Toyama & Ishikawa Tourism - Travel Updates – Summer 2026

japansan

Aug 26

3 min read

Updated: Aug 29

Two neighbouring prefectures, countless ways to combine them

With Toyama and Ishikawa sitting side by side on the Sea of Japan coast, travel designers can easily combine the two in a wide variety of itineraries. Tokyo–Toyama takes around 2 hours 5 minutes and Toyama–Kanazawa just 20–25 minutes by Hokuriku Shinkansen, making both prefectures highly accessible additions to wider Japan programmes.

Kanazawa City Guide highlights the wider region

The newly released Lodestars Anthology Kanazawa City Guide is a useful reminder of how easily the two prefectures can be combined. The 148-page guide covers restaurants, hotels and ryokans, activities and natural attractions across Kanazawa and beyond, with suggested trips into both Ishikawa and Toyama including Yamanaka Onsen, Iwase, Inami, Himi and Gokayama.

View the Lodestars Anthology Kanazawa City Guide

Forbes JAPAN Destination Awards

Four destinations and tourism businesses in Toyama and Ishikawa were included in Forbes

JAPAN’s Destinations of the Year 2026.

Toyama’s L’évo in Toga received THE ICON award, while Bed and Craft in Inami was recognised in the Circular Business category. Ishikawa’s Takigahara Craft & Stay and Hanamurasaki in Yamanaka Onsen were also among the 30 selected initiatives.

See the Forbes JAPAN Destinations of the Year 2026

NEWS FROM TOYAMA

New Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route opens this autumn

The Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route launches on 2 October 2026, creating a new sightseeing route linking the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route with Kurobe Gorge. The first season will operate for just two months, October and November. The reopening date for the 2027 season is still being finalised, but English-language guided tours are also planned to begin. Direct B2C ticket sales are not available; JTB is the exclusive ticketing agent, with travel companies able to acquire tickets for their customers. The Times journalist Rebecca Hallett recently experienced the route on a preview journey. Read about her experience in The Times.

For further information on ticketing, contact Kylie Clark at kylie.clark@kylie-consultancy.com.

Explore the Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route

An alternative Toyama rail experience

Toyama’s Belles Montagnes et Mer has recently been featured by The Telegraph, but tickets can be difficult to secure. For travel designers looking for an alternative, the Ainokaze Railway dining train offers a bookable experience combining seasonal food, local produce and views of Toyama’s countryside.

Find out more about the Ainokaze dining train

TOP TIP: The Canyon Route is another experience to plan well ahead for 2027 programmes.

New Bed and Craft property opens in Inami

OUKA, the seventh Bed and Craft property in Inami, opened in April. Set in a renovated Showa-era house, the “stayable gallery” combines accommodation, architecture and Toyama woodcarving, with craft integrated into the guest experience.

Read the designboom feature on OUKA

NEWS FROM ISHIKAWA

Spotlight on Yamanaka Onsen

A 1,300-year-old hot-spring town in the mountains of Kaga, Yamanaka Onsen combines ryokan, onsen, mountain scenery and the Kakusenkei Gorge with a living culture of Yamanaka lacquerware, geisha performing arts, song and dance.

Its compact centre is ideal for strolling, with craft shops, cafés and local snacks, while ryokan range from accessible options to high-end stays. Recent international coverage by Condé Nast Traveller has also highlighted Yamanaka as part of the quieter, less-visited side of Hokuriku.

Discover Yamanaka Onsen

Hanamurasaki: traditional hospitality, contemporary design

Yamanaka ryokan Hanamurasaki introduces its new SUMINOBI furniture collection from 1 September, designed to retain the relationship between traditional Japanese rooms, tatami and gardens while offering greater comfort for contemporary guests; most guest rooms will be refurbished with the new bespoke designed furniture.

The ryokan also offers vegetarian kaiseki, using seasonal vegetables and Kaga ingredients, alongside a distinctive wild-game menu option offering including bear sourced from a local hunter in Fukui.