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When foreigners hear the phrase “Fuji,” they naturally take into consideration the mountain. That is true even in conditions like Kawachi Fuji-en, the backyard on Kyushu island I’m going to explain over the following few paragraphs, which is round 1,000 km from Mt. Fuji.
Now, I ought to begin with a primary Japanese lesson. Whereas these phrases sound the identical in English, the 2 characters for “Fuji” in Mt. Fuji (富士) are completely different from the one character that represents that phrase in Kawachi Fuji-en (藤). The latter means “wisteria”; the previous…nicely, that’s not related to the subject at hand.
To make sure, as you’re planning a visit to the wisteria tunnel in Japan, the necessary factor to recollect is that it has completely nothing to do with the nation’s extra well-known Fuji. (Though this place, to its credit score, is turning into legendary for all types of different causes.)
The place is the Wisteria Tunnel in Japan?
The Japan wisteria tunnel, to the shock of some individuals, is just not close to a serious vacationer vacation spot. Reasonably, you’ll discover Kawachi Fuji-en (because it’s formally identified) on a mountainside about quarter-hour by automobile from Kokura Station. This Shinkansen hub is about midway between Hakata (Fukuoka) and Hiroshima, and is accessible through all Shinkansen Sakura departures and plenty of super-fast Mizuho and Nozomi ones as nicely.
As I’ll clarify in additional element over the approaching paragraphs, it actually is way simpler in the event you plan on spending an evening someplace close to the tunnel, be that in Kokura (which is good) or at a minimal someplace close to Hakata Station in Fukuoka. For my part, Kokura (or elsewhere in sprawling Kitakyushu Metropolis) is one of the best greatest, since Fukuoka is over an hour away from the tunnel by automobile. However extra on that in a second!
The right way to Go to Japan’s Wisteria Tunnel
Purchase your tickets on-line upfront
You may’t purchase tickets on the entrance of Kawachi Wisteria Backyard, as a really unfortunate Japanese couple came upon the day I went. The excellent news, in the event you don’t stay in Japan, is which you can now purchase tickets on-line at this web site, beginning on March 25 of the yr you propose to go to. I like to recommend buying them for someplace from April 26-Might 1, although completely different years see completely different blooming peaks (the backyard’s official web site tracks the progress!).
E-book an evening in Kitakyushu
As a result of this location for seeing wisteria in Japan is comparatively distant, you’ll wish to sleep as near it as doable. I’m talking particularly about someplace close to Kokura Station, the primary Shinkansen hub for the town of Kitakyushu. A number of enterprise accommodations are situated inside a brief stroll of the station, so this shouldn’t create a lot stress in your half.
(And analysis how one can get there)
In the event you already plan to be in Fukuoka (or anyplace else on the Kyushu Shinkansen Line), it’s very straightforward to achieve Kokura. If, alternatively, you’ll be elsewhere in Japan, you may have to put a bit extra thought into incorporating a cease on the wisteria tunnel into your journey. This may very well be an amazing motive to take into account hiring me that will help you!
Hire a automobile (and get an IDP, in the event you don’t have one)
Except you wish to e-book an costly taxi from Kokura Station (I’m speaking no less than ¥5,000 every method, and possibly extra), the one sensible approach to see the Japan wisteria is to hire your personal automobile. Though there are specific frustrations to renting a automobile in Japan, it’s a needed evil in some instances, this being certainly one of them. As a reminder, driving in Japan does require an Worldwide Driving Allow, which People can receive from AAA.
Savor each second
I’d be a hypocrite if I instructed you to not take a lot of photos or selfie at Japan’s wisteria tunnel. Nevertheless, I’d even be remiss if I didn’t encourage you to try to be current within the second, significantly when you exit the tunnel. The fact is that for many vacationers, a visit here’s a once-in-a-lifetime factor, if solely due to how difficult it’s to get right here. You owe it to your self to take advantage of each minute you’re right here!
Different Locations to See Wisteria in Japan
Can’t make it to Kawachi Fuji-en, or just don’t wish to go to the difficulty of doing so? No worries—there are various different locations you may see wisteria in Japan:
- Byodo-in temple in Uji, Kyoto
- Ashikaga Flower Park in Tochigi prefecture close to Nikko
- Kameido Shrine in central Tokyo
- Kenroku-en backyard in Kanazawa
Past these and the wisteria tunnel in Japan, you can too usually see wisteria vines twisting round evergreen bushes, and at numerous different locations in nature. Throughout late April and early Might, fuji is as ubiquitous in Japan as Mt. Fuji!
Different FAQ About Visiting Japan’s Wisteria Tunnel
The place is one of the best place for wisteria in Japan?
Probably the most iconic place for wisteria in Japan is undoubtedly Kawachi Fuji-en in Kitakyushu Metropolis, about an hour by automobile from Fukuoka. Nevertheless, you can too see wisteria at numerous gardens, shrines and temples all through Japan, in addition to within the wild.
When ought to I go to Wisteria Tunnel?
The wisteria tunnel at Kawachi Fuji-en usually reaches peak bloom someday in late April or early Might—both throughout or simply earlier than the Golden Week vacation. The park’s official web site and Instagram account publish frequent updates in regards to the blooming standing.
Does Fuji imply wisteria in Japanese?
Fuji (藤) does imply “wisteria” in Japanese, although you ought to be conscious that it is a completely different character to those (富士) used for the identify of the mountain. These characters imply “wealthy” and “soil” respectively—in different phrases, nothing to do with the opposite fuji in any respect.
The Backside Line
The wisteria tunnel in Japan far exceed the expectations I had for it, if I will be fully trustworthy. That is in the beginning as a result of this Kyushu wisteria backyard is greater than the well-known tunnel. When you’ve exited it, you have got a few giant wisteria domes, plus a number of huge bushes that develop out over extra historically trellises. Secondly, though it’s form of a ache to achieve the place—you undoubtedly should hire a automobile—the method is way much less painful than you may think, even when fears about its problem are a part of what hold Kawachi Fuji-en comparatively uncrowded. Want personalised assist placing your journey collectively? Contemplate hiring me to plan it!
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