Located in the southwest of the Kii Peninsula in Honshu, bordering Osaka to the north and Nara to the east, Wakayama Prefecture is part of the Osaka metropolitan area and is only about 40 minutes away from Kansai International Airport.
The coastline is long and the mountains are extensive, and it is full of fascinating natural scenery and rich history and culture.
SHIRAHAHAMA HOT SPRING BAIBINWENQUAN
The 620-meter-long Tonohama, paved with pure white and dry quartz sand, is a popular beach in Kansai, often considered the sister beach of Waikiki Beach, known as the "Hawaii of Japan", and the name of Shirahama Onsen, a famous hot spring in Shirahama Town.
Shirahama Onsen is said to have been opened 1350 years ago in the Asuka and Nara periods, and many court members including Emperor Qi Ming and Emperor Tenchi visited the area, and the names "Mu Lou no Yu" and "Ki no Onsen" are left in the "Manyoshu" and "Nihon Shoki", and together with Arima Onsen and Dogo Onsen, it is called "Japan's three oldest hot springs".
A few hundred meters from land, Mitsutsuki Island is the symbol of Shirahama Town, a small island 130 meters long from north to south, officially called "High Island", named after the circular sea cave in the middle of the island, and is also known for the scenery when the sunset overlaps the sea cave. From the Kyoto University Shirahama Aquarium on the headland, the Southern Kumaonan Memorial Hall, and Banshoyama Park, you can all see the diagonal back of Mitsutsuki Island.
详细地址:3740 Shirahama-cho, Nishimuro-gun
Duration: All day
Admission fee: None
Access: Take a bus from JR Shirahama Station and get off at Rinkai (Mitsutsukishima Island) stop and walk about 200 meters
TANGZHIFENGWENQUAN
Yunomine Onsen was discovered around the 4th century by Kumano Kunizo Ō Ashō, and became widely known through the "Kumano Miyuki" when the Emperor visited Kumano Sanzan. In ancient times, people would visit Kumano during their pilgrimage to enjoy hot springs here, and at the same time, they would also relieve the fatigue of long walks.
As Japan's oldest hot spring, Yunomine Onsen still retains its ancient hot spring style, and the natural rock hot spring "Yunomine", which is said to change the color of the hot spring seven times a day, is also registered as a World Cultural Heritage Site as part of the Kumano Pilgrimage Road.
Kumano Sanzan is equivalent to the main shrine of Kumano Shrines nationwide, and the Kumano Pilgrim Road Nakabe Road from Tanabe City, where Yunomine Hot Spring is located, is considered to be the place with the largest number of worshippers. After a long journey, the first thing you will arrive at is the most historic Kumano Hongu Taisha Shrine among the three mountains of Kumano, where the 158 stone steps leading to the main hall are lined with rich cedar trees, and through the sacred gate, the solemn shrine of cypress peels comes into view, exuding an ancient atmosphere.
Detailed address: 1110 Hongu, Hongu Town, Tanabe City
Visiting hours: 8:00~17:00
Admission fee: None
Access: From Yunomine Onsen Station, take a bus to Hongu Taisha Mae stop and walk about 450 meters
TENGPUWENQUAN TENGPUWENQUAN
Katsuura has been a prosperous place centered on fishing ports since ancient times, and the foundation of hot spring areas was laid by drilling and mining hot spring sources in the Taisho period, and since then it has been continuously exploited and developed, and gradually transformed into tourism after entering the Showa era.
Katsuura Onsen contains the Kawasu hot springs that gush along the Yuga coast, so it is also called "Minamiki Katsuura Onsen". There are only a few hot springs in Japan with abundant mountains and seas, where visitors can see Katsuura Bay with calm winds and waves, and go deep into the mountains and forests to Kumano Nachi Taisha Shrine to enjoy the majesty of Nachi Falls.
One of the Three Mountains of Kumano, Kumano Nachi Taisha Shrine is built halfway up the mountain 500 meters above sea level, and together with Mount Nachiyama Aogishidoji Temple, it is the center of Kumano beliefs and has the most modern style of Kumano Takashi in the three Kumano Mountains. The contrast between the vermilion lacquer shrine and the surrounding green mountains creates a sacred atmosphere, and it is still visited by many people today as a famous shrine in Japan.
详细地址:东牟婁郡那悺勝浦町那智浦町那智山1
Visiting hours: 8:30~16:30
Admission fee: None
Access: From JR Kii Katsuura Station, take a bus and get off at Nachiyama Station and walk 350 meters
HUASHAN HOT SPRING HUASHANWENQUAN
The origins of Hanayama Onsen in Wakayama City date back more than 1,200 years to the Nara period, and even emperors stayed here to bathe when they visited Kumano as the mana soup of the legendary Yuki Bodhisattva.
Later, due to geological changes, the hot spring stopped erupting naturally, but the possibility of self-spraying was discovered in the geological examination of Showa 40 years, so the hot spring naturally gushed out again after drilling down 501 meters, and it is now known as a well-known health spring in the Kansai region.
Wakayama Castle was founded in 1585 and together with Matsuyama Castle and Himeji Castle is known as Japan's three largest standing Hirayama Castles, and it was built under the command of Fujido Takatora, a master of the castle, and stands tall over the lush Torafu Mountain. In 1619, Tokugawa Yorigen entered the castle and became the castle of 555,000 stones in Kishu, and was listed as one of the three Tokugawa Imperial Families along with Mito and Owari. The current three-story white castle tower was rebuilt in Showa 33 after the war, and many relics related to the Tokugawa family are displayed inside.
Detailed address: Wakayama City Ichiban Ding 3
Visiting hours: 9:00~17:30
Admission fee: 410 yen for adults, 200 yen for children
Access: From JR Wakayama Station, take a bus and get off at Okayamacho Station and walk about 350 meters
Located at the foot of Mount Koya, a sacred religious site, the natural hot spring is said to have left behind "'water' that gushes out of this land to relieve people," and as he predicted, the spring water that gushes out of earthquakes in modern times has made it a hot spring town today.
There are 10 different types of hot springs, the source of which is called "golden water", "silver water", and "copper water", and since its opening, it has attracted tourists from Kansai and other parts of the country, and the dishes made and cosmetics developed using the hot spring water here are also very popular.
A 40-minute walk from ゆの里, Kudoyama was once the exile of the Sengoku military generals Masayaki Sanada and Sanada Yukimura, and the town is home to Sanada-an, which enshrines Sanada Daiken, as well as Matsuo Basho's singing Sanada's stele and Yukimura's legendary Sealai well. 170 meters from Sanada-an to the east moon is the remains of the so-called "Sanada Kofun", and although it is actually a round tomb built in the late Kofun period, there is a legend that "across this cave is Osaka Castle, and Sanada Yukimura used this hole to go into battle".
Detailed address: 1413 Jiuduyama, Jiuduyama Town, Ito County
Visiting hours: 9:00~16:00
Admission fee: None
Access: Walk about 650 meters from Kuduyama Station on the Nankai Koya Line