DAY 9 · FRIDAY 30 OCTOBER
Out of the mountains
The journey back to Tokyo, with a free afternoon in Matsumoto and one special dinner waiting at the end of it.
Morning
Have one last hot spring bath before breakfast, then leave Shirahone at about 09:15. Drive to Matsumoto, through the mountains and down along the river, and fill the tank with regular petrol near the station, because the car goes back full. Return it to Times at Matsumoto station by 11:00. For the GPS, use the map code 75821191*51 rather than the phone number, which can send you to the wrong place.
Afternoon
Right after returning the car, put the suitcases in a coin locker at Matsumoto station, so you can walk around the town with nothing to carry. Without the car, you have four free hours in Matsumoto. The castle, one of the few original castles left in Japan, with its black wooden keep reflected in the moat, is a short walk from the station, and the old town around it is a nice place for lunch. Then take Azusa limited express number 42, which leaves Matsumoto at 15:10 and reaches Shinjuku at 18:07; your seats are 1A and 1B in car 11. From Shinjuku, the JR Chuo line takes you to Tokyo Station in about fifteen minutes, and the hotel is a six-minute walk from its Yaesu side. Check in, drop the bags, and head out to dinner: Nihombashi station, four minutes from the hotel, is on the Tozai metro line, which runs straight to Kagurazaka. The evening is fairly tight, so keep the luggage light.
Evening
Dinner is booked at Kagurazaka Sushi Yasaka at 20:00, two seats at the counter. It is a small restaurant serving Edo-style sushi, the traditional Tokyo style. You will have the chef's top omakase course, where the chef chooses and serves each piece in front of you, and it includes the house speciality, the Yasaka "bakudan". The table is yours for two hours. Kagurazaka itself is a charming old neighbourhood of narrow stone lanes, and a lovely place for a last evening, just the two of you.
- Dinner
- Kagurazaka Sushi Yasaka (神楽坂 鮨 弥栄), Fri 30 Oct 20:00, 2 people, counter seats. Omakase course, 22,000 yen per person including tax, plus 8% service. Address: 3-7 Akagi-Motomachi, Shinjuku, Kagurazaka ODA Building, ground floor. Phone 03-6265-3338. Open in Google Maps. If you cancel on the day, you pay half the course price, or the full price if you do not call.
- Driving
- Shirahone Onsen to Matsumoto, about 1 hour 15 minutes, down the valley beside the river. This is the last drive of the trip. Return the car full, at Times Matsumoto Train Station, by 11:00 (GPS map code 75821191*51).
- Bags
- Coin lockers at Matsumoto station: on the Castle (Oshiro) exit side, on the 2nd and 3rd floors, outside to the left of the stairs and by the MIDORI entrance, and on the 1st floor at the Alps exit. Most take 100-yen coins; there is a change machine in the 2nd-floor waiting room, and some lockers take a Suica card. If the lockers are full, you can book a bag drop nearby in advance with ecbo cloak.
- Public transport
- Azusa limited express number 42, Matsumoto 15:10 to Shinjuku 18:07. Booked: car 11, seats 1A and 1B. Paper tickets: collect them in Tokyo together with the outbound tickets, so there is nothing to do at Matsumoto station. Then the JR Chuo line from Shinjuku to Tokyo Station, about 15 minutes. For dinner, the Tozai metro line from Nihombashi to Kagurazaka, and back.
- Where you sleep
- karaksa hotel colors Tokyo Yaesu (booked), 1 night, free cancellation. Address: 1-5-13 Yaesu, Chuo-ku. About six minutes' walk from the Yaesu Central exit of Tokyo Station (through the Yaesu underground mall to exit 23, then 100 metres), and four minutes from Nihombashi station. The hotel's website.
