Japanese required: Moderate
Cost: 3400 for adults, 1700 for children
Good for: Everyone
The Kiso river runs through Inuyama.
Inuyama is a quaint rural village with many different things to do and see. You
can easily visit this town many times and find something new every time. The
kiso river boat is a great way to spend the day. The meitetsu train ride there
from Kanayama is 39 minutes and costs 650 yen. The bus that takes you to the loading
dock for the river boat ride is a 5 minute walk from the Meitetsu InuyamaYuen
station east exit and has a nice waiting area.
The view from the indoor waiting
area makes it ideal for a picnic. There are plenty of tables, and they sell
beverages and snacks. I packed a picnic lunch and was able to enjoy the full
meal while waiting for the bus. The bus to the dock leaves roughly every 30
minutes and my group decided to let one bus go before leaving. This allowed us
to have the place to ourselves, and it would be romantic if you were on a date.
If you speak Japanese, you can have a friendly conversation with the couple
that runs the bus stop and learn about the woman's homemade ginger "dog
candy." The actual boat ride is about an hour.
It is a very calm and relaxing ride
with a few small "rapid" areas. The drivers know a lot, but they can
only speak Japanese. Even if you don't understand what they are saying, the
many sights are impressive and enjoyable. I would suggest visiting the website
for anyone that doesn't speak Japanese but still wants to know the history and
some of the information shared by the drivers.
Overall, it is an enjoyable ride and
I would recommend it for anyone.
