Waraji, Mountain Hike & Onsen

The experience takes place in Hiraya Village, Nagano Prefecture’s least populated municipality with some 380 people. It’s where I live and the place I know best in Japan. This is my only tour here so I am making it something special. Here you will make a pair of waraji. What are waraji? A hundred years ago in Japan you wouldn’t need to ask that question. Waraji were the footwear of the nation. From farmers to samurai, Japan did everything wearing using waraji. They are simple hand-woven straw sandals. In ancient times almost everyone in Japan knew how to make waraji. Nowadays the craft is all but extinct. I am, as far as I know, currently the only non-Japanese waraji maker in existence today. Join me as I strive to save this wonderful culture from extinction.

My journey to becoming a waraji master started when I moved into this area and started to learn the craft of wara-zaiku. Wara-zaiku is an endangered ancient traditional Japanese craft. It basically refers to any craft that makes things out of rice straw, of which Japan has plenty. My teacher is a man by the name of Yuji Sakai. He is the master craftsman who makes the sumo rings for Japan’s major sumo wrestling tournaments. In 2020 we jointly held a waraji race in Hiraya Village to create a buzz around the village and put it on the map. Since then we have been all over Japanese TV and made hundreds of pairs of waraji for festivals, races, TV period dramas, etc. Now I want to share this experience with you!

We will start out with a workshop, making our very own waraji. It should take about 2 hours to complete a pair for the first time. Then we will use them. We’ll hike Mount Takane (1,599m), a stunning mountain with excellent views. A round trip will take about 4 hours. We will have a locally prepared lunch at the summit and then come down to jump in the local onsen, Himawari-no-yu which boasts an enormous outdoor bath and a great mineral-rich hot spring source. This mountain hike is steep and requires excellent fitness. If this seems more than what you want, the hike can be adjusted. There is a great 8km round trip hike to a waterfall called Hiraya-Otaki (平谷大滝) which is a lot easier going! This experience is fully customizable so just let us know!

The tour’s start point/meeting point is in front of the entrance to the onsen, Himawari-no-yu (ひまわりの湯), this is only accessible by car. If this is not convenient for you, let us know and we can customize the trip to fit your needs.

At really rural Japan we pride ourselves on being local and unique. This is about as local and unique as tourism gets.

Plan A: (In Hiraya Village) Waraji experience, Mountain Hike and Onsen: The default plan for this experience is the plan for Hiraya Village explained above.

Plan B: (Fully Customized) Waraji Experience: The items necessary for making waraji are light and extremely portable. Thus, this experience is highly mobile. If you would like to do this experience in another location, for example, the Nakasendo of the Kiso Valley, it can be added to your itinerary easily and I can come to you. Making waraji is great before a historical hike and wearing your own handmade traditional sandals while you hike, brings the history of Japan to life. Or perhaps it would make a great evening or rest day plan. Please contact us and we can add this rare opportunity to your itinerary.