Otaki Experience

The Seasonal Kodo Bus is scheduled to start again July 2026 and run through mid-October. For these options, you might consider our Self Guided Tour.

Besides the buses to Otaki Village center listed on the Getting to Otaki page, during high season on the mountain there are 2 buses daily between Kiso-Fukushima Station and Tanohara (the end-of-the-line for vehicles and the starting point for the final climb to Mt. Ontake’s summit).

These buses only run on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays from July to October 18, as well as during Obon (August 3 to 7). They can be handy both for summiting Mt. Ontake and when hiking the Ontake Pilgrimage Trail.

For climbing to the summit, take the bus all the way to the end at Tanohara. For lower sections of the pilgrimage trail, you can either get off at Otaki Village Center or start from Satomiya Shrine. If you only want to hike the Waterfall Trail portion of the Kodo, you can get off at Sannogome, the stop before Kiyotaki Falls. When you finish the Waterfall Trail hike, you can return from the Kiyotaki Falls stop or the Shintaki Falls stop (next stop up from Kiyotaki).

Easiest Ontake Kodo Daytrip from Kiso

For those not driving, not staying over in Otaki, or short on time, planning your hike to coincide with this bus is can make a daytrip doable without having to hike back down the mountain.

Depart from Kiso-Fukushima Station (bound for Tanohara) at 8:40 am. Get off at Otaki or Satomiya Shrine (about 9:15 am).

To return, get the bus coming down the mountain bound for Kiso-Fukushima Station at about 4:20 pm at either the Shintaki, Kiyotaki, or Sannogome stop. You’ll be back at Kiso-Fukushima Station a little after 5 pm.

In theory, if you only wanted to visit the falls, you could do the following (though it’s a bit of a rush):
8:40 am from Kiso-Fukushima Station
9:21 am: get off at Kiyotaki. Visit there, then hike over the ridge to Shintaki Falls.
11:27 am: Get the bus from the Shintaki Falls stop near the entrance.
12:00 pm: Back in Kiso-Fukushima

Note that there are other bus options for getting back, but they all require hiking several kilometers back down to the village center. See the Getting to Otaki page for times.

One-way Rates:
Kiso-Fukushima Station to/from Otaki Village Center: 200 yen
To/from Satomiya Shrine or Sannomiya: 200 yen
To/from Kiyotaki or Shintaki Falls: 1,000 yen
To/from Tanohara: 1,500 yen

Roundtrip tickets: 2,500 yen (only for Tanohara, but you can get off/on along the way. Valid for 3 days)

You can purchase bus tickets at the ticket counter across from Kiso-Fukushima Station (see photo just below). Stop at the tourist office a few doors down if anything is unclear.