Walking the Nakasendo: Japan’s Historic Post Road Between Edo and Kyoto
The Nakasendo was one of five major highways of the Edo period, connecting the shogunal capital at Edo (Tokyo) to the imperial capital at Kyoto through the mountains of central Honshu. Of its 69 post stations (shukuba), two — Magome and Tsumago in Nagano Prefecture — survive in exceptional preservation, connected by an 8-kilometer mountain trail that remains the most accessible and rewarding stretch of historic road walking in Japan.
History of the Nakasendo
The highway carried daimyo processions, imperial messengers, merchants, pilgrims, and ordinary travelers for more than two centuries under Tokugawa rule. Post towns provided accommodation (honjin for daimyo, hatagoya for commoners), food, fresh horses, and the administrative infrastructure of the relay system. The Meiji modernization rendered the road largely obsolete after 1868 as railways drew traffic away; the post towns that had been left behind by modernity became, paradoxically, the best-preserved examples of Edo-period street architecture in Japan.
The Magome–Tsumago Walk
The most-walked section of the Nakasendo runs 8 kilometers between Magome (in Gifu Prefecture) and Tsumago (in Nagano). The walk climbs through cedar forests and secondary woodland, passes a waterfall, crosses two mountain passes, and connects two post towns of different character. Allow 2.5–3.5 hours at a relaxed pace.
Magome sits on a hillside with a single stone-paved main street of preserved Edo-period buildings housing souvenir shops, cafes, and the site of writer Shimazaki Toson’s birthplace. The town is more commercial and tourist-facing than Tsumago but has charm in early morning before tour groups arrive.
Tsumago is considered the more authentically preserved of the two — cars are banned from the main street during daylight hours, and power lines are buried underground. The honjin and waki-honjin are open as museums; the scale of a feudal post town’s infrastructure becomes concrete when you walk through an inn designed to accommodate a daimyo retinue of hundreds.
Luggage Forwarding Service
The local tourism association operates a luggage forwarding service between Magome and Tsumago (April–November daily; December–March weekends), charging approximately ¥600–¥800 per bag. Drop bags at the Magome tourist information office by 11:30 for same-day delivery to Tsumago. This allows walkers to carry only a day pack on the mountain section.
Beyond Magome and Tsumago
The broader Nakasendo offers further preserved sections. Narai-juku in Nagano Prefecture’s Kiso Valley is the longest surviving post town streetscape in Japan — one kilometer of Edo-period townhouses, lacquerware shops, and sake breweries compressed along a single street. Accessible by rail on the Chuo Main Line at Narai Station.
Ochiai-juku between Magome and Nakatsugawa retains stone steps and waterwheels; the climb out of Ochiai rewards the effort with views across the Kiso Valley’s forested ridges.
Practical Planning
The most common approach: take the JR Chuo Line limited express from Nagoya or Shinjuku to Nakatsugawa, then bus to Magome (25 minutes). Walk to Tsumago, then bus or taxi to Nagiso Station on the Chuo Line for the return. The walk is well-signed in English and Japanese; waterproof footwear is useful after rain. Tsumago minshuku require advance reservation — book two to four weeks ahead for autumn foliage season (late October–early November) when the forested trail section is at its most dramatic.