Nagoya

I arrived at Nagoya Station at 10:30 on a Sunday, the middle day of the long weekend. All the coin lockers in front of the station were full. But I wanted to avoid sightseeing while dragging my suitcase. I searched online and found this place, so I went there without making a reservation. As it turns out, anyone with a smartphone and a credit card can use it. Membership registration takes just five minutes once you link your account! It's located on the first floor of Meitetsu Department Store, so it's close and very convenient.

Convenient transportation, numerous attractions, suitable for independent travel, with easy access to many autumn foliage viewing spots, and plenty of shopping malls and restaurants near the station.

The driver and tour guide were both great! Thank you for knowing the route so we didn't get stuck in traffic. Eihoji Temple was beautiful! We finished seeing the Ohara Shiki Sakura cherry blossoms quickly, and the 30-minute stop at Korankei Gorge allowed for up to 3 hours – it was beautiful and photogenic. We met at 5:20 PM to depart for the return trip. The only downside was that the autumn illuminations were incredibly crowded!

The tour guide meticulously organized the information, showed us the best tour route, and also tried his best to liven up the atmosphere on the bus. The whole trip was greatly enhanced because of the tour guide.

Was assured throughout and had the best service on day of transfer.

Communication was smooth, the driver was very nice, drove very smoothly, and the car was very clean.

The bus will arrive at Takayama at 11am, so you can take a trip to the Miyagawa Morning Market (closes at 12am). The 2-hour stay in Takayama is only enough to visit the Miyagawa Morning Market and queue for lunch. In order to spend more time walking around the old street, I didn't go to the restaurant and only ate the Hida beef sushi and doughnuts from the morning market. A stay of 1.5 hours in Shirakawa-go is just right. I booked a trip directly up to the observation deck, so the bus would take us to the observation deck first and stay for about 20 minutes. Then load us down again and stay a little over 1 hour. Takayama is worth a careful visit for half a day or even a night stay. But hotels in Takayama are hard to book and hostels are expensive. So I eventually opted for a day trip from Nagoya.

Because I stayed in Nagoya, the train fare to Mie alone was worthwhile. I spent three days there, visiting Ise Grand Shrine, Toba Aquarium, the Kashima Spanish Cruise, and Gozaishoyama-dake, basically covering all the major tourist attractions. Plus, there was unlimited bus service, so it's highly recommended. If you're traveling to Mie, I suggest not staying in Nagoya like I did, because you have to take the train around 8 am every day, and the journey takes an average of more than two hours. So, consider staying in Matsusaka or Ise for 1-2 days to reduce the hardship of getting up early for the train.