Tsumago/Magome buses

I am going to be staying in Nagoya and am looking at doing a day trip to the kiso valley on the 18th December. Is it possible to do it in a day from Nagoya we want to go to Tsumago then walk to magome. Is it ok to do this walk in winter or is it too cold?
My main question is about the buses. I have worked out the train timetable from Nagoya to Nagiso but not the bus from Nagiso to Tsumago then from Magome back to Nagiso. Does anyone know how often the buses run this time of year? Any advise on how to get there, timetables and any info would be great. I really want to go but don't want to waste the day trying to figure out how to get there.

Thanks

Is it possible to do it in a day from Nagoya we want to go to Tsumago then walk to magome.

Yes, that is possible in one day.

Is it ok to do this walk in winter or is it too cold?

Coldness should not be a problem. Just put on more clothes! As for snow, I am not sure how big is the possibility of snow. Snow could potentially make the walk more challenging.

bus from Nagiso to Tsumago then from Magome back to Nagiso.

You should not return from Magome to Nagiso. Instead, you should take the bus from Magome to Nakatsugawa Station, from where you can take the train back to Nagoya. Alternatively, you can take a direct bus from Magome to Nagoya.

Regarding the timetable, the information published in the following thread is still valid for December 18, 2005:
http://www.japan-guide.com/forum/quereadisplay.html?0+10165

As for the direct buses between Magome and Nagoya, note that they stop along the Chuo Expressway. You will have to walk about 15-20 minutes between the expressway interchange and Magome. Buses depart every 30-60 minutes.

I'm just back from Magome and I kept the timetable of buses.
Nagiso Station to Tsumago and continuing to Magome:
dept 10.10 10:17 arr Tsum 10:45 arr Magom
12:20 12:27 arr 12:55 arr
14:45 14:52 arr 15:20 arr
There is also Nagiso to Tsumago only:
dept. 8:15 8: 22 arr
10:40 10:47
12:25 12:32
17:40 17:47
fare to Tsumago 270 yen to Magome 810 yen.
To walking trail takes around 2 h 30 to 3 h. It's well signed but signs are in kanji.
Ciao Simonetta

I forgot to write the return
from Magome to Nagiso:
Magome to Tsumago to Nagiso:
10:55 dept 11:21 arr Tsum
11: 30 Nagiso stat
13:00 13:26 13:35
15:25 15:51 16:00
Tsumago and Magome are quite small. Around 16:30 all shops close and the places remain empty. So be sure to get the bus or have a place where to stay overnight. There are no signs in english.
Both villages are extremely nice.
Ciao Simonetta

Here below Bus departure time from Magome to Nakatsugawa:
- 7:25, 8:10, 9:40, 10:20, 11:00, 12,30, 13:05, 14:05, 14:45, 16:00, 16:40, 17:30 18:30 (this one not run on saturady sunday national holiday), 18:47 (this run only saturday, sunday, nat. holiday).
It takes about 30 min to get to the station (last stop)
Ciao Simonetta

Hello everybody,
We intend to go from Magome to Takayama in August using the following route : Bus from Magome to Nakatsugawa, second bus to Gero and from Gero JR train to Takayama. Does someone know if it is feasible and where can we get the timetables ?
Bestest regards to all...

Does someone know if it is feasible and where can we get the timetables ?

Yes, this is the best and fastest way to get from Magome to Takayama.

Here are the timetables:

Magome to Nakatsugawa:
http://www.nouhibus.co.jp/a0_bus/teiki/ji-magome.htm

”nāē”‘ŗ“° means Magome
’†’Ɛģ‰w‘O means Nakatsugawa (JR station)

Red means that the bus does not operate on weekends and holidays. › means that the bus operates only on weekends and holidays.

Nakatsugawa to Gero:
http://www.nouhibus.co.jp/a0_bus/teiki/ji-keihoku.htm

’†’Ɛģ‰w‘O means Nakatsugawa (JR station)
‰ŗ˜C‰w‘O means Gero (JR station)

Red means that the bus does not operate on weekends and holidays.

And trains from Gero to Takayama can be looked up here:
http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/

Thank you Uji, You are great !

can anyone answer this? I assume that after the tripo nakatsugawa-nagoya by train is included in JR Pass, do you confirm? thank you!!

There is no direct bus from Nakatsugawa to Tsumago. Only to Magome. In order to get from Nakatsugawa to Tsumago by bus, you would have to take a bus to Magome and then another bus to Tsumago. It would be faster to take a JR train to Nagiso and a bus to Tsumago from there.

Nakatsugawa-Magome: 540 yen
Not sure about the Nagiso-Tsumago and Magoma-Tsumago fares. I estimate them to be around 250 and 500 Yen respectively.

Note that bus service is not frequent on some of the routes:
Nakatsugawa-Magome: about 12 round trips per day
Magome-Tsumago: 0-5 round trips per day
Tsumago-Nagiso: 3-5 round trips per day

A taxi ride between Tsumago and Nagiso is about 1000 Yen.

Hi,
I'm planning a trip to Tsumago for the festival of Bunka-Bunsei times in Edo period on November 23. I'm leaving from Nagoya to Nakatsugawa then on to Magome and take the walking trail to Tsumago for the festival. I'm traveling alone. Is this safe, to walk the trail alone? And does anyone know what time the festival starts? Thanks in advance!