🏡 Kyoto · 2 days
Kyoto's Thatched Village: Miyama Kayabuki-no-Sato & the North Kyoto Hills
A 2-day drive from Kyoto into the northern hills to Miyama's Kayabuki-no-Sato — one of Japan's largest villages of thatched farmhouses — and back through the Tamba food highlands, linked by 6 michi-no-eki roadside stations. The area is barely served by rail, so a rental car is what turns it into one easy loop.
Everyone knows Shirakawa-go, and almost no one drives to Miyama — yet Kyoto's own thatched village sits barely an hour north of the city. Kayabuki-no-Sato is a working hamlet of around forty kayabuki farmhouses with steep thatched roofs, set against terraced rice fields and forested hills; it is a nationally designated preservation district where people still live, not an open-air museum. Because the railway stops well short and buses are sparse, the drive up the old Shuzan Kaido is the natural way in — and it strings the cedar country of Keihoku, the Miyama valley and the Tamba food hills into one quiet loop.
From Kyoto the route climbs Route 162 through Keihoku, the Kitayama cedar country that supplied the timber for the city's temples, then follows the upper Yura River to Miyama and its thatched village. Turning back south it reaches the hot spring at Hiyoshi, beside a reservoir lake, for the overnight, then crosses the Nantan farmland to the Tamba highlands of Kyotamba — chestnut, black-soybean and mushroom country — before rejoining the Kyoto Jukan Expressway for the easy run home to Kyoto or Osaka. The michi-no-eki along the way are the region's pantry: Miyama milk and mountain vegetables, Hiyoshi hot-spring produce, and the prized Tamba chestnuts and black beans at the big food park that ends the drive.
The stops, in driving order
- 1 Michi-no-Eki Uddeii Keihoku 道の駅 ウッディー京北 · Kyoto
Michi-no-Eki Uddeii Keihoku (道の駅 ウッディー京北) is a government-designated roadside station in 京都市, Kyoto, Japan, registered in 2010 as one of the country's official michi-no-eki rest stops for road travellers. On-site you'll find a restaurant, a cafe, a local-products shop, EV charging and a tourist-information desk. There is free parking for about 31 cars and 3 large vehicles. Typical opening hours are 9:00–18:00. Like every michi-no-eki it offers free parking and 24-hour restrooms, making it a reliable stop on a Kansai road trip or campervan tour. It also makes a handy base for reaching nearby stations such as Supuringusu Hiyoshi, Miyama Fureai Hiroba and Kyouto Shinkou Etsu Mura.
Nearby: ⛰Mount Atago (10.7 km) · 🌄かわらけ投げ (11.8 km)
- 2 Michi-no-Eki Miyama Fureai Hiroba 道の駅 美山ふれあい広場 · Kyoto
Michi-no-Eki Miyama Fureai Hiroba (道の駅 美山ふれあい広場) is a government-designated roadside station in 南丹市, Kyoto, Japan, registered in 2005 as one of the country's official michi-no-eki rest stops for road travellers. On-site you'll find a local-products shop, EV charging, a tourist-information desk, hands-on experiences and a park. There is free parking for about 69 cars and 4 large vehicles. Typical opening hours are 24時間. Like every michi-no-eki it offers free parking and 24-hour restrooms, making it a reliable stop on a Kansai road trip or campervan tour. It also makes a handy base for reaching nearby stations such as Natashou, Uddeii Keihoku and Supuringusu Hiyoshi.
Nearby: 📸かやぶきの里 (5.1 km) · ⛰Mt. Tokin (12.2 km)
- 3 Michi-no-Eki Supuringusu Hiyoshi 道の駅 スプリングスひよし · Kyoto
Michi-no-Eki Supuringusu Hiyoshi (道の駅 スプリングスひよし) is a government-designated roadside station in 南丹市, Kyoto, Japan, registered in 2011 as one of the country's official michi-no-eki rest stops for road travellers. On-site you'll find a hot-spring (onsen) bath, a restaurant, a cafe, a local-products shop and a campground. There is free parking for about 273 cars and 5 large vehicles. Typical opening hours are 10:00–18:00. Like every michi-no-eki it offers free parking and 24-hour restrooms, making it a reliable stop on a Kansai road trip or campervan tour. It also makes a handy base for reaching nearby stations such as Kyouto Shinkou Etsu Mura, Tanba Maakesu and Kyoutanba Aji Yume No Sato.
Nearby: 🏯園部城 Sonobe Castle Ruins (6.8 km) · 🌄中央広場 (9.5 km)
- 4 Michi-no-Eki Kyouto Shinkou Etsu Mura 道の駅 京都新光悦村 · Kyoto
Michi-no-Eki Kyouto Shinkou Etsu Mura (道の駅 京都新光悦村) is a government-designated roadside station in 南丹市, Kyoto, Japan, registered in 2002 as one of the country's official michi-no-eki rest stops for road travellers. On-site you'll find a restaurant, a cafe, a local-products shop, a tourist-information desk and hands-on experiences. There is free parking for about 58 cars and 7 large vehicles. Typical opening hours are 9:00–18:00. Like every michi-no-eki it offers free parking and 24-hour restrooms, making it a reliable stop on a Kansai road trip or campervan tour. It also makes a handy base for reaching nearby stations such as Supuringusu Hiyoshi, Tanba Maakesu and Kyoutanba Aji Yume No Sato.
Nearby: 🏯園部城 Sonobe Castle Ruins (2.2 km) · 🌄中央広場 (7.7 km)
- 5 Michi-no-Eki Wa 道の駅 和 · Kyoto
Michi-no-Eki Wa (道の駅 和) is a government-designated roadside station in 船井郡京丹波町, Kyoto, Japan, registered in 1997 as one of the country's official michi-no-eki rest stops for road travellers. On-site you'll find a restaurant, a cafe, a local-products shop, EV charging and free Wi-Fi. There is free parking for about 90 cars and 5 large vehicles. Typical opening hours are 8:30–18:00. Like every michi-no-eki it offers free parking and 24-hour restrooms, making it a reliable stop on a Kansai road trip or campervan tour. It also makes a handy base for reaching nearby stations such as Mizuho No Sato ・ Sarabiki, Kyoutanba Aji Yume No Sato and Tanba Maakesu.
Nearby: 🌄中央広場 (11.6 km) · 🏛綾部市天文館パオ (12.9 km)
- 6 Michi-no-Eki Kyoutanba Aji Yume No Sato 道の駅 京丹波 味夢の里 · Kyoto
Michi-no-Eki Kyoutanba Aji Yume No Sato (道の駅 京丹波 味夢の里) is a government-designated roadside station in 船井郡京丹波町, Kyoto, Japan, registered in 2014 as one of the country's official michi-no-eki rest stops for road travellers. On-site you'll find a restaurant, a cafe, a local-products shop, EV charging and free Wi-Fi. There is free parking for about 150 cars and 36 large vehicles. Typical opening hours are 6:00–21:00. Like every michi-no-eki it offers free parking and 24-hour restrooms, making it a reliable stop on a Kansai road trip or campervan tour. It also makes a handy base for reaching nearby stations such as Tanba Maakesu, Mizuho No Sato ・ Sarabiki and Kyouto Shinkou Etsu Mura.
Nearby: 🌄中央広場 (2.2 km) · 🏯園部城 Sonobe Castle Ruins (6 km)
Make this route yours — load all 6 stops into the planner, reorder or remove stops, then open the finished trip in Google Maps.
Customize this route →Onsen baths and beds along this route (Kyoto · 3 with onsen / 3 with rooms)
-
Supuringusu Hiyoshi 道の駅 スプリングスひよし · Nantan, Kyoto · on the route -
Mizuho No Sato ・ Sarabiki 道の駅 瑞穂の里・さらびき · Kyōtanba-chō, Kyoto · ~5 km off the route -
Nou Takumi No Sato Yakuno 道の駅 農匠の郷やくの · Fukuchiyama, Kyoto · ~43 km off the route -
Tango Oukoku ( Shokuno Miyako ) 道の駅 丹後王国「食のみやこ」 · Kyōtango-shi, Kyoto · ~54 km off the route
♨ All 143 michi-no-eki with an onsen bath🛏 All 81 michi-no-eki with rooms on site♨🛏 All 46 michi-no-eki with both onsen and rooms📍 Every michi-no-eki in Kyoto
Route tips
- Miyama's thatched village is at its most photogenic under snow: the Yuki-tōrō snow-lantern nights in late January light the kayabuki roofs after dark. Autumn foliage and the fresh green of early summer are the other two peak windows.
- There is very little public transport up here — a rental car (or campervan) is genuinely the practical way to link Keihoku, Miyama and Tamba; by train and bus it eats most of a day.
- Springs Hiyoshi has a hot spring, restaurant and campground beside the Hiyoshi Dam lake, which makes it the natural overnight roughly halfway around the loop.
- Kyotamba Aji-mu-no-Sato sits right on the Kyoto Jukan Expressway and is one of the largest michi-no-eki in the area — stock up on Tamba chestnuts, black soybeans and local wine before the run back. Fill the tank in Miyama or Sonobe; stations thin out on the hill roads.
Before you drive
- Can you drive in Japan? License rules by country
- Renting a car in Japan: the complete guide
- Can you sleep overnight at a michi-no-eki?
FAQ — Kyoto Miyama thatched village
How many days do you need for the Kyoto Miyama thatched village route?
2 days is a comfortable pace: roughly 80 km of driving with 6 michi-no-eki stops along the way. You can compress it, but the stops are the point.
Where does the route start and end?
It starts at Kyoto (about 1 hr to Keihoku) and ends at Kyotamba / Kyoto Jukan Expressway (loop back to Kyoto or Osaka). Load all 6 stops into the free MichiStops route planner to reorder, add or remove stops, then open the finished trip in Google Maps.
When is the best season to drive this route?
Year-round; thatch under snow in Jan–Feb (Miyama Yuki-tōrō snow-lantern nights, late January), fresh green in early summer, foliage in November.
Do I need to rent a car?
Yes — michi-no-eki are roadside stations, realistically reachable only by rental car or campervan. Most visitors can drive in Japan with a 1949-convention International Driving Permit; check the license rules for your country before booking. License rules by country →
Can I sleep overnight at the michi-no-eki on this route?
Resting overnight in your vehicle is tolerated at most michi-no-eki (camping outside the vehicle is not), and 1 stop on this route has a proper campground next door. Read the overnight-stay guide for the etiquette. Overnight-stay guide →