Last Updated: Nov 12, 2023

Heavenly Hida-Takayama

A Famed Part of Gifu Prefecture

This story was originally published on donnykimball.com and has been syndicated here on Medium

Recently when I was slowly making my way back to Tokyo from Komatsu up in Ishikawa Prefecture, I had the shocking revelation that I’ve yet to feature the famous town of Hida-Takayama on this blog. Despite using a photo of the village’s iconic Nakabashi Bridge as my header image for close to a decade now, I somehow neglected to write about Hida-Takayama. While I could, of course, explain away my oversight, I doubt you’re interested in hearing the excuse that my visit predated my time as a content creator. So, without further ado, allow me to rectify my mistake and introduce you to one of the top spots in central Japan.

Frankly speaking, many of you are likely already aware of Hida-Takayama by now. In recent years, the town and its traditional buildings have skyrocketed in popularity with international tourists. All things considered, one could say that Hida-Takayama easily ranks as the prime candidate for travelers wishing to add a rural element into their itineraries. Thus, given that so many people come to Hida-Takayama for its beautifully preserved buildings and its historic character, it’s really hard to say that it is a “hidden gem” anymore like when I first visited.