Location: Okaya
Top Things to do in Okaya
Countries
10 Things to Do in Okaya That You Shouldn't Miss
Okaya is a city located in central Nagano Prefecture, in the Chūbu region of Japan. As of 1 October 2016, the city had an estimated population of 49,758 and a population density of 585 persons per km². Its total area was 85.10 square kilometres.
Restaurants in Okaya
1. Prince & Skyline Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 10 reviews
Reviewed By Bravo J - San Francisco, California
There's not much information out on the internet about this place and the ones that I was able to find were all in Japanese. My husband is a fanatic when it comes to GTR's. We made a special trip out to this secluded area in OKAYA ~ NAGANO so he could see the cars. The trip was well worth it! We took the bullet train (used our Japan Rail Pass) and from the Okaya train station, took a 10 min ($10-15) cab ride to the museum. We spent less than an hour in the museum. They even let him sit in one of the older racing cars - which he loved! The museum is closed during the winter months ~ usually opens in late March and closes mid-November so make sure you check their website before heading out there. The museum is situated in a park. The park itself is lovely and we spent some time looking around and taking many fall foliage pictures! We left Tokyo early in the morning and visited this place ~ after ... we took a short train ride to Hakushu and toured/tasted SUNTORY Distillery. We spent over 2 weeks in Japan and my husband said this was the HIGHLIGHT of the trip for him! That is to be able to see so many GTRs in one place.
2. Manji no Sekibutsu
Overall Ratings
4 based on 104 reviews
Reviewed By じんべえざめ - Ninomiya-machi, Japan
諏訪湖のお神渡りを見学し、諏訪大社にお詣りした後、この万治
の石仏をお参りしました。伝説では、諏訪大社下社（春宮）に石
の大鳥居を造る時、この石を材料にしようとノミを入れたところ
傷口から血が流れ出したので､石工達は恐れをなし仕事をやめた
その夜、石工の夢枕に上原山に良い石材があると告げられそこに
良材を見つけることができ鳥居は完成したとのことです。
石工達は、この石に阿弥陀如来を祀って記念としたとのことで
す。又、この「万治の石仏」のお参りの仕方・・という立て札
も有りました。１．正面で一礼し、手を合わせて「よろずおさ
まりますように」と心で念じる。２．石仏の周りを願い事を心
で唱えながら時計回りに三周する。３．正面に戻り「よろずお
さめました」と唱えてから一礼する。・・のだそうです。私も
お参りの仕方をしっかり守ってお参りしました。よろずおさま
ると良いのですが。
3. Suwa Shrine
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 341 reviews
Reviewed By edmundduck - Hong Kong, China
I visited many Japanese shrines. This Suwa Shrine (諏訪大社) was definitely an amazing and inspiring one comparing to others. I certainly enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere there, however I wanted to visit all 4 of them within 1 day, so it became kinda rush. Let me share my experience.
This shrine is divided into 4 parts as below,
1. 上社本宮
2. 上社前宮
3. 下社春宮
4. 下社秋宮
The 1st and 2nd one are in southern part of Suwa, and 3rd and 4th one are in northern part. They are indeed very far from each others. In Spring season, day time is still short, so if 1 day tour for all is what you need, then don't take train, get a rental car instead.
The 1st one is the most notable and the largest one, so we visited it first, and spent most of the time there. After that, visited the 2nd one. When we finished that, it should be afternoon, had a quick lunch. We spent a while to visit the shops nearby the 1st Shrine, and bought some Japanese food. Finaly, we drove and visited the 3rd and 4th one. When we finished the 4 Shrines tour, it was already sunset, that's close, but it's worthwhile!
4. Okaya Silk Factory Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 9 reviews
Reviewed By Canmaninjapan - Kamakura, Japan
My wife took me to the Okaya Silk Factory Museum at 9:30 a.m. We thought it was closed, but when we rang the bell, they told us to come in. So friendly and a private tour and explanation of the place. You can really get a taste of what it was like back in the day. A few notes: The main business was wallpaper after the silk industry died out. The tour was in Japanese only. It is a mixture of Japanese and European style. For 570 yen, it was well worth it. Enjoy.
5. Suwa City Kohan Park
Overall Ratings
4 based on 135 reviews
Reviewed By keninsydney - sydney
JR上諏訪駅から徒歩10分程で諏訪湖畔につきます。
湖畔は遊歩道として整備されていて遊具やベンチ等々も完備された散策＆市民の憩いの場に成っています。
諏訪湖の眺めもいいのですがその先に見える山々の神々しいこと・・
6. Tirol no Mori
Overall Ratings
4 based on 32 reviews
Reviewed By SHIN1015 - Nagano, Japan
オーストリアの農村をイメージした娯楽施設です。アスレチック、乗馬体験、お菓子作りに遊具など子供達が楽しめる場所が満載なので、家族連れにオススメです。また自家製のソーセージなども販売されていて、なかなか美味しかったです。
7. The House of the Hayashi Family
Overall Ratings
4 based on 6 reviews
Reviewed By Canmaninjapan - Kamakura, Japan
I went to this attraction not expecting much, but the private tour we were given was great and I was very glad we went. The house was built by a silk and wallpaper producer. At the time, the president of the company had ties to Europe. Thus, part of the house is Japanese, and the rest is European. It is an interesting contrast of styles and it gives one an understanding of the practicality of both. The simplicity of the Japanese part of the house is contrasted with the elegance of the European: a Japanese entrance and a European one. A traditional Japanese kitchen, with electric intercom (in the picture). Anyway, for 570 yen, enjoy!
8. Suwa Taisha Shimosha Akimiya
Overall Ratings
4 based on 65 reviews
Reviewed By 待兼山 - Osaka Prefecture, Japan
下諏訪駅前でレンタサイクルを借りて、春宮と秋宮をまわりました。秋宮の近くに下諏訪の温泉街があります。鳥居をくぐると杉の大木があり、青銅製では日本有数の大きな狛犬があります。神楽殿には大きなしめ縄。拝殿も立派です。信濃国一之宮4社のうちのひとつです。
9. Katakura Hall
Overall Ratings
4 based on 161 reviews
Reviewed By Sachi F - London, United Kingdom
This "shared" public bath house was open in 1929! During the Meiji and Taisho eras, Suwa’s Katakura family made a fortune in the silk industry and used that wealth to build the Katakura-kan bath house which was made open for the locals to have bath and use for social activities. This kind of act really represents the true sense of traditional Japanese value - "sharing" what you have. The way the space was used is well thought and the bath is supposed to have "one thousand people". The depth is 1.1m, so you would need to be standing while in the bath. The bottom of the bath has pebbles, so by walking in the bath, it gives you two benefits: "onsen" effect and foot massage! The building and the marble bath are designated as Important National Artifacts. It is open from 10am till 9pm, closed on 2nd and 4th Tuesday. Have a soak and feel the history!
10. Lake Suwa Service Area Up Line
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