Known as Japan’s mini Kyoto, Takayama (or Hida Takayama) is a quaint Japanese town in the Gifu Prefecture that has been preserved for over 1,500 years. Takayama is easily visited on a day trip, with most visitors flocking to Sannmachi Suji, Takayama’s old town.

Many houses and buildings in the old town date back to the Edo period, sporting a signature wooden look and rustic charm. You can easily spend two to three hours simply wandering around, popping in and out of various shops and cafés.

Did you know that Gifu prefecture is renowned for its Hida beef? Hida beef is graded as A5 wagyu; compared to Kobe beef, Hida beef has more shimofuri (fat marbling), making it incredibly tender, with a melt-in-your-mouth texture.

Don’t miss out on snagging some beef sushi from Hida Kotte Ushi — which is usually characterised by a snaking queue in front. They only offer four different sets:

• Set A: 2pcs of Hida beef nigiri sushi; one with ginger and soy sauce, the other with salt (JPY700; ~SGD7)
• Set B: 2 pcs of Hida beef gunkan sushi; with dried seaweed and a fresh egg yolk (JPY800; ~SGD8)
• Set C: Set A + Set B (JPY1000; ~SGD10)
• Set D: 2 pcs of Hida beef nigiri sushi made with the sirloin part; with wasabi and soy sauce (JPY1000; ~SGD10)

The beef is served medium rare, and each set is served on a huge crisp rice cracker. Eat each piece in one bite; my favourite is the gunkan sushi with egg yolk, which bursts in the mouth with a refreshing pop of flavour.

There’s another stall just diagonally opposite Hida Kotte Ushi that sells beef sushi too — this one is equally as good, but only focuses on nigiri sushi.

Beef is the star of the show here: stroll further down the street to find grilled Hida beef skewers, or even a Hida beef handroll.

You can find Hida beef in many forms here — on top of yakiniku and beef buns, you’ll also find beef ramen! Simmered in a beef bone broth, the ramen is affectionately known as “Takayama Ramen”.

Other snacks include mochi, as well as giant roasted rice crackers.

Besides Hida beef, Hida Takayama is also a famous sake hub. Once home to four dozen sake breweries, it now has a few famous sake shops and breweries. Drop by Harada sake brewery, where you can buy a sake cup and sample up to 12 different varieties of sake.

If you have the time, why not spend the night in Takayama? Besides the old town, you can also embark on a 3.5-kilometre picturesque walking trail that will bring you to the ruins of Takayama Castle. You can also check out the Takayama Festival Floats Exhibition hall, or Takayama Jinya, an old municipal building.

How to get to Takayama

We went to Takayama from Toyama, via a 1.5-hour train. We used the JR Hokuriku Arch Pass; do note that this pass is only valid from Toyama to Inotani, and requires an additional top-up from Inotani to Takayama. Takayama is otherwise easily reached via a 50-minute bus ride from Shirakawa-go, or a two-hour train from Nagoya.

Read: A Day Trip to Shirakawa-go, a Magical Mountain Village in Japan

The old town is a short 10-minute walk from the main train station. On the way, you’ll pass by Miyagiwa River, which has a morning market that’s popular with the locals.

From April to June, you can also visit the Tateyama Alpine Route from Toyama.

Read: How to D.I.Y. the Tateyama Alpine Route from Tokyo

Toyama is also reputed to have some of the country’s best seafood — and we concur! Simply walk into any random sushi or sashimi joint, and dig in.

You can even buy some back to the hotel for supper; uni, ikura, and sake for supper, anyone?

From Toyama, you can easily head back to Tokyo within two hours via the shinkansen. Alternatively, a popular route would be to spend a few days in Kanazawa, before taking a bus to Shirakawa-go, and finally to Takayama.

Whichever you pick, the Gifu Prefecture is a much-welcomed part of Japan that’s way off the beaten path compared to the usual Tokyo and Osaka. Add it to your itinerary for your next trip!