How Do You Get to Aizuwakamatsu and Get Around by Loop Bus?

Published 2026-10-04 · Sources checked 2026-10-04 · Treasure Hunting Co., Ltd.

This guide is for visitors who want to reach Aizuwakamatsu in Fukushima Prefecture and move between its sights and hot spring villages. It follows the English pages of the city's tourism site "Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu", the city tourism association's Japanese access page, and the Tohoku tourism site. We read them on 2026-10-04. Fares and timetables change, so confirm them before you travel.

By Shinkansen and local train

The Aizuwakamatsu official tourism navigation site, a Japanese-language page that links to the English site, lists the main rail routes from Tokyo:

• Tohoku Shinkansen from Tokyo to Koriyama, about 1 hour 22 minutes, then the Ban-etsu West Line rapid train to Aizuwakamatsu, about 1 hour 5 minutes.
• Joetsu Shinkansen from Tokyo to Niigata, about 2 hours, then the Ban-etsu West Line rapid, about 2 hours 22 minutes.
• From Asakusa, the Tobu and Yagan Railway line to Aizu-Kogen-Ozeguchi, about 3 hours 11 minutes, then the Aizu Railway rapid, about 1 hour 12 minutes. A "Revaty Aizu" service runs to Aizu-Tajima, about 3 hours 30 minutes, followed by the Aizu Railway rapid, about 1 hour 15 minutes.

The page also lists a highway bus from Busta Shinjuku: 35 minutes to Oji, then 3 hours 45 minutes to Aizuwakamatsu Station.

By car

The same page gives Tokyo (Kawaguchi JCT) to Koriyama JCT on the Tohoku Expressway, 220.2 km and about 2 hours 15 minutes, then the Ban-etsu Expressway to Aizuwakamatsu IC, 46.1 km and about 36 minutes, then 5 km and about 12 minutes into the city. It also lists a route via Shirakawa IC and national roads, and one from Tokyo (Nerima IC) via Niigata JCT.

Tourist information and Wi-Fi

The English site lists two tourist information offices. One is inside Aizuwakamatsu Station, open 9:00 to 17:00, with sightseeing information in English. It also runs a baggage delivery service, from 10:00 to 14:00, that takes bags from the station to hotels in Higashiyama Onsen and Ashinomaki Onsen. The other is in Tsuruga Castle and is also open 9:00 to 17:00. Free "Aizu Free Wi-Fi" is available at the castle, Oyakuen Garden, the station information office and other facilities; the page says you must log in again after 3 hours and can connect up to 3 times a day.

The Haikara-san and Akabe loop buses

The English sight pages give bus access by name. Tsuruga Castle is a 5-minute walk from the "Tsurugajo Iriguchi" stop on the Haikara-san or Akabe buses. The Aizu Bukeyashiki is a minute's walk from the "Aizu Bukeyashiki mae" stop, and Mt. Iimoriyama a 5-minute walk from "Iimoriyama-shita". Oyakuen Garden is a minute's walk from the "Oyakuen Mae" stop, which that page lists for the Haikara-san only. The Matsudaira family graves are 5 minutes from "Innai". Nanukamachi Street, the Taisho-style retro street, is reached on foot from JR Nanukamachi Station. The history page adds that the Bukeyashiki is a 30-minute walk from Tsuruga Castle or a 15-minute walk from Oyakuen Garden. By car, the castle is 15 minutes from the Ban-etsu Aizu-Wakamatsu IC exit according to one page; another page gives 20 minutes for the tea house.

Hot springs and day trips

• Higashiyama Onsen: the page's description says 10 minutes by car or 20 minutes by bus from Aizu-Wakamatsu Station, while its access box gives 15 to 20 minutes by car and 25 minutes by bus.
• Ashinomaki Onsen: about 25 minutes by car from central Aizuwakamatsu, or Ashinomaki Onsen Station on the Aizu Railway. The page warns that it is not practical to walk from the station, and that some inns will arrange a pickup.
• Ouchi-juku, the old post town: the Tohoku tourism site gives 60 minutes by car from the Aizu-Wakamatsu Interchange, or a bus or taxi from Aizu Railway Yunokami Onsen Station. It also lists a regular sightseeing bus from Tsuruga Castle.

What we could not verify, and therefore left out

• Loop bus fares, frequency and the current timetable.
• The schedule of the free volunteer English guide, which the English site lists under its Tsuruga Castle entry.
• Fees and hours marked "as of March 1, 2017" on the sight pages, which may have changed.

Related guides

• What is Aizuwakamatsu? The samurai city, Tsuruga Castle and the Boshin War
• What should you eat and buy in Aizuwakamatsu? Local dishes, akabeko, lacquerware and onsen

Sources

All URLs retrieved 2026-10-04.

1. Access to Aizuwakamatsu (Aizuwakamatsu official tourism navigation, Japanese) — (trains, bus, car)
2. Tourist Info (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (information offices, baggage delivery)
3. Aizu Free Wi-Fi (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (Wi-Fi rules)
4. Tsuruga-jo Castle (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (bus stops)
5. The Aizu Bukeyashiki (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (bus stops)
6. Oyakuen Garden (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (bus stop)
7. Mt. Iimoriyama (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (bus stop)
8. The Grave of the Matsudaira Family (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (bus stop)
9. Nanokamachi Street (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (station)
10. Higashiyama Onsen (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (access)
11. Ashinomaki Onsen (Samurai City Aizuwakamatsu) — (access)
12. Ouchi-juku (Travel to Tohoku) — (access)