Encounter the Local People and Culture of Okumikawa

There is a relaxed, rural atmosphere where time passes and people interact in the Okumikawa region of Aichi Prefecture. Visit rural Japan and experience their way of life.

You will have the chance to meet the young people who are training to become taiko drummers at Shidara, spend time with the owner and guests of Guest House danon over dinner, and chat during a dyeing workshop.

Toei Town Experience Exchange Center Nokiyama School

Reborn from the former Toei Tobu Elementary School which closed in 2010, Toei Town Experience Exchange Center Nokiyama School is a two-story wooden community school with the aim of promoting tourism and revitalizing the village, as well as promoting interaction between the locals and visitors.

【Address】 13-7 Nokiyama, Shimoda, Toei Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 449-0206
【Business Hours】 10:00-17:00
【Holidays】 Wednesdays and Thursdays
【Public Transport】 [JR Iida Line] Toei Station → [Bus] Toei Line: Get off at Toei Onsen → Walk approx. 20 min.
【URL】 https://tehohe.com/nokiyama/

naori

Japanese foundation is very popular because it is fine-textured and easy to blend into the skin. The raw material is a mineral called silica mica, and the only place in Japan it can be collected is in Toei Town. High-quality sericite is also known as “miracle powder.” Stop by the mine and see this cosmetic ingredient for yourself. Combine the natural ingredients you choose to make your own cosmetics.

【Address】 13-7 Nokiyama, Shimoda, Toei Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 449-0206
【Business Hours】 9:00-17:00
【Holidays】 Wednesday through Thursday, year-end and New Year holidays (December 27–January 4)
【Public Transport】 [JR Iida Line] Toei Station → [Bus] Toei Line: Get off at Toei Onsen → Walk approx. 20 min.
【URL】 http://naori-toei.jp/

Japanese Drum Fitness Experience

Fitness with Japanese drums by Shidara, a Japanese drumming group based in Toei-Town.

First, enjoy a taiko drum piece composed about the rich natural environment of Toei Town. This is a great way to get up close and personal with Japanese drumming. Then, use your body to play the taiko with guidance by Shidara. Through this fitness experience, you can get a taste of the fun of Japanese music and drumming.

【Address】 30 Nakabayashi, Oaza Higashi-sonome, Toei Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 449-0203
【Business Hours】 10:00-17:00
【Holidays】 Year-end and New Year holidays

【URL】 http://www.shidara.co.jp/

Experiential Guest House danon

The guest house is a traditional Japanese-style house built around 150 years ago where you can experience the Toei Town lifestyle.Despite the little inconveniences or the extra time or effort required, it is possible to fully enjoy the simple life here with clean water from the mountains and fewer artificial lights, resulting in star-filled skies.

Interact with locals who are determined to protect long-held traditions or ways of life and experience what life in Toei Town is really like.

【Address】 6-1 Shimomaehata, Hongo, Toei Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 440-0214
【Phone Number】 0536‐76‐1860
【Holidays】 Wednesdays
【URL】 https://intl.okuminavi.jp/en/spot/detail/34/

Toei Onsen Hanamatsuri no Yu

This hot spring facility is within walking distance from Guest House danon. This is a natural therapeutic spring of sodium calcium chloride. Enjoy a variety of bathing experiences while listening to the sound of the Ochise River.

You can also see the Tsuta no Fuchi (nicknamed “Niagara Falls of Okumikawa”) waterfall behind the facility.

【Address】 21 Hanata, Shimoda, Toei Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 449-0206
【Business Hours】 10:00-20:00
【Holidays】 Wednesdays
【Public Transport】 [JR Iida Line] Toei Station → [Bus] Toei Line: Get off at Toei Onsen
【URL】 http://toueionsen.com/71282/

A Dyeing Workshop at maru-kai

A dyeing workshop using local seasonal plants in Okumikawa.
Choose from a variety of small items such as an eco-bag, a drawstring bag, a tenugui towel or a scarf. Then, make your own pattern using kite string, rubber bands and marbles.

Depending on the plants you dye, you can make them in a variety of colors, and depending on how you use the kite string and rubber bands, you can create a completely different pattern. Enjoy a cup of tea and some sweets while you are dyeing.

【Address】 50-11 Hiraguri, Miwa, Toei Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 449-0216
【Business Hours】 Sundays and Mondays 10:00-17:00
【Holidays】 Tuesdays through Saturdays
【Public Transport】 A 1-min. walk from Toei Station on the JR Iida Line
【URL】 https://www.facebook.com/marukaitoei/

Yotsuya Senmaida Terraced Rice Fields

The rice fields constructed like stairs up the mountainside are called “senmaida” (meaning a thousand terraced rice fields). Yotsuya Senmaida Terraced Rice Fields has its water source at Mt. Kurakake (883 meters high), with a stone wall spreading at the foot of the fields.

The spring water, which comes from the mountainside, does not become muddy even after heavy rainfall.
There are currently 22 farmers cultivating 420 rice paddies, spread over a height difference of 200 meters. Yotsuya Senmaida has also been selected as one of the 100 best terraced rice fields in Japan.
Filled with water and greenery, the terraced rice fields become a home for various plants and animals, creating a deeply captivating charm.

【Address】 Yotsuya, Shinshiro City

Roadside Station Shitara

Roadside Stations are rest areas found along roads which not only provide a place for travelers to rest but also promote local tourism and trade. This facility includes an exhibition of a wooden car from the disused Toyohashi Railway Taguchi Line, a sake brewing workshop and the Okumikawa Museum of Local History. In the commercial facilities, you can purchase local vegetables and enjoy meals.

◆Facilities Promoting Regional Industry
There is a restaurant Seirei where you can eat food that can only be found here using plenty of local ingredients, Seirei Market with local products mainly from Shitara Town, Houraisen Sake Laboratory where you can experience sake making in a restored laboratory of an abandoned school in Shitara, and the office of Shitara Town Tourism Association.

【Address】 17-7 Nakada, Kiyosaki, Shitara Town, Kita-Shitara County, Aichi Prefecture 441-2302
【Business Hours】 9:00-17:00
【Holidays】 Open every day
【Public Transport】 JR Hon-Nagashino Station → Take a bus from the station, get off at Tanai, and walk 5 min.

【URL】 https://www.kankoshitara.jp/michinoekishitara/

Gourmet Kontaku Nagashino

Horai beef is the finest Japanese beef proudly raised by only 4 local farmers. Beautifully marbled, this Japanese beef is used in dishes that are offered at a very competitive price.

Horai beef has high quality fat, so the meat itself contains sweetness. At the direct sales shop, fresh vegetables and processed products delivered by local farmers are for sale.

【Address】 30 Nishinono, Nagashino, Shinshiro City, Aichi Prefecture, 441-1634
【Business Hours】 11:00-15:00, 17:00-20:00
【Holidays】 Wednesdays and New Year holidays (January 1-January 4）
【Public Transport】 A 15-min. walk from JR Nagashinojo Station
【URL】 https://www.okuminavi.jp/search/detail.php?id=504

Sample Itinerary

《Day 1》

10:00 Pick up your car at a rental office near Nagoya Station, and depart
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10:30 Travel by car （approx. 2 hours）
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12:30 Lunch at Nokiyama School’s Café Nokii
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14:00 naori foundation making experience at Nokiyama School
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16:00 Shidara's Japanese drum fitness experience at Nokiyama School’s gymnasium
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Travel by car
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17:30 Arrival and check in at Experiential Guest House danon

Take a bath at Toei Onsen Hanamatsuri no Yu
Dinner at the guest house
Stay overnight at the guest house

《Day 2》

08:30 Check out of danon
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Travel by car
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09:00 Dyeing workshop at maru-kai near Toei Station
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Travel by car
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11:45 Horai beef lunch at Kontaku Nagashino, a restaurant which is popular among the locals
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Travel by car
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14:00 Visit Yotsuya Senmaida Terraced Rice Fields
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Travel by car
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15:00 Shopping at Roadside Station Shitara
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Travel by car
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18:00 Return your car at a rental office near Nagoya Station