Irohazaka Route
Irohazaka Route
4
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Top ways to experience Irohazaka Route
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
Restaurants
68 within 3 miles
Attractions
122 within 6 miles
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.0
346 reviews
Excellent
63
Very good
169
Average
104
Poor
6
Terrible
4
TheLeongOhana
United States7,505 contributions
Oct 2023 • Couples
We rode the public bus in Nikko and enjoyed the route since we were one of the lucky ones that secured seats when boarding. This was around 7AM ish on a Saturday morning.
The bus did not struggle at all with any of the curves and the schedule was maintained up until the rope way stop where it got stuck for at least 10 minutes behind a line of cars waiting to enter the rope way parking lot. Other than that I soon lost track of all the switchbacks and turns that we drove through. I agree that a car would likely be more fun on this road as long as there was no traffic.
Coming back to Nikko I recommend sitting on the left side of the bus for better views from the windows. The trees were starting to turn in mid-October so that added some. vibrancy for the fall drives on this road.
The bus did not struggle at all with any of the curves and the schedule was maintained up until the rope way stop where it got stuck for at least 10 minutes behind a line of cars waiting to enter the rope way parking lot. Other than that I soon lost track of all the switchbacks and turns that we drove through. I agree that a car would likely be more fun on this road as long as there was no traffic.
Coming back to Nikko I recommend sitting on the left side of the bus for better views from the windows. The trees were starting to turn in mid-October so that added some. vibrancy for the fall drives on this road.
Written November 5, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jk-liu
Taichung, Taiwan1,866 contributions
Oct 2019
There is lots of Z shape of the route in the mountains. What exciting route. If you have a sports car then you can drive fast and race with nature.
We rode the city bus between Nikko and Lake Chuzenji several times.
In the beginning, my family doubts the city bus could drive on the Z shape route to get the mountain? It was, the driver let the bus fast and safe to arrive at tourists’ destinations many times every day.
That looks very exciting. But don't forget to buy a Nikko pass ticket before visiting Nikko. Because of all the areas of Nikko, bus and train fares are expensive.
We rode the city bus between Nikko and Lake Chuzenji several times.
In the beginning, my family doubts the city bus could drive on the Z shape route to get the mountain? It was, the driver let the bus fast and safe to arrive at tourists’ destinations many times every day.
That looks very exciting. But don't forget to buy a Nikko pass ticket before visiting Nikko. Because of all the areas of Nikko, bus and train fares are expensive.
Written November 13, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mohamed S
singapore26 contributions
Get a bike and ride it. Awesome hairpin curves. I am quite a motorbike enthusiast and after a few research about Nikko, found out about irohazaka. We decided to rent a bike for a day and got a CB400 and a W800.
Its a 1 way route up and down at another. So, minus the incoming vehicles from the equation, the route is quite "safe". At the start of the hairpin curves, when it starts to be a 1 way route, its takes about 10 minutes to go up. At the top the 2 main attractions are the lake chuzenji and the kegon falls, just less than 5 minutes apart. It then take about 10 minutes for the route down as well. Be extra careful on your way down. The hairpin curves is more sharper than the route up.
If you want to experience irohazaka, Go get a bike. :)
Its a 1 way route up and down at another. So, minus the incoming vehicles from the equation, the route is quite "safe". At the start of the hairpin curves, when it starts to be a 1 way route, its takes about 10 minutes to go up. At the top the 2 main attractions are the lake chuzenji and the kegon falls, just less than 5 minutes apart. It then take about 10 minutes for the route down as well. Be extra careful on your way down. The hairpin curves is more sharper than the route up.
If you want to experience irohazaka, Go get a bike. :)
Written September 30, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BeyondBanality
Singapore281 contributions
Nov 2017 • Couples
Our much-anticipated drive on the irohazaka was quite disappointing since we were constantly stuck behind big tour buses and braking-for-no-reason weekend drivers (we d on drove this on a Monday morning in early Nov). A true driver would not enjoy the experience. In fact we much preferred Prefectural Highway 23 around the Setoaikyo canyon / Kawamata dam area- even though the turns were not as sharp it was way less busy (no need to crawl along at 5kmh.) Hakone much better if you want hairpin turns and scenic views.
Written December 20, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JeffreyHartono
Singapore, Singapore43 contributions
Nov 2018 • Family
This windy road at the outskirt of Nikko - Tochigi prefecture, was definitely the highlight of our trip. We drove in a rental car from Tokyo, stayed a couple of nights at Nikko. The view was simply breathtaking, under a canopy of trees, at the peak of autumn colours, first few days of November. Lots of lookout points to take in sceneries of mountainous areas. On the way back to Nikko, the lookout overlooking the three waterfalls was simply out of this world. Highly recommended for visitors with their own rental car. The best part: it’s free.
Written January 20, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Matthew B
19 contributions
Sep 2016 • Solo
Long drive out of Tokyo (3 hours from memory), however this was WELL worth it.
I hired a Nissan GTR-R24 Skyline, and loved every moment of the drive, even highway driving to Iroha-zaka. But once at the Iroha-zaka route, I was in driving heaven!
It was kind of a dream come true to drive such a beautiful car at this beautiful location, after playing "Initial-D" as a kid. It became a reality!
Too bad about the slow speed limit, but nonetheless this was an amazing drive, doing the hairpin turns and looking out over the scenic mountains.
If you love sports cars, and love driving, this is for you!
I hired a Nissan GTR-R24 Skyline, and loved every moment of the drive, even highway driving to Iroha-zaka. But once at the Iroha-zaka route, I was in driving heaven!
It was kind of a dream come true to drive such a beautiful car at this beautiful location, after playing "Initial-D" as a kid. It became a reality!
Too bad about the slow speed limit, but nonetheless this was an amazing drive, doing the hairpin turns and looking out over the scenic mountains.
If you love sports cars, and love driving, this is for you!
Written January 23, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Peter S
Brookfield, CT28 contributions
Dec 2019
As a car enthusiast on this trip to Japan I convinced my wife (pretty easily) to travel up to Nikko for Irohazaka first and everything else second. We had rented an EK9 Civic Type R for a small road trip and we ended up staying at a ryokan at the top of the mountain next to Lake Chuzenji. I did this purposely to maximize the number of times we'd need to drive up and down the mountain. What an amazing road - it's an absolute work of art. Even going rather slowly you are still bound to run into traffic on the way down unless you go during off-peak hours when nothing around is open anyway.
The uphill side is 2 lanes, so that was easier to travel up and almost as fun as the downhill. There are quite a few spots you can pull off safely and take pictures/take in the view. The uphill side also has a cable car to bring you up higher for views of Kegon falls, Irohazaka, and the valley below. It takes maybe 15-20 minutes to go up or down but you can do a continuous loop pretty easily! There are also some nice hiking trails, water falls, and small businesses to enjoy at the top of the mountain before heading back down for some more fun and views.
Just watch out for the monkeys! We saw one at the top (awesome), then coming back up later in the day there were maybe 8-12 right at the bottom of the uphill. It made for some great extra character to the area but definitely keep an eye out for them!
The uphill side is 2 lanes, so that was easier to travel up and almost as fun as the downhill. There are quite a few spots you can pull off safely and take pictures/take in the view. The uphill side also has a cable car to bring you up higher for views of Kegon falls, Irohazaka, and the valley below. It takes maybe 15-20 minutes to go up or down but you can do a continuous loop pretty easily! There are also some nice hiking trails, water falls, and small businesses to enjoy at the top of the mountain before heading back down for some more fun and views.
Just watch out for the monkeys! We saw one at the top (awesome), then coming back up later in the day there were maybe 8-12 right at the bottom of the uphill. It made for some great extra character to the area but definitely keep an eye out for them!
Written November 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SteveS1970
Coventry, UK8,900 contributions
Mar 2020
This road is famous for the amount of hairpin bends it has. Each band is numbered, probably to let the driver know when it will be over, and there are amazing views. Part of the tour when seeing the lake and the falls.
Written March 26, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Eugene
Melbourne, Australia692 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
Irohazaka is a pair of winding roads that connect central Nikko to the higher elevations of the mountainous Okunikko region. Known more famously for its 48 hairpins, both roads are best enjoyed from late October to early November during the autumn season. Be aware though that travelling during this season is also a big pain due to the large number of cars and buses that will hog the narrow roads and make your journey painfully slow. Plan wisely and attempt to travel on both roads early in the morning.
Written November 20, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Aprilflame
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia101 contributions
Oct 2018 • Family
Known for its switch backs and sharp corners as it snakes up the mountain, the view is magnificent especially with the autumn colours at its peak. The bus can get very full so be prepared to stand all the way up and down at peak period.
Written October 27, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
How do you hire a driver with car for this route only or while staying in Nikko ?
Written July 17, 2017
Showing results 1-2 of 2
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing