Independent guide to Nikko, Japan
Toshogu Shrine in the cedars, Kegon Falls and Lake Chuzenji up the 48 bends of the Irohazaka, and onsen ryokan from the shrines to Kinugawa. The tours worth booking and the hotels we would choose.
GetYourGuide · 4.6/5 from 2426 reviews
The best-selling coach day from Ginza: Toshogu with a guide, Kegon Falls and Lake Chuzenji.
Departs from Ginza, Tokyo · 10.5 hours
GetYourGuide · 4.9/5 from 467 reviews
Your own van and guide from your Tokyo hotel, for up to five, on a route you choose.
Departs from Tokyo (hotel pick-up) · 10 hours
GetYourGuide · 4.6/5 from 272 reviews
A day in a rebuilt Edo-period town: ninja and oiran shows, samurai lessons and costume.
Departs from Kinugawa Onsen · Valid 1 day
GetYourGuide · 5.0/5 from 101 reviews
A private car with an English-speaking driver-guide from Tokyo, priced per person.
Departs from Tokyo (hotel pick-up) · 10 hours
GetYourGuide · 4.7/5 from 79 reviews
A coach day from Shinjuku with a licensed English guide and the Toshogu ticket included.
Departs from Shinjuku, Tokyo · 10 hours
GetYourGuide · 4.1/5 from 44 reviews
Toshogu Shrine admission bought ahead, exchanged at the Tobu-Nikko Station tourist centre.
Valid 1 day
A hand-picked 18: Nikko town for the shrines on foot, Lake Chuzenji for the water and the falls, Yumoto for sulphur springs at the end of the road, Kinugawa for riverside onsen and private baths.
Yes. Tobu limited expresses from Asakusa reach Tobu-Nikko in about two hours, and a coach tour from Ginza or Shinjuku covers Toshogu Shrine, Kegon Falls and Lake Chuzenji in about ten and a half hours. A day is enough for the shrines and one stop up the mountain; staying a night lets you see the lake and the onsen without the rush.
For one day and the lake as well as the shrines, usually yes: the Irohazaka road up to Lake Chuzenji is a bus ride of about 50 minutes each way from the stations, and queues for it are long in October. A tour or a driver-guide takes care of that. If you are staying a night or two, the train and the local buses are cheaper and simple.
October and early November for the autumn leaves, which start at Yumoto and Lake Chuzenji in early October and reach the shrines in late October or early November; it is also the busiest time. May and June are green and calmer, and winter brings snow at Yumoto and frozen waterfalls, with some lake hotels closing.
Nikko town for the shrines on foot and the stations; Lake Chuzenji for the lake, Kegon Falls and quiet evenings; Yumoto Onsen for milky sulphur baths at the end of the valley; Kinugawa Onsen for big riverside onsen hotels and ryokan with private baths, 40 minutes from the shrines.
No. Tours and tickets are booked with GetYourGuide and hotels with Expedia, at their prices. Their links carry a code so this site is paid a commission, at no cost to you.