wakayama to koyasan

Hi everyone,
Can anyone help? We would like to do a day trip to Wakayama and Mt Koyasan from Kyoto.
We are thinking about visiting Awashima Jinja and various temples at Mt Koyosan.
So far I have found direct train from Kyoto to Mt Koyasan. Or train from Namba to either Wakayama or Koyasan. The trip between Wakayama and Koyasan seems to be approx. 3 hours - for a distance of approx. 60-70kms (please correct me if I'm wrong)
So my question is..... does anyone know of alternative transport between Wakayama and Koyasan that does not take that long?
We have also considered hiring a car in Kyoto and driving, would this be a better way to cover both areas in the same day?
Otherwise, we might have to make the decision to skip Wakayama. Perhaps this is the only option. Has anyone been to Awashima Jinja and Wakayama who could comment?
Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

does anyone know of alternative transport between Wakayama and Koyasan that does not take that long?

By public transportation (train), it is going to take 2-3 hours, depending on how good your connection is at Hashimoto Station.

To the best of my knowledge, there's not really a way to make it a faster trip. The trains are basically as fast as they can go, and Koya-san is (as the name suggests) up in the mountains, which makes the trip up there somewhat slow. I don't suspect that a car would make the trip that much more efficient for you.

I really enjoyed my trip to Koya-san...I went up there and spent the night at a temple and returned the next day. It was a great and unique way to spend the day, although you could make a full day trip out of the trip if you wanted. I personally feel like the trip is most rewarding with a temple stay. It's such a unique experience!

Thanks for the replies.
It seems we will have to wait for approx. 1 hour in Hashimoto for connection. Is there anything to see or do near the station? Or should we just take a good book?
Having read further on this site, I don't think driving in this part of Japan is for us, and obviously isn't going to save any time. We were hoping for nice country driving, but it sounds like that is not the case.
We considered staying at Mt Koya-san, but alas our bones cannot take to floor sleeping. (found that out on our last trip) We have friends who will be staying there, so I'll pass on your comments. I'm sure they'll be thrilled to know they've made the right decision.
I hope we'll still be able to enjoy the day trip as much as those who stay overnight.