Gifu City is a fantastic place to see cherry blossoms on display, and one of the best perks is that you can visit a wide range of gorgeous, easy-to-reach sites for cherry blossom viewing in a single day.

Motosu City is in the countryside of Gifu, and the main attraction is the Usuzumi cherry blossoms. At the park, there is one very large, old tree on display. The explanation next to the tree, in all Japanese, explains that Usuzumi is over 1500 years old and is considered one of three great cherry blossom trees in Japan.

You probably now have an image of the Heaven and Hell concepts surrounding this area, especially if you saw the mandaras in the museum. Well how about getting a hands-on, 3-D multi-sensory experience for yourself! Time to move on to Mandara Yuen for a modern and artistic representation of Tateyama’s Heaven and Hell! As it has indoor and outdoor experiences, going in fine weather is preferable.

Japan has so many amazing foods to sample, but you would be missing out if you didn’t check out the Japanese dessert world. Being a self-diagnosed chocoholic myself, I have been sampling many Japanese sweets and here are some of my favorite place in Gifu!

The Tateyama Museum of Toyama complex here offers a number of interesting facilities revealing Ashikuraji’s centuries as a religious centre. A day can be pleasantly spent strolling through time in this tranquil mountain village.

As I am a regular visitor to all these places and enjoying my regular cup of coffee there, I know all places personally very well and am very happy to tell you about it!

The third tallest peaks of Japan named the Hotake Mountain are situated near the Takayama area of Gifu prefecture. It is a snow covered region attracting a lot of tourists in the spring and early summer season. One of the biggest ropeways of Asia is situated in these mountain ranges which takes us to the top of the Hotake Mountain with an altitude of 2156 meters.

Let me share with you why this place makes for a great snow sports holiday for all, and more! The huge resort area actually takes in four major parks and three smaller areas, with over 60 courses ranging from 900 m to 8,500 m: something for boarders, skiers and snow-scooters of all levels and ages!

While living in Gifu, my friends have introduced to me to a variety of restaurants that I would/could have never found on my own. It’s like the saying goes, locals know best.

Charmant is a lovely, compact resort that can be enjoyed by all! People of all ages: skiers, snowboarders and ski scooters of all levels. Oh! I forgot to mention! Great snow? Charmant is renowned for huge dumps of snow and deep powder, and a long winter season!

Tateyama is a famous symbol of Toyama, and one of the three most sacred mountains of Japan. The picturesque landscape of the Tateyama range in the Northern Japan Alps draws people for many reasons - hiking in summer, snow sports in winter, onsens, food, local festivals.

This route is designed for all visitors who only have one day to visit Kanazawa and want to make the most out of it. It starts and ends at Kanazawa station. You can reach all destinations via foot or by bus (check the section below for the information about bus routes).