Kaminoyamaonsen Station

When I arrived yesterday, there was no snow on the area where the car runs, but when I returned the next morning, it was completely white. The Akita Shinkansen and Yamagata Shinkansen connect with the Yamabiko and run at high speeds on the Tohoku Shinkansen, but when they run on the mini-shinkansen section, they run slowly on local trunk line-level tracks. I think the technology that makes both possible on a single train is amazing. Mini-shinkansen platforms like this one are completely the same as regular stations, and it doesn't matter whether there are platform doors or not; it's not surprising that you could walk to the edge, slip, and fall onto the tracks. Station staff don't even stand on the platform. Mini-shinkansen station buildings are all fairly nice, but those that don't serve other conventional or private railways aren't as impressive. Kaminoyama Onsen Station looks about three stories high from the outside, but there was a sign inside warning people to be careful of pigeon droppings because they make nests there.

This station serves the Yamagata Shinkansen and Yamagata Line. It has a ticket office and a tourist information center. An entrance ticket is required for entry. Platform 1 serves the Yamagata Shinkansen and conventional lines bound for Yamagata and Tendo. Platform 2 serves the Yamagata Shinkansen and conventional lines bound for Akayu and Yonezawa. Platform 3 has irregular train service. Kaminoyama Onsen and Koyō are nearby. Why not visit?

This is the central station of Kaminoyama City, on the Ou Main Line. It is a relatively small station, but the Yamagata Shinkansen also stops there. It has a waiting room, a Midori counter, automatic ticket vending machines, reserved seat ticket machines, a NewDays convenience store, and a station rental car office, making it a sufficient base for the siege of Kaminoyama Castle.

As a tourist visiting the station was very clean, the trains ran on time and it was a very quiet place. There are friendly taxi drivers at the front most of the day to take you anywhere and a nice little convenient store if you need any food. The station also offers vending machines, toilet facilities and luggage bag storage lockers which were all empty when we went.

There are many impressive fortune tellers. There are also many taxis, so it's convenient to go to the inn or hotel. There are no convenience stores around the inn, so I recommend the NewDays here. It's also close to Yonezawa, so if you take the Ou Main Line from Fukushima Station to Yonezawa and then transfer from Yonezawa, you'll have a lot of fun.