Tsumago is one of the many towns located on Japan’s historic Nakasendo trail, and it looked so lovely that I opted to visit it alongside Narai-juku. It was such a nice stop and should definitely be on your list of places to visit in Japan.

A Snippet of Tsumago’s History

Tsumago started as a post town among the short Kisoji trail, but was subsequently absorbed as part of the Nakasendo trail, which is an Edo-period road that connected Tokyo to Kyoto (circa 1603-1868). It’s one of the 69 post towns where people would stop to rest. Many of these towns are still preserved and people come from around the world to walk the historic trail.

In the 1960s, Tsumago’s residents decided to preserve and restore the town to how it looked in the Edo era, particularly the 19th century. They took great pains in getting the town to its most historic look – pains that paid off, because Tsumago is such a beautiful town to see today.

Visiting Tsumago Today

Tsumago really does feel like an open air museum or a step back in time. Since it was restored and made to feel as it did in the 19th century, there are a few more buildings and museums you can go inside and visit than in Narai-juku. But it is a little weird because many buildings aren’t properly marked, so at the time, I didn’t enter because I thought it would be trespassing on someone’s property. And considering that’s a big no-no, I don’t even want to encourage people to “just go into the houses.” Maybe ask someone or watch what other people are doing and follow suit.

One place like that is the Kumagai Residence which is the former residence of a wealthy merchant family that lived in the home in the 18th century. Here you can see what a traditional house looked like and see lots of artefacts from different professions and different eras.

Some place to visit would be the Honjin which was the inn that people would stop at. It dates to the very beginning of the Edo period, 1601, and the honjins were arguably the most important parts of these post towns. They were towns to rest and the honjin is where people would rest. So it’s great that you can see this essential part of the area’s history.

Then there’s the Waki-honjin which is an inn but for feudal lords and other more important people. Apparently Emperor Meiji once visited there himself! I don’t know anything about him personally but if you’ve studied Japanese history at all, you’d have heard of the Meiji Restoration, the Meiji Era, delicious Meiji chocolates… all associated with this man! (At least I assume the chocolates would be associated, too.)

There’s also Kotoku-ji Temple which is said to date to at least the 16th century, well before the Nakasendo trail. It’s a modest temple but it has nice views of the town below.

Of course, you won’t want to miss the notice board – an essential part of every post town!

You will see signs for Tsumago Castle, which was built at least 50+ years before the Nakasendo trail came into existence. However it’s been completely demolished and the “castle” is really just where it once stood. It’s also an upward hike in its own right, but it is something people like to do.

Also, FYI, there is a public bathroom on the trail near the break-off to the castle trail. So if you’ve been hiking and need to go, the bathroom is primitive but it is there!

I visited Tsumago as a day trip with Narai-juku. They both can take only a few hours to see but since I started a bit late, I got to Tsumago a bit late and it was pretty rushed to see things before the sun went down. I’m happy I got to visit but I’d love to go again and get a more in-depth look at the town. Narai is definitely bigger but I somehow found Tsumago to be more charming (but only slightly!).

Before I went, I had no idea they had these museums to see. I just thought it was a place to stroll around. Sometimes, my blog posts are about things I missed so that you, the reader, can learn from my mistakes. But even just walking along the quaint streets and their picturesque facades, I had such a peaceful time.

Getting to Tsumago from the Train Station

The old town of Tsumago is located a while away from the train station. Outside the train station, there’s a little retro-looking bus that goes to the old town, but it was not running until 1 hour after I arrived. Tsumago is in a rural area so there is no Uber, no taxis, so I decided to take the hour long minute walk. I recommend downloading Maps.me since they have great pedestrian maps (it was the one I used in Tsumago and was very helpful).

Already exhausted from spending 2 weeks on the road, the first part of the hike was the worst. From the train station, you go up a steep hill. But from there, it’s a lot easier. You’re still going to go up but the incline is a lot smaller and thus easier. It felt like regular walking. You’ll walk along streets and through the woods and it’s a nice little hike.

Then you’re going to go down a steep hill (you’ll definitely want to wear shoes with a good grip) and then up a steep but short hill. It took about 50 minutes to do the whole walk.

You’ll notice that a lot of people are wearing bells – that’s because there’s bears in the area and the bells ward them off. You can buy a bell at almost any store that sells souvenir type things.

Obviously, I do recommend a stop in Tsumago. It’s such a charming place and the Nakasendo trail really is quite magical. I would love to go back one day and hike the whole trail, and return again to Tsumago.

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