Bamboo Trails to Gourmet Tales:
Explore Utsunomiya's Hidden Treasures
Start the Journey
Presented by HACHINOJO Restaurant
Embark on a journey through Utsunomiya’s enchanting bamboo forest and learn the art of making bamboo cups and plates. Then travel back in time and walk through a Chusen-method dyeing factory founded 120 years ago. To top off the day, experience a culinary masterpiece crafted with locally sourced ingredients and infused with the essence of the region’s clear waters.
Choose how to experience the day!
Hire a BIKE
Hire a bike from ‘Miya Cycle Station’
3 min walk from JR Utsunomiya Sta.
Hire a TAXI
Hire a Jumbo Taxi from ‘Yano Taxi’
Book a pick-up service from JR Utsunomiya Sta.
Wakayama Bamboo Farm
60 min Bicycle / 30min by Taxi (or car)
Visiting WAKAYAMA FARM (1.5-2 hours)
Enjoy the largest bamboo park in Japan
Wakayama Farm is the largest bamboo forest open to the public in Japan spanning over fifty-six acres. Visitors can freely walk around, take photos, and discover different types of bamboo.
Book a guided tour to learn about the different bamboo.
Tours of the Baboo forest are offered in English and Japanese, where guests can learn about different bamboo and the history of Wakayama farm.
Did you know the same type of bamboo dies in the same year wherever they are planted?
Underground mountain water from the far away Nikko Mountains appear in the bamboo forest
The rainfall deep in the Nikko mountains travels underground, taking 2-3 years before bubbling out here. The water here is extremely good quality.
Book a workshop to make bamboo cups and plates
Bamboo grows fast and can be used to make many things. Your instructor can help you make cups and plates to use later for lunch at Hchinojo.
Visit the Bamboo museum
Wakayama Farm has a small museum. Bamboo is a sustainable material used for many things. Did you know bamboo was an essential part of the lightbulb Edison invented? Learn how bamboo has been used in everyday products.
Information for Wakayama Farm
(Four Seasons Bamboo Forest Wakayama Farm)
Cost : Entrance 750 yen
Guided tour: Please call Wakayama Bamboo Farm or contact the travel companies at the bottom of this page. (Available most days, but please book in advance.)
Bamboo Cup & Plate Workshop: Please call Wakayama Bamboo Farm or contact the travel companies at the bottom of this page. (Available most days, but please book in advance.)
Tel：028-665-1417
Address: 栃木県宇都宮市宝木本町2018 (2018 Takaragi-Honcho, Utsunomiya City, Tochigi Pref.)
Nakagawa Sen Kojo
40 min Bicycle / 20min by Taxi (or car)
Take a tour of NAKAGAWA SENKOJO
(1 hour)
Watch closley as workers careful apply glue through the screen on to the material
The glue protects the material from the dye, so anywhere there is no glue, the material will be colored. Workers need to be extremely careful and any mistakes will affect the whole roll.
The traditional Chusen method uses these small watering cans with a long spout
Watch closely how the workers carefully apply the different dyes to the material according to the design in front of them.
Removing the dye and glue from the material
Before there were machines, the materials were washed in the nearby river. Now, this narrow water channel and the machines recreate this process. The water is also cleaned to prevent any contamination.
Drying proccess
After being washed the material is taken outside to be dryed. After this it is cut and packaged all by hand.
Information for Naagawa Sen Koujyo
Tours : Tours are in Japanese so you will need to bring your own guide or hire one. (Max 9 people including guide).
(This is a traditional dyeing factory which still operates, so availability is limited. Please book in advance.)
Address: 栃木県宇都宮市錦1-562 (1-562 Nishiki, Utsunomiya City, Tochigi Pref.)
Tel：028-665-1417
*Closed on Weekends and National Holidays
Hachinojo Restaurant
30 min Bicycle / 20min by Taxi (or car)
Enjoy the WATER Course at HACHINOJO
(1.5 - 2 hours)
Start with a glass of delicious Natural Water from the Nikko Mountains
Hachinojo restaurant’s new flagship ‘Bisui course’ (gulten free) starts with a glass of natural water from Tochigi city where rainwater from the Nikko mountains is found slowly flowing underground after 3 years of passing through minerals.
Ayu fish on charcoaled hemp rice cracker
Ayu (fish) is only found in clear waters. The nearby Nakagawa River is known for its delicious Ayu fish.
Delicious organic salad from 'Kawada Farm'
Freshly picked vegetables are beautifully served on the bamboo plate that you made at Wakayama Farm. On top is a dressing made with lemon and water, which is made to look like morning dew.
Best watercress in the region accompanied with Chateaubriand from local Nasu Wagyu Beef.
Clear quality water is essential for growing good watercress. In Northern Utsunomiya, there is an area called Shirasawa (which is famous for clear water), and is home to one of the best watercress in Japan.
Melt-in-your-mouth tender leeks stewed in water
Boiled quickly in underground water from the Nikko Mountains. Enjoy the tender white onion’s taste.
Fragrant Charcoal Grilled Eel, homemade pickles and Ishii rice
Eel from the nearby Nakagawa River, along with delicious Japanese pickles and Rice once chosen for the Imperial Family’s Niinamesai Festival.
Mille-feuille made with a water
The buttercream is made with natural water instead of milk. Inside the Mille-feuille are Tochigi’s strawberries.
Japanese black tea from Kurobane
Kurobane Japanese black tea is cultivated in the beautiful clear streams of the Yamizo Mountain.
It‘s brewed with the underground water from the Nikko mountain range.
Information for Hachinojo
The Water Course : The meal is explained in Japanese so you will need to bring your own guide or hire one. (Max 9 people including guide).
(This is a traditional dyeing factory which still operates, so availability is limited. Please book in advance.)
Address: 栃木県宇都宮市簗瀬町1785-17 (1785-17 Yanase-cho, Utsunomiya-city, Tochigi-prefecture)
Tel：028-638-9235
*Closed on Mondays
