Okunikko-bus etc.

Hi everybody, ILve a Qs regarding Okunikkó, buses in concrete:

1. To go from Nikko center (from both JR & Tobu station, correct?) to Okunikkó, I might take Tobu bus - I hope this is correct?

2. I will be there for 1 day only & plan to see Chuzenji lake, Kegon waterfall & Ryuzu wf & perhaps also Chuzenji temple. Plus I would like to use Akechidaira if possible. Though - I havenLt found anywhere, where/which are the stops of Tobu bus?

Are there stops next to all mentioned places? Is it possible to get off for example next to Akechidaira ropeway - take the ride up & back down and then get on back the Tobu bus and continue to chuzenji-ko?

3. Is it possible to take a walk from the top station of Akechidaira ropeway to kegon wf an upper observation platform & perhaps even to take the ride to the waterfall's base, (which is reached via a paid elevator ride).

4. regarding us tickets & the fact I will leave for Tokyo back from Nikko JR sta (with JR pass), I find as the best solution for me to buy the 2-day unlimited ticket for trips /eventhough I Lll be staying for 1 day only/ - the 2-day ticket shall be at Y 2000 and there shall be NO limits to getting on & off the buses - is it correct? Could I really get on & off the bus wherever & whenver I want (within the 2-day & location NIkko - Cuzenji-ko of course)??

5. Are there any reservations needed for buses? - I will be at Nikko for shrines & temples 2 weeks before.

6. Finally to this topic/location (hope so :-)):
any suggestions for day schedule to reach all the above mentioned places (including boat ride) - would appreciate any suggestions as I am not aware where are the stops, how it is with getting on/off the buses, how many times I am allowed to transfer on/off the bus (if there are any limits ...?) etc.

many thanks in advance, regards Jet

To go from Nikko center (from both JR & Tobu station, correct?) to Okunikkó, I might take Tobu bus - I hope this is correct?

Yes, that is correct. Some of the buses stop only at Tobu station. Some details:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3806.html

I will be there for 1 day only & plan to see Chuzenji lake, Kegon waterfall & Ryuzu wf & perhaps also Chuzenji temple. Plus I would like to use Akechidaira if possible. Though - I havenLt found anywhere, where/which are the stops of Tobu bus?

Most of these details are mentioned in the access sections of the following sightseeing guide pages:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3800.html

A good order would be:
Nikko Station - (bus) - Akechidaira - (bus) - Chuzenjiko/Kegon (and evt. Chuzenji Temple) - (bus) - Ryuzu Falls - (bus) - Nikko Station

Is it possible to take a walk from the top station of Akechidaira ropeway to kegon wf an upper observation platform

Yes, it is possible, but it is quite a long hike. I never did it, but I think it is more than one hour. The trail passes Chuzenji Temple along the way.

The lower observation deck is only accessible via the paid elevator.

the 2-day ticket shall be at Y 2000 and there shall be NO limits to getting on & off the buses - is it correct?

That is right.

Are there any reservations needed for buses?

No, reservations are not possible.

Note that if you want to go as far as Ryuzu Falls, you might need to buy the 2,650 yen bus pass rather than the 2,000 yen bus pass, which covers the route only up to the end of Chuzenji lake that is closer to Central Nikko (up to Osaki bus stop, to be precise).

http://www.tobu-bus.com/pc/ticket/nikko.html

Dear Uji & AK - many thanks for responses.

Though regarding bus-stops, I went through the pages that Uji mentioned though I havenLt found if there is a stop next to every of the mentioned places.

Regarding the ticket: I plan to take the boat trip across the Chuzenji-ko & I thought it might be accessible from shobugahama boat station - is it so or is it more then (lets say) 20 minutes walk from shobugahama boat station to ryuzu?
if it was possible, then I guess I might buy the Y 2000 ticket, use it to CHuzenji-ko, buy a boat ticket, use it to shobugahama boat station - walk to ryuzu & back to shobugahama and then return by the boat to chuzenji-ko & by bus to Nikko (with the Y 2000 ticket) - could it be like that?

Regarding the walk from top station of Akechidaira ropeway to kegon wf an upper observation platform (or to lower deck), would it be possible to continue by bus from the Kegon falls (=not to return back to Akechidaira ropeway)? Cause I was wondering to take the 1+ hour of walk (hope it is nt rather a mountain climbing :-)) ?!) though I wouold find it difficult to return back ... because of lack of time :-)

so, with several changes to the schedule, Uji, could it be like this:
Nikko Center (bus) - Akechidaira ropeway (walk) ... meeting Chuzenji Temple ... to - Kegon falls (bus) - Chuzenji-ko (boat) -shobugahama boat station (walk) - ryuzu falls (walk back to) shobugahama boat station (boat) - chuzenji-ko (bus) - Nikko

And finally (to this) - I planned to go there 29th of April though I found out there is NAt. holiday (many people) - would it make any sense to change the date for 30th & do to Fuji-lakes area the 29th? Or i wouldnLt help myself much with it? Or would Matsumoto be a good/much better destination for the 29th?

thanks in advance for further reactions, Jet

The boat that goes from the Lake Chuzenji cruise boat pier ("Fune no eki Chuzenji", the pier is only 15 minutes walk from Kegon Falls) to Shobugahama runs only from June 1 to July 3. And if I look at the timetable, it looks like there is just one, at 12:35.
http://www.tobu.co.jp/kogyo/chuzenji/

If you happen to catch that one, then from Shobugahama, Ryuzu Falls seems to be only 1 - 1.5km away.

But I suppose the travel time frame does not fit with the above; if you buy the 2,000 yen bus pass and ride to the end of validity of that pass (Osaki bus stop), then try to "walk" to Ryuzu Falls, it looks like (I'm looking at the small map in my Japanese guidebook) something closer to 4km.

They have another cruise boat, with more frequent service, that goes along the lakeshore, but that one does not stop at Shobugahama.

AK - thanks again; well we r going April 29 or 30 (any recommendation if 30th is much better?) so no chance of catching this boat.

Regarding other stops of the boat(s)L s rides, is there one relativly (2-3 km at most) kilometers from Ryuzu wf?

No, unfortunately the only boat that would be running when you visit Japan is the one that "circles" the lake for views all around the lake, so the boat gives you a tour and just goes back to the starting point.

To get to Ryuzu Falls, the bus is the easiest way.

I will leave the holiday crowd question to the experts; while I do recommend going to Nikko on weekdays, there might be many people who take that Friday off work as well, so I cannot tell....

many thanks for your help - I might even exempt the Ryuzu from my schedule & make it as follows:
Nikko Center (bus) - Akechidaira ropeway (walk) ... meeting Chuzenji Temple ... to - Kegon falls (bus) - Chuzenji-ko (boat) -stay at Chuzenji-ko for a while (bus) - Nikko.

Or is the Ryuzu a must see place? How long does it take by bus approx. from chuzenjji-ko to Ryuzu (to eventually implement it into schedule after the boat circle trip)? And if I did, may I take the return bus from Ryuzu to Nikko center? In case I do go by bus to Ryuzu, the ticket for Y 2650 is a must?

Hope I wonLt have any further Qs to Okunikko, I just send them as they arise following your (kind :-)) responses, hope at last it does not disturb too much thanks

AK - i am sorry I stated the Q regarding bus ticket price to Ryuzu for 2nd time (yes, Y2650 ticket), you have responded before already, I was confused a little in the middle of million of infos ...

nevertheless, thank you a lot

I'm sorry, I must have been awfully confused as I read the boat timetable!

There is a service that goes: "Fune no Eki Chuzenji" (the one that is closest to Kegon Falls) - Shogubahama - Tachiki Kannon (Chuzenji Temple) and back to Fune no Eki Chuzenji. This one does make stops at those piers. (It's called "D Course.")

Fune no Eki Chuzenji 9:30 - Shobugahama 9:50 Tachiki Kannon 10:20, etc.
There is one departing every one hour between 9:30 - 15:30, from the second Sat. of April to end of Nov.

AK, that is perfect news - seems now like I might finalise the schedule as follows (& I kindly ask you to confirm me that it might be like that, that it is possible ...):

Nikko center
(bus ticket of Y 2000??)
to Akechidaira ropeway
(walk) ... to
Kegon falls
(walk) ... to
Fune no Eki Chuzenji
(boat) ... to
shobugahama boat station
(walk) ... to
ryuzu falls
(walk back) ... to
shobugahama boat station
(boat) ... to
Tachiki Kannon (Chuzenji Temple)
a/ (boat) ... to
Fune no Eki Chuzenji
b/ or even (walk - how far approx. is it to Chuzenji-ko from CHuzenji Temple??) ... to - Chuzenji-ko

and finally ad a/ Fune no Eki Chuzenji
OR ad b/ chuzenji-ko
(bus - still using the ticket of Y 2000??) ... to
to Nikko center

Could you confirm me, that the schedule might work like that?
Are both the mentioned alternatives of the final part of the trip (from the Chu. Temple: a/ & b/) possible?

Could I buy 1 type of the boat ticket, get off at shobugahama boat station & then get on there after returning from Ryuzu (which type would that be & at what price)?

Thanks again for your useful involvement in this, I am afraid I will have plenty similar Qs to other interresting places I plan to visit ... (... even though I have posted some already in last 4-5 months) & even though I am not lazy to go trhough the infos here as well as in my 2 book guides :-))) - though Qs are still arising & with respect to the fact I am not able to read/speak in japanese, I wanna prepare myself the best as possible
Thank you again!

AK, sorry for disturbing, but could you, please, confirm the finalised schedule as mentioned above.

thanks in advance

I'm sorry but there is no way I can really "confirm" your schedule - meaning, I do not have the exact bus schedule and the boat schedule, and I do not know what time you are starting from Tokyo :( But theoretically yes it should work like a loop. I would still recommend the bus to get to Ryuzu Falls, though, because as I mentioned, there is only one boat per hour.

The boat ride from Fune no Eki Chuzenji to Shobugahama is 570 yen
Shobugahama to Tachiki Kannon (possibly back to Fune no Eki, I cannot confirm) is 740 yen.
If you just take the segment from Tachiki Kannon back to Fune no Eki, it's 150 yen.

Please note that there could be a lot of time waiting for the next boat, etc. if you go by boat.

AK, thanks for your co-operation & helpful responses, regards, JEt

HI Uji, AK & you all,
I have 1 further Q to Okunikko:
Would it be possible (without running the whole day :-)) )to change my itinerary for Okunikko with including Senjogahara at a place of excluded boat trip (or the boat in the end, if possible ...), so that the final itinerary would be like this:

Nikko center
(bus ticket of Y 2000??)
to Akechidaira ropeway
(walk) ... to
Kegon falls
(further walk) ... to nearest bus stop (??? which one would that be - is there Kegon falls stop somewhere near??)
(bus) ... to
ryuzu falls (is it the same as: Ryuzu no taki??)
walk through Senjogahara Plateau Nature Trail (does it LstartL near to ryuzu falls/Ryuzu no taki ??)
to Yumoto onsen
(bus) - BACK ... to:

either a/
to shobugahama boat station
(boat) ... to
Tachiki Kannon (Chuzenji Temple)
or
Fune no Eki Chuzenji
OR chuzenji-ko

or
b/ Fune no Eki Chuzenji
OR chuzenji-ko (for ... boat trip, even a round boat trip)

or
c/ to Nikko center (if there is no more time)

(bus - still using the ticket of Y 2000??).

******************************************
Not least - sorry to you both (all) for
returning to this topic but this is among the more difficult days to plan ...

many many thanks in advance, Jet

- One thing to note; walking through Senjogahara Plateau Nature Trail will take some time, so the way you plan it, it looks more like a full "two-day" itinerary rather than one-day. To me, visiting central Nikko AND Oku-nikko (Senjogahara and Yumoto Onsen area) is a two-day thing.

I wonder what Uji and others think?

- Again, about the bus pass, if you want to take the bus as far as Ryuzu Falls (yes, the same as Ryuzu no Taki - "taki" is Japanese for "waterfalls"), you need the 2,650yen bus pass, and if you want to take the bus as far as Akanuma (one of the entry points into Senjogahara) or Yumoto Onsen, you need the 3,000 yen bus pass.

To me, visiting central Nikko AND Oku-nikko (Senjogahara and Yumoto Onsen area) is a two-day thing.

I wonder what Uji and others think?

I fully agree. If you just visit Kegon Falls, it can be packed in with the shrines and temples in central Nikko into a single day. But if you go beyond that, I recommend to stay overnight.

Many thanks to you both:
actually - i will be in Nikko for 2 days, though not for 2 succesive. I will be there:
1/ the mid_april and I planed to visit the city centre with shrines, temples & the bridge in 1 day
plus
2/ end of April - I planned to travel from the town itself (the town actually just for transfer to the bus ...) to kegon, ryuzu & senjogahara and take the bus either straight back to Nikko (if I donLt have time remaining) or to CHuzenji-ko for a short stay (on boat if possible ...).

What about that - still no chance of making it (lets say from 9.30/10 to 17/18.30)?
If not, what would you exclude from the itinerary mentioned above - even though it would be your personal suggestion do not hesitate :-)

AK - sorry for the ticket Q - you have already answered (perhaps even more then once ... - I will not ask again bout it; to chuzenji ko for Y2000, to yumoto for Y3000).

many many thanks to you both, regards, Jet

When you say 9:30/10:00 to 17:30/18:00, is that starting from Tokyo or Nikko station? If starting from Nikko station (Tobu or JR), it would be fine. But not if you are starting from Tokyo, I would say.

Isn't there any way you can put those two visits together? You will save a lot of train/bus fare if you can make it into one.

If you must do it in separate visits, (from my experience) you can do one day with: shrines, temples, the bridge and the Kegon Falls. And on another occasion, go all the way up first to Yumoto Onsen (actually to Yudaki, another waterfall upstream), do the Senjogahara walk, walk further down to Ryuzu Waterfalls, then take the bus down to the lake, I don't know if you will have the time for the boat (or if the boat schedule works out), then come down to Nikko station. I believe that the Senjogahara walk itself is full two hours or longer.

AK, many thanks for your useful response; I will be at 9.30/10 in Nikko; I canLt make it 2 days together as I have the hotels booked for several months already.

Well, now it seems like I will do the way you mentioned last ... i.e. with Kegon falls the first time.

1 short & definitely last (regarding this topic :-) ) Q: what time should I take the bus (the latest!?!?) to be able to get to Kegon and take the (do you think 2-3 hours for the Nikko-Kegon-Nikko trip would be enough - approx of course)?

thanks a lot for your help (... & do no hesitate to respond elsewhere as well :-))) ; atm I have posted a Q regarding Ryogoku & sumo stables training visit ..., well among others :-( ).
thanks you very much, Jet