Tateyama Highland Bus – 50 minutes
Next up, we boarded the Tateyama Highland Bus to continue our journey across the Roof of Japan!
The Tateyama Highland Bus covers a distance of 23 kilometres and you get to experience an almost 1500-meter altitude change!
We went from green landscapes to fall foliage to a snowy landscape. It was quite the journey and yes, it was a very winding road.
It’s important to note that there are two different bus options here. You can either take the 50-minute express bus from Bijodaira to Murodo, or you can take the slower bus that stops halfway at Midagahara before continuing on to Murodo.
Midagahara is an alpine wetland and Murodo is the highest point on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route. Both offer some nice hiking options.
Mikurigaike Pond is an alpine lake with clear waters that reflect the Japan Alps, so this is a popular spot to visit.
You can also hike Mount Tateyama, which forms part of the Tateyama Mountain Range. This is one of Japan’s Three Sacred Mountains along with Mount Fuji and Mount Haku.
This is mainly of importance for those travellers who are planning to stay overnight at one of the many mountain hotels. Both Murodo and Midagahara offer an array of accommodations, but keep in mind that if you want to spend the night, you’ll want to book well in advance as demand is extremely high!
Given how remote both of these locations are, the hotels are ryokan style and offer meals plus access to the onsen.
Spending the night in the Northern Japanese Alps:
Hotel Tateyama (Murodo) – located at 2,450 meters above sea level, this is the highest hotel in Japan! Breakfast and dinner are included. Guests have access to an onsen.
Midagahara Hotel (Midagahara) – this hotel is situated at 1,930 metres above sea level. Breakfast and dinner are included. Guests have access to an onsen.
