couple of domestic destinations: Fukuoka, Sapporo, and during the month of August, Osaka-Itami.  A shuttle bus between the airport and bus terminal is timed to meet all flights.  The ride takes 30 minutes and costs ¥600.  More information: (Japanese)

Excursions

1) Daio Wasabi Farm: A wasabi (spicy horseradish) farm open to visitors.
Access: JR Oito line from Matsumoto to Hotaka Station (30 minutes, ¥320, JR Pass OK), followed by a 10-minute taxi (~¥1,300) or shuttle bus ride (¥600 one-way / ¥1,000 round-trip) (Schedule).  Buses are only available on weekends and holidays, from mid-April to October.

2) Omachi: A starting point for crossing the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route.
Access: JR Oito line from Matsumoto to Shinano-Omachi Station (60 minutes, ¥680, JR Pass OK).

3) Hakuba: A ski resort used during the 1998 Winter Olympics.
Access: JR Oito line from Matsumoto to Hakuba Station (105 minutes with 1 transfer, ¥1,170, JR Pass OK).

4) Nagano: The prefecture's capital city, and the host of the 1998 Winter Olympics.
Access: JR Shinano limited express from Matsumoto to Nagano Station (50 minutes, ¥2,900 reserved, JR Pass OK).

5) Kamikochi: A national park in the northern Japan Alps, centred around a river nestled between mountains.  Open only from April through November.
Access: Alpico line from Matsumoto to Shin-Shimashima Station (30 minutes), followed by a bus to Kamikochi (65 minutes, total ¥2,500 one-way / ¥4,650 round-trip) (Schedule).

6) Kiso Valley: A collection of preserved post towns along the old Nakasendo highway, which one may hike across.
Access: JR Shinano limited express from Nagoya to Nakatsugawa Station (75 minutes, ¥4,370 reserved, JR Pass OK), followed by a bus to Magome (25 minutes, ¥570) (Schedule).

Know Your Trains: Resort View Furusato

This article is based on a visit made on Saturday, 19 May 2018.

Previously on Sekai Ichi, I wrapped up a day trip to Takayama which, I would say, was one of the highlights of this trip.  After returning for our final night in Toyama, we were about to return to Tokyo.  But even though the Hokuriku Shinkansen provides a fast and direct link between the two cities, I felt like making a diversion along the way.  Our interim destination was the castle town of Matsumoto, and to get there, our route included a special train called the Resort View Furusato.

The Resort View Furusato (リゾートビューふるさと, Rizōto Byū Furusato) is one of JR East's lineup of "Joyful Trains".  These are specialised excursion trains which generally run on weekends and holiday periods, and have unique exterior and interior themes, often tying in with aspects of their particular regions.

The Resort View Furusato uses a 2-car HB-E300-series train, powered by a hybrid electric/diesel engine.  Inside, the Furusato may not appear as flashy as other Joyful Trains, but its essentials go above and beyond the call.  All seats have a generous pitch of 120 cm (47 inches), the most spacious regular seating in JR's entire fleet, and the windows are plenty wide, too.  At both ends of the train, there are small open areas where you can enjoy an even better view.  Traditional music performances are also held here, primarily on the western portion of the route which we skipped over.

Mid-way between Nagano and Matsumoto, the train makes an extended stop at Obasute Station.  Two things stand out about this station: first, there is a switchback here, where the train must change directions to climb up or down, not unlike certain points of the Hakone Tozan Railway.  And second, the platform has a commanding view of the Zenkoji Plain below, towards Nagano.

Attendants are also on hand throughout the whole journey.  You can buy certain snacks and gifts from them -- such as products made with apples, an agricultural specialty of Nagano Prefecture -- and they are happy to assist with taking your picture, such as I did at the above-mentioned stop.

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We disembarked at Matsumoto, but the Resort View Furusato continues up the Oito line, which skirts up the eastern edge of the Japan Alps.  If you want to go to the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route, you can take this train to Shinano-Omachi station, and transfer to a bus from there.  Kurobe Dam (pictured), one of the route's highlights, can be reached in only an hour from Shinano-Omachi.  Beware that if you do so, make sure you have enough time to catch the last connection at each stop, since crowds are liable to build up by the time you get there.  For more information, please read my introduction article on the Alpine Route here.

663highland [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

On its outbound journey, the train also makes an extended half-hour stop at Hotaka.  This gives you enough time to visit Hotaka Shrine which, despite being situated right next to the station, is nestled within a pleasant wooded grove.  In that regard, it reminds me of Meiji Shrine in Tokyo.  Even Hotaka Station is modelled after the shrine's bare-wooden architecture!

Ski Mania [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The far end of the line, from Hakuba to Minami-Otari, is home to a dense cluster of ski resorts, accessible by buses from either of the two stations as well as from Nagano.  The largest ski zone is Happo'one (pictured), which hosted Downhill and Super G skiing events during the 1998 Winter Olympics.

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The Resort View Furusato runs on most Saturdays and Sundays, and some additional periods, including almost the entire month of August.  For up-to-date operating schedules, please visit the links at the bottom of this article.

Station	Resort View Furusato for Minami-Otari	Station	Resort View Furusato for Nagano
Nagano	9:04 AM	Minami-Otari	3:18 PM
Shinonoi	9:13 AM	Hakuba	3:33 PM (Arr.) 3:39 PM (Dep.)
Obasute	9:28 AM (Arr.) 9:45 AM (Dep.)	Shinano-Omachi	4:20 PM (Arr.) 4:21 PM (Dep.)
Akashina	10:11 AM (Arr.) 10:12 AM (Dep.)	Shinano-Matsukawa	4:30 PM (Arr.) 4:31 PM (Dep.)
Matsumoto	10:27 AM (Arr.) 10:41 AM (Dep.)	Hotaka	4:42 PM (Arr.) 4:45 PM (Dep.)
Hotaka	10:59 AM (Arr.) 11:31 AM (Dep.)	Matsumoto	5:14 PM (Arr.) 5:23 PM (Dep.)
Shinano-Matsukawa	11:41 AM (Arr.) 11:42 AM (Dep.)	Akashina	5:40 PM
Shinano-Omachi	11:52 AM (Arr.) 12:02 PM (Dep.)	Obasute	6:06 PM (Arr.) 6:07 PM (Dep.)
Hakuba	12:34 PM (Arr.) 12:42 PM (Dep.)	Shinonoi	6:19 PM
Minami-Otari	1:00 PM	Nagano	6:29 PM

Tips

• All seats on the Resort View Furusato are reserved.  The supplement fee is a flat ¥530 on top of regular fare.
• The Resort View Furusato is classified as a rapid train, so you can ride it for free with the Japan Rail Pass, JR East Nagano-Niigata Pass, and even the Seishun 18 Ticket.
• For the best views during the Nagano-Matsumoto section, including the Obasute overlook, sit on the right side of the train (for outbound services).  For the best views of the Japan alps beyond Matsumoto, sit on the left side (outbound).

More information: (English) (Japanese)