栃木Tochigi
日光Nikko
Gilded shrines in a cedar forest, then a mountain road of forty-eight hairpins up to a lake and a waterfall. Cooler than Tokyo in every season.
- From Tokyo
- About 2 h 20 by car
- Give it
- 2 days
- Best in
- Spring to autumn
Nikko is two places in one trip. Down in the town are the carved and lacquered shrines and temples of Toshogu, among cedars hundreds of years old. Above it, up the Irohazaka road, are Lake Chuzenji and the Kegon Falls.
The Irohazaka is the reason to come by car: two one-way roads, one up and one down, with forty-eight numbered bends between them, so you never meet traffic coming the other way. Take it slowly.
From the lake you can go on to the Senjogahara marshland and the hot springs at Yumoto, at the head of the valley. That makes a full, easy day of driving with plenty of places to stop.
Give it two days: one for the shrines, one for the mountains. The expressway back to Tokyo is straightforward.
季節Seasons
Nikko through the year
- Spring 春Best
Late cherry blossom in the town in April; the mountains stay bare until May.
- Summer 夏Best
The coolest of these drives in July and August, and green everywhere.
- Autumn 秋BestNow
Famous for its colours, from late September at the top to early November in the town.
- Winter 冬
Quiet and beautiful, but the Irohazaka can be icy. Snow tyres are needed from December, and the Konsei Pass beyond Yumoto is closed until late April.
Know when Nikko is at its best
A short note from our family before the best weeks in Nikko and the rest of the Drives near Tokyo, with any offers. A few times a year, by email.
祭り・行事Festivals
Festivals and events in Nikko
Dates come from each organiser’s own site and are added as they are announced. Big events bring crowds and road closures, so plan your Drive around them.
A few evenings in early November · Date not announced yet
Light-up Nikko
Toshogu, Futarasan and Rinnoji · ライトアップNIKKO
The three World Heritage shrines and temples are lit up in the evening, with free entry and guided tours.
Official siteYunishigawa Onsen Snow Hut Festival
Yunishigawa Onsen · 湯西川温泉 かまくら祭
Hundreds of small candle-lit snow huts glow along the riverbed in the evening, on Fridays to Sundays.
About an hour from Imaichi IC on snowy mountain roads. Snow tyres are needed, and parking fills at weekends.
Official siteYayoi Festival
Futarasan Shrine and central Nikko · 日光二荒山神社 弥生祭
Futarasan Shrine’s spring festival. On 16 and 17 April, eleven floats decorated with azalea flowers parade through town with festival music.
The floats move through central Nikko on 16 and 17 April, so traffic in town is slow.
Official siteToshogu Spring Grand Festival
Nikko Toshogu · 日光東照宮 春季例大祭
Horseback archery on 17 May, then on 18 May about 1,200 people in period costume walk in the procession of a thousand samurai.
Roads and car parks near the shrines are congested on both days.
Official siteToshogu Autumn Festival
Nikko Toshogu · 日光東照宮 秋季祭
The autumn version of the spring festival: horseback archery on 16 October and the thousand-samurai procession on 17 October.
It falls in the autumn-leaf season, so expect heavy traffic around the shrines.
Official site
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