Hachimantai
Discover Hachimantai
Hachimantai (八幡平市) is a city in northwestern Iwate Prefecture. The area draws visitors for skiing in winter and hiking in summer, and there are also numerous onsen hot springs, many of which accept day guests. Hachimantai is a large volcanic plateau straddling Iwate and Akita prefectures, all of it mountainous and thinly populated. The administrative city of Hachimantai, the product of numerous local council mergers, covers the Iwate side. This means both that many places on the Hachimantai plateau are not within city limits, and that there isn't really an obvious "city center". The closest is the stretch between Ōbuke (大更) and Nishine (西根), two of the many merged towns, but the city hall is plunked in the middle of rice paddies further west near Tairadate (平館).
Taste of Hachimantai...
Hachimantai has several spectacular hot spring lodges deep in the mountains, which are also open to day-trippers.
Climate
It snows a lot in Hachimantai: the ski resorts get around 12 meters of the white stuff in an average year. January daytime highs average -3°C, while August climbs up 28°C. The local tourist association has a partly multilingual guide site. Hachimantai is served by the JR Hanawa Line between Morioka and Odate. Counterintuitively, the station for Hachimantai town is 39.913778141.1008061 Ōbuke , while Hachimantai station is the neighboring city of Kazuno. There's also a station called Matsuo-Hachimantai (松尾八幡平駅), in the middle of nowhere some 10 km north of town. Iwate Kenpoku Bus has roughly hourly buses from Morioka to Ōbuke and 39.950944141.0854172 Tairadate station (1 hr, ¥930), some of which continue west into the mountains through Higashi-Hachimantai Onsenkyō up to Matsukawa Onsen and, in summer only, Toshichi Onsen. There are some local buses, but schedules are very limited, so this is one of those parts of Japan where driving will come in quite handy.
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsHachimantai is served by the JR Hanawa Line between Morioka and Odate. Counterintuitively, the station for Hachimantai town is 39.913778141.1008061 Ōbuke , while Hachimantai station is the neighboring city of Kazuno. There's also a station called Matsuo-Hachimantai (松尾八幡平駅), in the middle of nowhere some 10 km north of town. Iwate Kenpoku Bus has roughly hourly buses from Morioka to Ōbuke and 39.950944141.0854172 Tairadate station (1 hr, ¥930), some of which continue west into the mountains through Higashi-Hachimantai Onsenkyō up to Matsukawa Onsen and, in summer only, Toshichi Onsen. There are some local buses, but schedules are very limited, so this is one of those parts of Japan where driving will come in quite handy. In ski season only, there are twice-daily direct buses between Higashi-Hachimantai Onsenkyō and Appi Kogen, catering for hot spring guests going skiing and skiers going hot spring hopping....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
There are some local buses, but schedules are very limited, so this is one of those parts of Japan where driving will come in quite handy. In ski season only, there are twice-daily direct buses between Higashi-Hachimantai Onsenkyō and Appi Kogen, catering for hot spring guests going skiing and skiers going hot spring hopping. Due to heavy snowfall, in the western mountains many roads close entirely between late October and late April, and you may need to detour via the other side of the mountains in Akita to reach those few places do stay open. Hachimantai's top draws are skiing at 39.994444140.9641672 Appi Kogen and hiking in Towada-Hachimantai National Park, both covered in separate articles. Hachimantai has several spectacular hot spring lodges deep in the mountains, which are also open to day-trippers.
Where to Stay
Hachimantai has several spectacular hot spring lodges deep in the mountains, which are also open to day-trippers.
Money & Budget
Hachimantai has several spectacular hot spring lodges deep in the mountains, which are also open to day-trippers.
Safety Information
Glimpses of Hachimantai
red temple
a building with a clock on the top of it
a building with a clock on the top of it
A serene view of the ancient Tambdi Surla Temple surrounded by lush greenery and a peaceful natural setting.
Hazy view of rolling hills with dry grass
Puthentheru Maha ganapathy temple at chettippadi, Parappanangadi, Malappuram
Buddangala Raja Maha Viharaya - බුද්ධංගල රජ මහා විහාරය
white and red concrete building near green trees during daytime
a small yellow and red building with a red roof
Plain, Aguazul, Llano
red temple
a building with a clock on the top of it
a building with a clock on the top of it