If you are a spa lover you must be thrilled to come to Japan, for it is a spa paradise with many Onsen towns all over Japan. And you may have heard somewhere along the line, that there are 3 best onsen. One is Arima onsen in Kobe (Osaka, Kansai area), that the famous Taiko Hideyoshi Toyotomi, one of the old ruler of Japan loved, and it is said to heal disease. Another is Kusatsu onsen in Gunma (Tokyo, Kanto area) also famous for curing disease. That’s two… Wait aren’t you forgetting the last 3 best onsen in Japan? That last one would be the onsen of beauty, Gero onsen of Nagoya Chubu area!!

What you will learn

Gero onsen is a natural beauty spa

The hot spring of Gero is said to be the beauty onsen, you’ll definitely feel it once you touch the hot spring springing out from all around the town of Gero. The water here is slightly white and it feels like facial water, and when your skin will feel smooth after bathing.

Gero have many foot bathing spots around town and you can try them for free of charge! There are so many spots that I recommend going on sandals, for you’ll be tired of taking off your shoes and socks so many times!!

I myself have a sensitive skin and have a hard time maintaining my skin condition during the dry winter season. That’s why I go to Gero every winter so that I can control the skin condition and help it recover with the skin maintenance qualities of Gero onsen. It’s water quality is soft and relaxing and it does nit tingle and hurt like some onsen does at times.

Easy access

Gero onsen fortunately have a train station conveniently located in a place where most of the ryokan or hotels are only about a 5 to 10 minute walk through the town. It might be so fun to go by train and enjoy a walk through the onsen town looking at souvenirs.

I always love to go by train, and it has an express train to Gero from Nagoya which would take only about 90 minutes. It is fun to buy Eki-ben (lunch box) at Nagoya and eat inside the train. The train is called Wide-view Hida, and you can really have a nice view through valleys, rivers, and mountains.

The onsen town of Gero may not be of tour taste, if you prefer the modern town of Arima or Kusatsu, for it still have the old fashioned antique taste remaining. Though there would be Hida culture in the town that you may enjoy, such as tochi no mi senbei shops, or sarubobo goods shops, which I’m sure anyone would enjoy. Sarubobo goods is a must buy if you come with a child, for it is a good omen that your child would grow healthy and strong!!

Excellent accommodation

Hotels are packed with accommodation, which makes you feel like you don’t no need to go out. Usually, if you cone by express train, hotels would have a bus waiting outside to pick you up. However, like I mentioned above, unless your hotel is far away, I recommend walking through the town to enjoy the town. It also have a bus from the hotel to the station, which you may appreciate.

Moreover, in a typical onsen ryokan (hotel) in other areas, there would only be one bath. However, in most hotels in Gero, they usually have 2 to 3 baths which rotate men and women time by time. Each bath have a different concept which makes you want to try all of them!!

What’s good about onsen in Gero is that they have shampoos, facial lotions, tonics and other amenities you may need, they are ready for you to use in every bath. Most onsen in Gero provide other basic accommodations as well such as free wifi, kid’s play space, and souvenir shops. *Please check your hotel for details.

Summery

• Gero onsen is certainly onsen of beauty!
• Easily accessible by Wide-view Hida
  Excellent accommodation awaits tourists
• Which means it is highly recommended to go if you stop by Nagoya area.

If you are looking for a place to enjoy free Japanese beer while you’re in Nagoya, you should definitely consider going for factory tour at Asahi Beer Nagoya Brewery factory!!

If you are with a family and are wondering if you can take your child with you, not to worry, there are varieties of soft drinks available for kids to enjoy!

What you will learn

Difficult access but free of charge

10 minutes walk from nearest station

Access is a bit difficult but not too far from the nearest station. It’ll be about 10 minute walk from nearest Shin-Moriyama station of JR Chuo Line. It’ll be a walk through residential area with no landmarks, so you might want to map it on your mobile map application just in case you get lost. It was a confusing walk for a Japanese native like myself!

There are very little information signs on the street that show the way to the brewery, so it is actually a bit hard to reach. However, once you reach the factory property, there are enough signs which will prevent you from getting lost in the factory.

Of course the factory tour is totally free if charge, but you’ll need to make appointment in advance. Please check with Nagoya Brewery for vacancy.
Reference: Asahi Beer Factir Tour Official Website

You will enjoy the tour!

Reference: Asahi Beer Factor Tour Official Website

English guidance is available

After entering the tour entrance, clerks which will be your guide for the tour will welcome you. Tell the clerk your appointment time and your name for confirmation.

The tour equips a headset that have English guidance, so you will not miss any information. Moreover, the guide speaks fluent English, so any questions you may have will likely be answered.

During my tour, I was with a group from Singapore, but they seem to be enjoying the tour, all questions answered. Having a nice chat with the guide.

The machines are pretty cool.

It is quite surprising to see how fast and automated these beer production lines are. I never expected they would show so much of the production lines on the tour. Of course there was a room where it was private and cannot show, but you’ll get a nice view from above if the fast moving machines, you are sure to enjoy!

You can drink up to 3 glasses of beer or soft drinks

After the tour, you’ll cone back to the caffeteria space where you can choose a glass of beer or soft drink of your choice. The seats are assigned so be sure to seat on your designated table. There will be a wet towel and a small snack for each participants waiting for you to have with the drinks. You can drink up to 3 glasses in 20 minutes.

2 to 3 beers to choose from!

They would always have Asahi Super Dry, but the couplings will change from time to time. The guide told us that they usually have Dry Black, but they had something else instead when my family visited.

Lots of soft drinks

I heard from the guide that it is very rare to have so much soft drinks like Asahi Beer. Other breweries will only have tea ready and surely kids will not be happy with teas!! Here, they’ll have Calpis, ciders, teas, and coffee, the line up you see in an Asahi beverage vending machines. If you are lucky, they will have a limited editions of the soft drinks like Amao Calpis. However, for some limited soft drinks, you’ll need to take a different tour so be sure to confirm the brewery in advance.

Summary

Before taking the tour, I was a Suntory beer fan. But bow that I’ve experienced the nicest tour which my kid enjoyed, I feel like I’d rather buy Asahi now than Suntory.

Even if it is a bit confusing to reach, a good beer, and a fun time for the kids is a worth going for the tour.

When you have a young child you would see them driving around toy cars and trains. Moreover, they love seeing, touching, and driving them as well.

The Nagoya City Tram & Subway Museum is located in Akaike as well, and it is an admission charge free facility that children can enjoy driving trains and riding inside the tram exhibits.

Akaike is a developing suburban area of Nagoya and is on Nissin city. It is recently famous for the newly built Prime Tree Akaike shopping mall. However, there is a better area to visit if you have a train loving child!!

What you will learn

Easy Access

The Nagoya City Tram & Subway Museum is about 5 minutes walk from subway Akaike station of Tsurumai line. It also have a parking space of about 5 cars, so it is also accessible by car.

You might want to note that there us a ticket at the Akaike station where you can exchange with a sticker and tissue. The ticket will be placed inside the entrance gate so if you want the ticket, you must ride on the subway to get to Akaike station.

The museum is located adjacent to the subway maintenance garage, which you can also tour on weekdays. *You’ll need to make appointment for factory tour.

Your kid will enjoy everything here!!!

You can drive trains in the diorama

The main event in this museum is absolutely the train diorama!! There is a huge train diorama strait in front of the entrance.

This diorama runs many trains that runs all around Japan. They include Dr. Yellow, cargo trains, express trains. They would have an explanation on the glass, so you would know what trains are currently running!!

The fun however is not just looking at the running trains, but that you can actually touch the controller panels and drive each train! They have about 6 trains running, and you can drive every one of them. Your child would enjoy driving trains through the city and tunnels on the diorama.

Subway driving simulator

There are several driving simulators placed next to the train diorama. The simulator is the city subway and you can enjoy being a train driver of a subway line.

If you have a pre schooler child, the child may enjoy train wrapping game. If you have completed the game, the museum will print out the train in a paper crafting format for free, which you can enjoy building once you get home!!

Tram exhibits

There are several trams and antique subway inside the facility, where you can actually step inside and take a seat. Usually the museum would prevent you from touching, but this museum allows you to touch almost everything. What is amazing is that your child can touch the buttons or the wipers at the driver’s seat!!

Train driver’s hats

There’s a photo space in the museum right next to the entrance. They have men’s and women’s city tram official hats. Your kid will enjoy wearing them when they ride on the tram exhibits or driving the train diorama. The hats will certainly up the fun of the museum experience!!

Summery

Nagoya City Tran & Subway Museum is a must go facility if you have a train living child!!

Reference: Aichi Museum of Flight Official Website

Nagoya area is famous in Japan as an industrious area. It famous for its Shinkansen of JR Tokai and also for semi-hometown of Toyota. It was also previously famous for aircraft industry. So actually, there are many aircraft related places you can visit and enjoy in this area, and Aichi Museum of Flight is one of them.

What you will learn

Access may be a bit tricky

Like all airports, Aichi museum of Flight is on the outskirts of Nagoya city, in Toyoyama town, and the access is a bit tricky.

It is located right next to Nagoya Airport, which was former international airport before Chubu Centrair International Airport opened. It means that is is not Centrair airport. f you were to be flying in from other parts of Japan, you may want to stop by to have a look, since it is conveniently located right next to the airport. Aichi museum of flight opened right next to Airport Walk Shopping Mall which had remodeled the former international terminal.

If you choose to go by train, it is probably easy to take the bus from Nagoya, Sakae, or Kachigawa stations on Aoi Kotsu. You may want to note that Aoi Kotsu bus would not take an IC card money so you might want to take extra coins for payment.

Once you are on the bus, you would not have any problem getting to the Aichi Museum of Flight.

The entrance is on the 2nd floor!!

Its only entrance is located on the 2nd floor, The most easy way to go to the 2nd floor entrance hall is from the access bridge of the Airport Walk Shopping Mall. So enter the mall, go up to the second floor via escalator or elevator, and walk across the crossing bridge to reach the ticket counter.

As all newly constructed tour spots in Japan, this facility is totally barrier free with no stress at all. It should not be a problem on a wheelchair or stroller. There are also toilets on every floor including universal toilet which is a relief fir people with strollers or on wheelchair.

Enjoyable place to go with family

Events for kids

Reference: Aichi Museum of Flight Official Website

There are workshops relating to aircrafts which kids of any age can participate. The type of workshops available, time schedule, and age group that can participate is announced on the official webpage, so it may be wise to check before going.

There are two types of workshops, the first is the hands on type with flight simulators and being an airline mechanic. Flight simulator must be elementary school and up, but mechanic experience everyone can participate.

The other type is a lab type, where you go to the science lab and can take a lecture on aero dynamics or participate in crafting workshop. This type is strict on age group and time schedule, because of the curriculum, so you may want to check this one beforehand, if you are rally interested.

The craft workshop for January 2019 was paper aircraft workshop, which my pre-school child really enjoyed very much. The paper aircraft flew like a rocket and my child was jumping around with delight, which made me think that this workshop is really worth coming for.

View aircraft liftoffs and landings

Reference: Aichi Museum of Flight Official Website

From the sky deck on the 3rd floor, you can see aircraft liftoffs and landings to the Prefectural Nagoya Airport. There are also helicopters and private airplanes that use this airport you can enjoy those planes, and moreover, there is an air-force base adjacent to the airport, so if you are lucky, you may be able to see those as well. There are also hammocks on the roof floor so that you can lay down to view the sky comfortably.

You can actually go inside the aircraft

Reference: Aichi Museum of Flight Official Website

On the aircrafts on the ground floor, you will be able to step inside and view the interior from cockpit to passenger seats. Which plane is available on which day rotates every month, and the time schedule changes every month. So you may want to check on the official website event information for the announcement.

When the YS-11 was available to view the interior, a guide will kindly explain how the plane was used, and how it is unique, and it made the moment special. On top of that, he would take a photo of the family on the stairway so that we would nit need to take turns to take photos.

Summary

Aichi Museum of Flight is a great place to visit on a family trip to Nagoya area.

Reference: SCMAGLEV and Railway Park Official Website

When you have considered a trip to Japan, and have decided to go to Nagoya, you must’ve wondered where to go other than the famous Nagoya castle, Atsuta Shrine. The Gero onsen, Shirakawa, or Takayama is in Gifu, and Toba or Ise Shrine is in Mie. Come to think of it, there are very few places to visit conveniently with a family.

Where can I fo sightseeing in Nagoya?
Is there other places to tour where it is Japanese?
But I would like it very much where it is OK to take children.
How about strollers? Can I rent them if possible?
I would like it if there is playrooms.

What you will learn

Easy access

Reference: SCMAGLEV and Railway Park Official Website

SCMAGLEV and Railway Park is located only about 2 minutes walk from nearest Kinjofuto train station of Aonami line. Kinjofuto station is about 24 minutes ride from Nagoya station. Aonami line is directly connected to Nagoya station, so it would not be trouble even if you will be coming from outside Nagoya area.

What is good about it also is that Aonami line is a line from connecting Nagoya station to Kinjofuto. Which means that if you ride from Nagoya station, you will have a good chance to get a seat on your ride to Kinjofuto.

The park is mostly barrier free, so it is very easy to drive around in strollers. Should you forget to bring one, don’t worry!! You can rent them free if charge at the ticket counter. However, you will need to note that there are limit on the number of strollers available, and whether you can rent them will be according to availability.

Wonder park for children

3 Train Simulators

Reference: SCMAGLEV and Railway Park Official Website

Sadly, 2 of these simulators are lottery, and you will need to turn in your lottery ticket into the box to the time when you want to drive. The winner numbers will be displayed on the monitor next to the service counter in the main hall. However, it and is very difficult to win, for there will be much competition. These will be Shinkansen Train Driving simulator which you can drive the N700, and the Conventional Train Crew Simulator.

Reference: SCMAGLEV and Railway Park Official Website

If you want to avoid competition, I will recommend the Conventional Train Driving Simulator. This simulator is run on first come first serve basis. If you buy the ticket next to the simulator on the vending machine, all you need to do is wait in line until you are served. The service person will take you through the steps and you will be able to enjoy the simulator.

Many train related attractions

This really is a park for children. There are many train related attractions where children can press buttons, such as driving a miniature Shinkansen. There is also a spot where you can actually buy a train ticket and experience going through the ticket gate. Of course there are many trains from old to new where you can actually go inside and experience being a passenger.

Stamp rally

Sometimes children will get bored and start to want to go home, but not to worry, there is a stamp and quiz rally here at this park as well. This event is only on weekends, but there will be a quiz and stamp rally going on inside the park, where kids will enjoy answering and stamping on the answer sheet. So go and give your child a mission, and while filling out the answer sheet, you and your child will be occupied. This will be free of charge except for events related stamp rallies such as the one for Shinkarion. When you have answered correctly, you will win a small souvenir gift such as a small towel or clear file which small child will enjoy.

Kids playroom with Plarail

Reference: SCMAGLEV and Railway Park Official Website

There may come a time where parents may want to take a rest. There is a playroom on the 2nd floor which small kids can enjoy building trains or playing with small slides. It is not a huge space, but there are reasonable amount of space and toys, which kids can enjoy building a train kine of their own. There are few supervisors around to help out and that is good as well.

OK to carry in food and drinks!!

Reference: JR-Central Passengers official website

The park is free to carry in lunch, or you can buy them at the Delica Station on the second floor. What is fun is that not only you can eat them on the tables on the second floor, you will also be able to eat them inside the train outside on the 1st floor. The train is air conditioned and is very comfortable.
My child was delighted to eat the Dr. Yellow lunchbox in the picture above in the train and brought hone the box as a souvenir which is still used to store his snacks!! This lunchbox also comes with a Dr. Yellow card which makes your child full of smiles.

Always doing events such as Shinkalion

２階体験学習室で開催中の「シンカリオン企画展」は、１１月２６日（月）まで。特別展「シンカリオン展」の他、謎解きラリーやスタンプラリー、テレビアニメ上映会を開催中！ https://t.co/gOwR56Dlxn#シンカリオン pic.twitter.com/uzLlw7IvXz

— リニア・鉄道館 (@SCMaglevRailway) November 24, 2018

SCMAGLEV and Railway Park is always doing some events. All events are announced through the official twitter accounts so you might want to check out whats going on before going. There are fun events such as the one with the robot anime Shinkalion. This event was an additional Shinkalion stamp rally, and a special booth where there were images and videos of Shinkalion anime, which kids were super excited.

Summary

SCMAGLEV and Railway Park is a great place to tour in Nagoya with family