This guide covers Daizenji, the underground wine cave at Budounooka and a few nearby stops in Katsunuma, with the routes, times and prices you need to plan the order of your visit.
The temple keeps fixed admission times, so it works best as the first stop of the day, with everything else arranged around it. Once you are in town, the walk out to the wine cave and a couple of smaller stops along the way make up the rest of the visit, and none of them asks for much planning.
The practical details are gathered into two short tables below. The first sets out how to get here from the city and the short hops once you have arrived, and the second lists what each place costs and when it opens, so you can read the whole plan at a glance before you set off.
Getting to Katsunuma
The table below lists the main routes from Shinjuku and the short hops once you arrive in town.
| Route | Time |
|---|---|
| Train from Shinjuku Station to Otsuki Station | About sixty minutes |
| Train from Otsuki Station to Katsunuma-budokyo Station | About twenty-five minutes |
| Highway bus from Shinjuku West Exit Highway Bus Terminal to the Katsunuma bus stop | About one hundred minutes |
| Taxi from Katsunuma-budokyo Station to Daizenji | About five minutes |
| Walk from Katsunuma-budokyo Station to the Ohikage Tunnel walkway entrance | About five minutes |
The Koshu city community bus costs three hundred yen per ride, whatever the distance. Parking at Daizenji is free, with space for forty standard cars.
Daizenji Temple
Daizenji sets its admission times by season. From March to November, temple admission hours are nine in the morning to half past four in the afternoon, with reception ending at four. From December to February, temple admission hours are nine in the morning to four in the afternoon, with reception ending at half past three.
Adding a glass of red or white wine, or grape juice, to the temple admission costs an additional three hundred yen. Bottle prices for the temple's own wine are given with their sizes in the table at the end of this guide.
The Main Hall at Daizenji
The main hall of Daizenji, called the Yakushido, is the oldest wooden building around the Kanto area, and it carries an inscription dated twelve eighty-six. Give it time before you move on to the rest of the route.
Where to stay
Places to stay near Katsunuma, Yamanashi, Japan →
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A Walk to Budounooka and the Wine Cave
From Katsunuma-budokyo Station, Budounooka is about fifteen to twenty minutes on foot. The underground wine cave is open from nine in the morning to half past five in the afternoon. A Tart-vin tasting cup for the cave costs two thousand two hundred yen including tax.
Budounooka also has a wine server, with its own prices and times. One silver coin for the wine server costs three hundred yen. One gold coin costs seven hundred yen. A plastic wine glass costs one hundred fifty yen. The wine server hours are half past eight in the morning to eight in the evening.
Miyakoen and the Ohikage Tunnel Walkway
Two smaller stops fit around the temple and the cave. Miyakoen is open from nine in the morning to half past four in the afternoon, with reception until four. Miyakoen is closed on Tuesdays and from December twenty-eighth to January fourth. Admission to Miyakoen for an individual adult aged twenty or over is two hundred yen.
The Ohikage Tunnel walkway is closed each year from December twenty-ninth to January third. Its daily times are in the table at the end, and the walk to its entrance is shown in the first table above.
Costs and Hours at a Glance
The table below gathers the costs and times from the sections above, plus the bottle prices of the temple wine.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Daizenji, admission hours from March to November | Nine in the morning to half past four in the afternoon, last entry at four |
| Daizenji, admission hours from December to February | Nine in the morning to four in the afternoon, last entry at half past three |
| Daizenji handmade wine, seven hundred twenty millilitre bottle | One thousand six hundred fifty yen including tax, red or white |
| Daizenji handmade wine, one thousand eight hundred millilitre bottle | Three thousand three hundred yen including tax, red or white |
| Budounooka underground wine cave, opening times | Nine in the morning to half past five in the afternoon |
| The Ohikage Tunnel walkway, opening times | Nine in the morning to four in the afternoon |
If you plan to stay overnight, take a look at places to stay in Katsunuma.