How to Spend One Day in Toyama

About
Latest Posts

Helen Foster is a Sydney-based author, journalist and content creator. She has traveled to Japan six times and is planning trip seven. Her articles on Japan have appeared in publications including Reader's Digest (Asia Pacific), RAC Horizons, Jetstar Magazine, the Japan National Tourism Organisation website and more. She is a digital publisher member of the Australian Society of Travel Writers.

Trying Toyama’s Famous Black Ramen

Toyama has a number of local dishes that you need to add to your must-try list, and, as big ramen fan, this one was first on my list. It gets its name from the unusual colour of its broth—most ramen broths are yellow or pale brown, but this is a deep peaty shade. The colour comes from adding soy sauce to the base, which is made of fish or chicken stock (or a mix of both).

But when my bowl arrived, the broth wasn’t the only difference I noticed. The noodles were thicker and firmer than normal ramen, with a huge chunk of pork on top rather than thin slices. The serving was enormous – more like a Bavarian beer house than a Japanese lunch spot.

The taste was also new. I did wonder why everyone else was collecting big glasses of water as they sat down, but one mouthful of the broth and I realised. It was quite salty and had a deep, intense taste. If it’s too strong for you, they will come around with a lighter broth to dilute things after you’ve had a few mouthfuls. It set me up for the rest of the day.

I tried mine at ガッツリ！えびすこ, which was right next to my hotel (its on the second floor on the corner) and directly opposite Toyama station. There was also a tram stop outside, which made it very easy to get to my next stop.

Note – if you’re staying in a hotel in Toyama, the city gives you two coupons to ride the tram for free. Make sure you ask reception for yours.

Visit the Glass Art Museum

This is probably the best-known sight in Toyama city. It’s famous for its display of the bright-coloured works of glass artist Dale Chihuly. Unfortunately, you’re not allowed to post pictures of these online, so you’ll have to trust me when I say they are well worth the visit.

The museum is a bit tricky to find, so I actually got to use my Japanese lessons to read the instructions in the lift! If you visit, it’s located in the library building with displays on floors 4 and 6.

You can buy your entry ticket on either floor, but floor 6 is the most impressive and where you find the Chihuly exhibit. It’s closed some Wednesdays, so check details if you’re visiting mid-week.

A few other cool sights surround the area around the Glass Museum, so take some time to wander around here. Take a look at Hie Shrine, which has a cute display of Zodiac animals, and Toyamachukyoin, which is Japan’s smallest shrine.

Unless you speak Japanese, I’d skip the herbal medicine shop that’s in all the tourist brochures. I was really interested in this, but, it turned out that there’s not much there for an English speaker.

Visit Iwase

Iwase is an old port town a short train ride from Toyama full of pretty wooden streetscapes that were once home to a thriving geisha district – but with about 0.01 per cent of the tourists of more popular areas with this background!

Had I arrived in Toyama earlier, I planned to visit the Toyama Prefectural Art Museum by the river a little north of the city and then take the sightseeing boat up to Iwase, but the weather and my late arrival put pay to that. Instead, I simply jumped on a tram from the Glass Museum and enjoyed a pleasant 30-minute ride north.

Iwase is a town in renaissance. The owner of the Masuda sake brewery has relocated to the town, and he’s bringing artists and leading chefs to the area—which means that some excellent restaurants are opening here.

I was more interested in wandering than eating. I stopped off at the Baba Family house, an old merchant’s house on the High Street, which was beautiful. But mostly, I just enjoyed the pretty streets and the silence. I think I saw ten other tourists the whole time I was there – and most of those were at my next stop.

Sake Time

While I might not have tried any gourmet food in Iwase, I wasn’t leaving without trying the sake at the Masuda tasting room, Saseki.

The staff here were incredibly helpful. The deal was that I paid (I think) 1000 yen for 15 minutes (I thought I’d taken a picture of the price list, but, no!) – and I could drink as many samples as I liked during that time.

Not knowing where to start, I asked them ‘osusume’ which means ‘what do you recommend?’ – and they immediately handed me over a pricey bottle I would probably have been too embarrassed to pick up.

I poured in a small polite measure, ‘tell her she can have more than that’ – was the advice translated from the staff by a couple who spoke English opposite me! It was delicious.

Fifteen minutes and four sake cups later, I was loving Iwase!

Sake drunk, it was getting closer to my hotel check-in time, so I walked around the backstreets back to the tram – at this point, I had one of those encounters that makes me love wandering in Japan.

A group of hawks or eagles (I never said ornithology was my thing), were gathering on top of a roof, and the house owner came out to look. We exchanged a few words on how amazing this was (Sugoi is Japanese for amazing, and it’s quite a handy word to know) and stood watching them together for a while.

If you’re sold, you’ll find more details on the above sights, names of the best restaurants, and a few other things to look out for, in our guide to the 6 things not to miss in Iwase.

Sunset Spotting

Upon checking into my hotel, the snappily named Toyoko Inn Toyama eki Shinkansen-guchi 2, I realised it had one of Japan’s rock-hard beds—yay!

Considering how little paid for the room, I was willing to put up with it, and, I quickly realised it was going to do me a favour, though, as instead of relaxing on my plank, I decided to add something to my plans: a trip to the Toyama Observation Tower.

Toyama is also famous for its stunning view of the snowy mountains far in the distance, and I was hoping I might see it from the Tower. It turned out that wasn’t happening today, but I did get an excellent sunset.

I also got the chance to see some of the sculptures that make up part of the sculpture walk that lines the river.

The tower is free, but it’s a bit tricky to get into it. Make sure you use the main council entrance on Joshi Main Street; if you arrive early evening, this will look closed as the first thing you see behind the glass doors is a shutter, but the glass doors will open, and you realise the shutter isn’t attached! If you just walk right, you’ll find your way to the lift.

Finish Your Day With Sushi and Shrimp

Because it’s fairly near the sea, Toyama is also famous for sushi and you can actually get a sushi eaters guide to the city.

My original plan was to visit a restaurant called Sushi Tama, located just beside the station, but the queue was silly, so I tried the KitoKito sushi train behind it.

Having eventually tried both on my trip, you’re not going to be disappointed either way—although Sushi Tama is the only one selling Toyama’s white shrimp.

I tried these deep-fried my next night in Toyama. In this form, they’re like eating whitebait, but their antennae are almost like bristles once they are fried, which I got tired of quite soon!

If you just want to try the white shrimp rather than have sushi as well, Shiroebi tai, in the same building, offers them fried or sashimi-style on top of rice.

Save Money with Klook & Japlanease

If you plan on buying tickets or tours from Klook for when you’re in Japan, you could save up to 10 per cent by using the code JAPLANEASEKLOOK at the checkout. Click here to see what’s on offer.

T&Cs apply. Some items, including Tokyo Disney and USJ tickets, are not available for discounts.

So, there you have it – how to spend the perfect day in Toyama. If you do come here, make sure you take a look at the map produced by the tourist information office as it has some extra sights. I only found this once I was in the city and didn’t have time to tick everything off – but other things I would have liked to see include more of the river sculptures and the famous Jizo statues that are said to confer longevity.

There’s also the option to dress in a kimono or samurai armour and even ride horses at the castle ruins.

As you can see there’s easily enough to fill a whole day in Toyama, even if you don’t intend to go to see snow or ride railways.