Akeno Sunflower festival 2016

Hello,

We are planning to go for the sunflower festival if it's held this year.

I understand to get to Akeno, we'll need to take the Mizugaki Line bus outside JR Nirasaki.
May I know what's bus frequency and timetable? I cannot seem to find it by google.

In addition, are there luggage lockers in JR Nirasaki for us to deposit the luggages or should we deposit them in Otsuki station as we'll be traveling from Kawaguchiko and after Nirasaki we'll leave for Shinjuku.

I found effective time table in Japanese.
Could you see this?

http://www.city.hokuto.yamanashi.jp/tourism/area/1309242585-124.html

You get off at Haiji-no-mura-kurara-kan(ハイジの村クララ館) and walk 5mins to the Sun flower site.

If you take 0850 bus from Nirasaki station(韮崎駅), you will arrive at Haiji-no-mura-kurara-kan(ハイジの村クララ館)
at 0912, and for return, if you take 1221 bus from Haiji-no-mura-kurara-kan(ハイジの村クララ館), you will arrive
at 1245 at Nirasaki station(韮崎駅).

Coin lockers are avilable at Nirasaki station. This is the photo taken by someone in 2014.

http://locker1.exblog.jp/23135905/

Thanks Mollie for the feedback!

We are a group of 10 so based on the blog, there'll not be enough luggage lockers for us in Nirasaki.

Do you have any idea if there's more large lockers in Otsuki or Kofu since we'll need to change train in Ostuki.
Otherwise, any other suggestion as to what we can do?

Kofu is the best station to leave your luggage because there are many coin lockers, and in case you miss your reserved train for Shinjuku, you can take next limited epress of Kaiji .
This is the map of Kofu station.
Get out of the ticket gate and turn to right, you can find coin lockers on your both sides.
Coin lockers are shown as Key marks on the map.
http://www.jreast.co.jp/estation/stations/671.html

Photo taken by someone in 2014
http://locker1.exblog.jp/23135804/


There are 2 types of limited express on Chuo line--Azusa(longer distance) and Kaiji(shorter).
Azusa is between Shinjuku and Matsumoto and stops at Otsuki only in the morming of 7am-10am.
Azusa often skips Nirasaki but this is not a big problem because Nirasaki is very close and you need not take limited express.
Kaiji is between Shinjuku and Kofu(only in the morning to Ryuo)

travel time;
Otsuki-Kofu, 35mins by Kaiji, 50-60mins by local train
Kofu-Nirasaki,10mins by Azusa, 12mins by local train

I often take Chuo line myself, limited express is very crowded in summer and I usually take local trains in summer.

Hi, i'm planning to buy Tokyo Wide Pass to go to kawaguchi area, can i use the pass to get there too? How to get there using the rail pass from shinjuku station?