Shiroyama Tenshukaku Observation Deck — Attraction in Shirakawa

I bought a day tour package to the World Heritage sites of Ainokura in Toyama and Shirakawago in Gifu. The lunch included a comfortable and clean bus, excellent and and English speaking guide. The pick up was at the Nohi Bus Center at 08:30 and we were delivered back at the same place at 15:10 of the same day.

The package also included a lunch stop at the restaurant right next to a small observation deck where professional photographers are waiting to fleece, I mean, offer you their services at a price. You are not obligated to buy the photo/s if you don't like them but you can give them a wide berth and take your own photos next to the platform for free.

The tour also included a lunch set of vegetables and a fish. The vegetables are grown in the area and the small fish comes from the many rivers that run through the nearby mountains. The fare is simple and humble and true to real Japanese home cooking. At the time of this review, the restaurant and small souvenir shop are run by 3 elderly Japanese ladies.

No English menu and you can't pick and choose what you want to eat. But if you need some help, the tour guide/assistant will be on hand to help you sort things out.

If you have a big appetite, you can ask for 2 to 3 refills of rice. Be careful though - if you drink loads of fluids, your stomach might explode because Japanese rice really soaks up and retains liquid.

I was hooked on 2 home made vegetables items (not the usual pickles) but sadly, they weren't selling them at the store.

The lunch menu changes according to the season and I found it quite enjoyable although I regret finishing my one bowl of rice, little portion of cold soba noodles and a bowl of miso soup. Do give the tour a go. Saves you alot of hassles...

Visited in late October 2023, just before full fall foliage came. We started in this observation deck because we couldn't find parking at the main parking lot. The parking lot is much smaller here, maybe 10 to 15 car/ larger vans. We got lucky.

The obersvation deck give you an overview of the entire village. This is where the brochure photo comes from. If you pay for a drink/ food, you get the prime viewing spot. in my opinion, the best 500jpy spent - I get less people shoving me around, hot coffee, and center view of the entire village. Bathroom is free. There is a souvenir shop attached to the cafe where Higurashi stickers littered the area - I had fun searching for my Easter eggs.

From here you can walk downhill to the village and a right turn would end up near Wada House, one of the larger exhibition house. The walk is on slope and about 10mins down or 15mins up. Excellent to burn off your breakfast/early lunch/ ice cream do you can get more snacks when you reach the village and vice versa.

If you are pressed for time, this is a excellent place to visit to get a feel of the...

The walking route to the observation deck was closed due to the recent snowstorm. Only shuttle busses were allowed to the observation deck. It costs 300 yen per person one way. Since walking was no longer an option, the queue for the shuttle busses was very long. We queued for an hour before boarding the bus. Perhaps more shuttle busses could be deployed during this period to reduce waiting times.

Despite that, I still recommend coming to see the village from a bird’s eye view. The deck is small and can be crowded with many wanting to take pictures. The deck is shared with a small cafe (you can only enter if you purchase) and with the photo booth. The photo booth provides a free small print or a paid large print.

There is also a souvenir store with some items exclusively available here. The journey back to Shirakawa has no queue and we managed to board the shuttle busses within...