| Kōfu (甲 府) | |
 | |
| Information | |
| Country |  Japan |
|---|---|
| Region | Chūbu |
| Area | 212,41 km² |
| Population | 187 144 hab. () |
| Density | 881,05 inhab./km² |
| Spindle | UTC 09:00 |
| Location | |
 35 ° 40 ′ 0 ″ N 138 ° 34 ′ 0 ″ E | |
| Official site | |
Kōfu (甲 府) is the capital of the prefecture of Yamanashi, Japan.
Understand
To go
- 1 Kōfu Station (甲 府 駅, kōfu-eki)
You can take a Chūō Line train that connects Shinjuku To Matsumoto. You can take trains limited expressAzusa (あ ず さ) which stop at Kōfu (1 h 30, 3 510 JPY from Shinjuku) or local trains (2 h 10, 2 210 JPY, a transfer from Shinjuku). There are also buses that connect Shinjuku and Kōfu (2 h 10 and 1 950 JPY).
Circulate
To see
Shōsenkyō Gorge
Shōsenkyō Gorge (昇仙 峡) is often considered to be the most beautiful gorge in Japan. It is part of the national natural park of Chichibu-Tama-Kai.
Buses run from Kōfu Bus Station (甲 府 駅 ﾊﾞ ｽ ﾀ ｰ ﾐ ﾅ ﾙ, kōfu-eki basu tāminaru) to Shōsenkyō. You can get off at 昇仙 峡口 (Shōsenkyō Guchi), ｸﾞ ﾘ ｰ ﾝ ﾗ ｲ ﾝ 昇仙 峡 (Shōsenkyō Greenline) or 昇仙 峡 滝 上 (Shōsenkyō taki ue); their positions are explained in the following section. You can consult the timetables on this page (in Japanese) The trip from Kōfu Station to the gorge entrance costs approximately 500 JPY and take 30 min.
- Go up the gorge
From the Nagatoro Bridge at the entrance of the gorge to the waterfall which marks the other end there is a road of 4 km.
The first part of the gorge is an asphalt road from 3 km departing from the "Shōsenkyō-guchi" bus stop, in front of the Nagatoro Bridge, to the "Shōsenkyō Greenline". The road runs along the river and offers pleasant landscapes punctuated by large rock formations with evocative names (in Japanese…). We can regret that we are on a road and not a hiking trail, but it is forbidden to drive there on weekends from May to November. There is a bus stop at "Shōsenkyō greenline".
The second part of the gorge, between "Shōsenkyō Greenline" and Sengataki Falls (1 km) is the most spectacular. The paved road disappears and gives way to a path exclusively reserved for pedestrians.
Above the waterfalls there is a small tourist village filled with tourist shops and tourist restaurants. There is also a "Shōsenkyō taki ue" bus stop where you can take the bus if you are too lazy to walk back down to get back to Kōfu.
- Admire the Japanese Alps and Mount Fuji
From the small village above the waterfalls you can climb (take the “Shōsenkyō Ropeway” if you don't want to walk) on a nearby mountain and contemplate the Japanese Alps and even Fujisan in the distance… in good weather.
The Shōsenkyō is particularly beautiful when the trees take on their autumn hues (late October, early November). Japanese tourists flock this time of year, but if you go early in the morning you will avoid the crowds.
