Beautiful place, if possible have to make part of your Japan itinerary .we took the Nohi bus from Takayama station there and I was a bit worried as we did not have reserved seats on the bus , I had tried to book them before leaving but they were all gone so we took the non reserved bus there . Left our bags at the luggage storage at the station and walked in town for 3 hours , took a shuttle to the town overlook , went inside one of the old houses and just walked everywhere . Stunning scenery . We then took the Nohi bus which I had already reserved on to Kanazawa .

We have visited this place before and I have also reviewed this place previously and so I will keep this one "short and sweet". This time round, we allocated more time here as previously we only stopped by here for about an hour (after our visit to Takayama Old Town) but didn't have much time to roam the place. We arrived slightly before 3pm. Weather was cold (but it was much colder later on when the sun set) but the river had not fully frozen like in our previous trip. It was quite comfortable to walk under the sun and yet very cold condition. More shops were opened as it was weekday (our previous visit was on a Sunday and many shops were closed then). So we could walk around and shop for local foods and souvenirs. We loved the scenery, lots of greenery and beautiful cottage houses, and our mother nature was just right around us! Surely it was a wonderful revisiting trip on this UNESCO World Heritage site! Definitely worth it!

Visited the village yesterday and stayed overnight. Its a wonderful place. I love the weather and the snow experience. Meet few local and they are all warm and welcoming people. We stay at koshiyama guesthouse and it was good place. A ten mins walk from bus station. I love japan coz its all discipline people. As tourist, please be discipline too. Im’ sharing my photos. I love the winter experience in Shirakawago and would love to visit the village in spring and autumn for sure.

The UNESCO preserved town is not very big so you are able to cover quite a lot of land. However, that's assuming you are not entering any of the houses for tour. One can also take a 20-min (uphill) climb to the observatory or take the 10-min bus shuttle up there. Still feel that winter snow covered roof is still more iconic for this place.

Went December 2023. We took a bus from Kanazawa JR station and should’ve taken just an hour but snow and ice in the road made it over 2 hours limiting our stay in the village. Was able to visit during the warmer months but this place is better with the snow. It’s a bit more magical. There’s food places but really just snacking is best so you can walk the entire area. Try to go real early and get the latest bus you can back and just surround yourself in the village as long as possible. Bus tickets better to get a day ahead so you can choose the going and return times. They get real full during peak seasons so better be prepared to make last minute decisions. Oh and always bring a plastic bag to keep your waste on you and please throw it properly at the bus station. There’s also toilets but not so much around the main village itself. It is a place where people work and have their homes and not just an attraction site. As heritage sites go it’s worth the visit if your in the area

Amazing World Unesco Heritage site. Highly recommended to visit if you have some time while in Gifu area. The place is really like a fairy tale and everything is so refreshing. Would like to suggest to visitors to keep their noise level down and be considerate to the residents living there and also to bring back your own trash. Such a beautiful place should be preserved and protected by everyone.

The one day bus trip to Shirakagoo was fantastic. The provided authentic Japanese lunch was great. It was a smaller internationally mixed group speaking English with a knowledgeable/practical guide. Departure and return times worked well for us.

This World Heritage Site is really worth visiting. There are some wonderful buildings with steep thatched roofs and we had a lovely time wandering around. There were lots of cafes and shops which weren't too expensive and I bought some lovely souvenirs. We also went in the Wada house which is a lovely example of a Japanese house.

It has been on my bucket list and I was excited with my visit. Extremely beautiful and peaceful place to visit during January. If you wished to see the winter light up, make sure you reserved the slot far in advance. I was too late when started to plan for it thus missed the yearly light up event. Very easily accessible by the local bus. If you would like to enjoyed the village wholeheartedly, you need to have more than half a day to slowly appreciate the beauty of it.

We came here after visiting Takayama Old Town. It was drizzling when we arrived here and the whole place was cold and appeared misty. The wind was blowing strong when we crossed the suspension bridge towards the rural village. The toilets at the Visitor Information Centre were crowded as many were putting on their raincoats. Shirakawago, a mountainous village in Central Japan, is listed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site and a must-go tourist destination if you are in this part of the country. It is renowned for her steeply sloped thatched roofs Gassho-style houses which resembled hands meeting in prayer. Mistaken by her exterior appearance, I thought they resemble more like our Attap houses in Malaysia and Singapore and was wondering if our attap houses should also be designated as cultural heritage exhibits. But the tour guide corrected me that these houses are architectural masterpieces as no nail was used in their construction. The wooden beams just slot in with perfect equilibrium without affecting the stability of the structure. The last time I heard of a similar heritage structure which was built without a nail was the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. Shirakawago is the snowiest place on our planet as the village received almost 400 inches of snow annually while New York in USA (the snowiest place in US) only received 120 inches of snow. The steeply sloped roof of the houses facilitated the accumulated snow to fall away easily without engulfing the house in snow. During winter, the village looks scenic and picturesque with dimly lit snow shrouded houses surrounded by snowcapped mountains. It was not an ideal month to come in May as the stunning beauty of this village is best captured in winter. Nevertheless, the rural beauty is pristine and the village historic. The panoramic view from the overlooking mountain would be awesome but we do not have the luxury of time as the driver need to reach the hotel at Kanazawa by 5 pm. We spent about two hours at this village, slowly walking and enjoying the rustic scenery. If there is a chance, I will come again in winter.