Historic Villages of Shirakawa-gō and Gokayama
This is 2 day course from Tokyo.
Guests take super express train from Tokyo to Gifu, then to Takayama by
train. Between Takayama and Shirakawa-go Nohi Bus operates hourly buses.
These villages are well known for their houses constructed in the architectural
style known as gasshō-zukuri. The Gasshō-zukuri, "prayer-hands construction"
style is characterized by a thatched and steeply slanting roof resembling
two hands joined in prayer. The design is exceptionally strong and, in
combination with the unique properties of the thatching, allow the houses
to withstand and shed the weight of the region's heavy snowfalls in winter.
The houses are large, with three to four stories encompassed between the
low eaves, and historically intended to house large extended families
and a highly efficient space for a variety of industries. The design is
exceptionally strong and, in combination with the unique properties of
the thatching, allow the houses to withstand and shed the weight of the
region's heavy snowfalls in winter.