2023.11.16
PR
Take the Kosei-Line! Walking around Makino, Shiga in autumn
The Takashima-Makino area of Shiga Prefecture, which stretches to the northwest of Lake Biwa, is dotted with attractive spots offering spectacular scenery, gourmet food, and leisure activities. For a relaxing one-day trip, how about combining the JR Kosei Line and a bicycle? Enjoy the view of sparkling Lake Biwa from the train window and pedal while inhaling the fragrant breeze. ......
Contents of this article
1.Enjoy the spectacular view of Lake Biwa and the Hira Mountains all to yourself from the windows of the Kosei Line train!
The Kosei Line runs 74.1 km from Yamashina Station, one station east of JR Kyoto Station, to Omi Shiotsu Station in about 60 minutes. Most of the Kosei Line runs along the western shore of Lake Biwa. After passing through the Nagatoyama Tunnel from Yamashina Station, the line continues through a residential area for a while, but from Ono Station, Lake Biwa comes much closer and the Hira Mountains loom on the left. The route runs along an elevated railway track, so you can enjoy the view from a little higher up.
If you want to enjoy the lake view, we recommend seats on the right side facing Kyoto Station.
The calm surface of the lake, white sandy beaches, Chikubu Island and Lake Biwa steamers visible offshore, green rice fields, high blue sky ...... and dazzling scenery, and the feeling of attraction are the real attractions of the Kosai Line.
2.From Makino Station, rent a bicycle to explore the area.
If you want to enjoy nature in a relaxed manner, you should definitely ride a bicycle: from JR Makino Station to Makino Sunny Beach, a 1-km stretch along Lake Biwa, it takes about 3 minutes by bicycle. It takes about 3 minutes from JR Makino Station to Makino Sunny Beach, which stretches about 1 km along Lake Biwa.
The gently curving sandy beach, clear blue lake, and bright green pine forests create a scenic landscape. Visitors can relax and enjoy the view of Kaizu-Osaki, a reef area jutting out into Lake Biwa, and Chikubu Island floating in Lake Biwa.
Bicycle rental at JR Makino Station is 500 yen per day for general types. Personal identification required.
Tourist Information Center at JR Makino Station
- JR Makino Station Public Transportation Security Office
- Tel.0740-33-7101 (Lake Biwa Takashima Tourism Association)
- 9:00-17:00 (closed Dec. 29-Jan. 3, suspended during inclement weather)
- *If you wish to use cross bikes (1,000 yen per day), a minimum of 5 bikes can be arranged at Makino Station with a reservation at least one week in advance.
- https://takashima-kanko.jp/
3.Tea time on the lakeside terrace with a view of the calm water
The Kaizu area was once a prosperous lodging and port town that served as a key point of transportation on the lake from the Sea of Japan to Kyoto and Osaka via Lake Biwa. This is an antique storehouse and café built on a group of stone blocks along the Kaizu lakeshore, in a renovated rice warehouse built in 1701. The store offers a large selection of antiques from the Edo period to the early Showa period, as well as many old folk tools that have been used in daily life in Japan.
The café space is a terrace that extends out onto the lakeshore. It is a rare location in Shiga where you can feel Lake Biwa so close by that you can almost reach the surface of the water by reaching out your hand.
Cake set ¥1,000. A pear tart imported from a nearby pastry store, Surugaya, is a favorite. For drinks, we recommend the French press, which allows you to directly feel the individuality and flavor of the home-roasted coffee beans. It goes well with the moderately sweet tart.
Old Tools & Cafe Kaizu
- FURUTOGURU & CAFE KAIZU
- 2080-7 Kaizu, Makino Town, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture
- 10 minutes by bicycle from JR Makino Station
- Tel. 0740-28-8055
- 11:00-17:00 (LO/16:30)
- Open irregularly (Cafe is mainly open only on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. Check the official website for business days)
- https://www.furudougu-kaizu.com
4.Taste the bounty of nature by the metasequoia trees!
The rows of metasequoia trees are famous as one of the most beautiful spots in Makino Town. The best time to view the autumn leaves is from late November to early December! About 500 metasequoia trees line the 2.4 km road leading from Makino Picland to Makino Kogen. A leisurely stroll on a rented bicycle is recommended. You can enjoy beautiful scenery from season to season: bright green in spring and summer, autumn leaves in fall, and the fantastic sight of snow on the branches in winter.
Makino Picland is an agricultural park located near the metasequoia trees. In addition to an orchard where visitors can enjoy picking seasonal fruits such as cherries, blueberries, grapes, chestnuts, and apples, the park has a restaurant with a menu featuring local ingredients, a café offering sweets and light meals using seasonal fruits, a ground golf course, and a farm produce market. There are always about 5 kinds of homemade gelato, including seasonal ones, using fruits from the orchard.
Vanilla & Makino tea double gelato 650 yen
Makino Pickland
- 835-1 Terakubo, Makino-cho, Takashima-shi, Shiga
- ［5 km from Kaizu, 25 minutes by bicycle.
- Tel. 0740-27-1811
- Orchard 9:00 - 16:00 (reception closed)
Restaurant 11:00-14:30
Center House 9:00-17:00
Cafe: 10:30-16:00 (~16:30 on weekends and holidays) - Closed on Wednesdays
- https://pic-land.com
5.Encounter local ingredients! Stylish natural café [CAFE TSUMUGU]
This café is run by Minakuchi Farm, which grows rice and vegetables without using pesticides. The plentiful vegetable set meal (1,870 yen) showcases more than 10 kinds of fresh vegetables in a variety of ways. The lineup of other healthy sweets includes spiced curry and tiramisu parfait (880 yen) made with home-grown Koshihikari flour dough layered with jelly made with coffee from Takashima City's Sotojin. In addition to the open-air restaurant in a renovated gassho-style agricultural warehouse, you can also relax on the terrace.
Plentiful vegetable set meal: 1,870 yen
Rice-flour carrot cake made without butter or flour, moist and chewy 495 yen
CAFE TSUMUGU
- Cafe Tsumugu
- 1386-8 Hiruguchi, Makino Town, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture
- ［700m from Makino Picland, 4 minutes by bicycle
- Tel.0740-20-7112
- 11:00～14:00
- Closed on Thursdays and Fridays
- All seats non-smoking
6.Encounter local ingredients! Stylish natural café [Shiroi sotto]
The renovated old private house overlooks the countryside and the sky, and the air is slow and peaceful. Plant-based sweets to remind you of the changing seasons, and once a month, on the day of the new moon, a course of soup, bread, and baked sweets made with local vegetables is served.
Fig and chai vegan cream cake layered with chai cream and rich cashew nut-based cream, 650 yen; herbal tea with rooibos and German chamomile, 500 yen
680 yen for apricot bean-flavored soybean flour with fig leaf syrup
7.Tone your body and soul Highland leisure and hot springs full of greenery
Located at the foot of Mt. Akasaka, this verdant plateau offers a wide variety of nature experience zones on a vast site of 90,000 tsubo. Visitors can enjoy a variety of outdoor activities throughout the year, including camping, river play, and ground golf from spring through fall, and skiing and snowshoeing in winter.
The one-day spa facility [Onsen Sarasa] has simple alkaline hot spring water, an open-air bath, and a bathing zone where swimsuits are worn. We recommend visiting for relaxation, whether it is to relieve travel fatigue in the hot spring or to enjoy a meal at Restaurant Akasaka while gazing at the green lawn.
Makino Plateau
- Makino Kogen
- 931 Makino, Makino Town, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture
- ［15 minutes by bicycle (3 km) from Makino Picland
- Tel. 0740-27-0936 (Office hours)
- ［Onsen Sarasa] 10:00 - 21:00 (last admission at 20:30) Closed on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays (closed every Wednesday during the winter season from December to March) 750 yen for adults
［Restaurant Akasaka] Weekdays 11:00-15:00 (LO/14:30), Sat/Sun/holidays 11:00-16:00 (LO/15:30), closed Wed. - http://makinokougen.co.jp/
Kosai Line Convenience Improvement Project Promotion Council
- National Flood Control Project Water Quality Control Board
- http://koseisen.biwako-visitors.jp/
The information is subject to change. Please contact each store or facility directly for the latest information.
All prices include tax.
※内容の誤りや閉店情報などお気づきの点がございましたら、info@leafkyoto.co.jp までお知らせください。
*Since this site uses automatic translation, the translation may differ from the original Japanese content.
All prices include tax.
※内容の誤りや閉店情報などお気づきの点がございましたら、info@leafkyoto.co.jp までお知らせください。
*Since this site uses automatic translation, the translation may differ from the original Japanese content.
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