How to get to and around Norikura: Access, Transportation and Orientation

How to get to Norikura

Norikura is most commonly accessed from Matsumoto (how to get to Matsumoto): take the Matsumoto Electric Railway from Matsumoto to Shin-Shimashima Station (30 minutes, 710 yen) and change to an Alpico bus to Norikura Kogen (45 minutes, 1350 yen). Seat reservations are not possible for either the train or the bus.

From July to October, buses depart every 1-2 hours from Norikura Kogen to the bus terminal near the summit of Mount Norikuradake (50 minutes, 2450 yen uphill, 2250 yen downhill). Seat reservations for these buses are mandatory and can be made online or at the ticket office at Norikura Kogen Tourist Information Center. Alternatively, you can hire a taxi (45 minutes, around 10,000 yen one way).

Above fees and schedules are subject to change. Be sure to check current yen exchange rates.

The Norikura Kogen Tourist Information Center in Norikura Kogen is the main bus terminal in Norikura, where buses from Matsumoto terminate, and buses up Mount Norikuradake depart from. There is also a large parking lot at the center where drivers can leave their cars and transfer to a bus, because the road up Mount Norikuradake is closed to private cars.

Another transportation hub further down the valley is the Sawando Bus Terminal, where most of the local bus lines meet and enable transfers between buses to/from Norikura, Kamikochi, Shirahone Onsen and Takayama.