Itineraries

A small café sits hidden a short walk from the park's entrance and just past the first bridge. It's a nice stop, whether on your way to or from the falls. It's part of the Ichijiru Nisai Ueno chain that receive one star in the Michelin Guide 2010 for Kyoto and Osaka, renowned for Japanese cuisine. Every dish is a delight with exqusitive ingredients and painstaking care in its preparation, from cake to homemade icecream, seasonal fruit parfaits, and delicious mochi rice-cake, tea, and sweet bean macha anmitsu. The coffee is brewed from select beans with natural spring water, and served with aromatic sesame cookies. The appealing and refined dishes and silverware are also for sale in the adjoining gallery. Why not stop in on your waterfall visit? The restaurant only serves a set number of lunches per day (1944 yen). Reservations not accepted.

The Insect Pavilion within Minoh Park and about 10 minutes from Ichinohashi is rich in nature and also known as a treasure house of insects, is a popular spot among kids. Insects found in the forest of Minoh as well as foreign insects are introduced in various fun ways. All of the exhibits are well-presented - e.g. living exhibits of Hercules beetles, tremendously popular among kids, bionomics-study installations using sound and smells or touchable models. Moreover, the sunlit glassed-in butterfly house is literally a butterfly's paradise where you can see colorful butterflies fluttering in front of you all year round. An elegant butterfly pausing at a small flower may make you forget time and as you gaze at it. The more you get to know about the mysterious creatures that are insects, the more you'll get hooked on its mysterious ecology.

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Walk the gentle hill that continues up to Takimichi from Minoh Station: Once you’ve crossed Ichinohashi Bridge, you’ll have another 2 kilometers or so to go before arriving at Minoh Falls. The road along the mountain stream is paved, which makes for safe and easy walking. Tall, luscious trees reach skyward to create a natural tunnel drenched with sunlight that sparkles down from between the leaves. As you wander up the valley’s meandering slope, many sights will keep your interest piqued: rest areas where you can catch your breath a moment, massive boulders that push out into the pathway, Ryuan-ji Temple tucked away in the mountain’s folds, a tea shop rich in nostalgic atmosphere, and more. Enveloped in the silence of the mountain, in time you’ll come to hear only the roar and flow of the mountain stream alongside the gradual mountain path until at last it appears before you: the massive falls. Rest here at the falls and give yourself over to the scenic beauty before you, and little by little the weariness of the hour’s walk will fall from your legs.

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After enjoying Mino Park, walk back along the Takimichi path to the station. The dynamic bare concrete building sticking out of Mt. Mino is the Hotel Minoh Osaka, established in 1951. A straight lift to the top by an observation elevator will take you to a scenic sky walkway, leading into the hotel, dazzlingly decorated in Japanese style but somehow giving off a nostalgic air. As a large-scale modernism construction designed by Sakakura Associates, the hotel is now noted as an architectural structure. The highlight here is surely the open-air bath, taking advantage of the location. The magnificent view looking down from Mt. Mino becomes even more beautiful and romantic at night. After a full day's activity, wind down your worn-out body in the hot water surrounded by nature. The quality of the spring water makes the skin beautiful and smooth.

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