Extend your exploration of Japan’s rural landscape from Amanohashidate to Ine Bay (伊根湾)! There is a quiet fishing village located in the northern part of the Tango Peninsula (丹後半島). Along Ine Bay, where the waves are calm, a unique townscape is formed by the type of private houses called Funaya (舟屋).
Table of Contents
- Explore Ine Bay and Amanohashidate With a Guided Tour
- Amanohashidate’s Discounts Transportation Tickets
- What Is a Funaya (舟屋)
- Ine Bay Sightseeing Ferry (伊根湾めぐり遊覧船) and Sea Taxi (海上タクシー)
- Roadside Station Funayano-Sato Ine (道の駅 舟屋の里伊根)
- Miyabi Ine Boathouse (伊根の舟屋 雅)
- Cycling the Ine Town and the Surrounding Coastal Lines
- Honjō Beach Sea Kayaking (本庄浜カヤック)
- Staying Overnight at Ine
- How to Get to Ine Bay by Public Transport
Explore Ine Bay and Amanohashidate With a Guided Tour
If you prefer a guide to introduce you to the charms of Amanohashidate, how about joining one of the below tours?
- The Recommended Tours Bookable Through Viator
- Miyama Thatched Village, Ine Bay & Amanohashidate Tour from Osaka
- Kyoto by the Sea Amanohashidate & Ine Sightseeing day tour from Osaka (Namba or Umeda Departure)
- Amanohashidate & Ine Funaya 1-Day Tour from Osaka or Kyoto (Namba Departure)
- Amanohashidate and Ine Bay Tour with Lunch from Osaka
Amanohashidate’s Discounts Transportation Tickets
If you are going to both Amanohashidate and Ine Town, consider getting one of the passes to save on transportation and admission fees for the cable car/lifts and Ine Bay Sightseeing Boat. Below are the two passes that we reckon have the highest CP value if you plan to explore most attractions in the area.
HERE is the link to other passes for Ine and Amanohashidate (at the end of the webpage).
What Is a Funaya (舟屋)
For centuries, most of Ine’s population earned their living by fishing. Thus, the houses were built on the shore.
The lower level is a ship hangar where boats/ships are parked (the 1st photo in the IG post). It is also where the fishermen perform any necessary fish handling and boat repair.
Because the boats were made of wood, leaving them in the water meant the wood would rot at a faster pace. So instead of building the houses above the water, where boats can easily be parked, a concrete hangar was built. While it requires efforts to pull the heavy vessels off the water, it prolongs their lives.
Ine Bay Sightseeing Ferry (伊根湾めぐり遊覧船) and Sea Taxi (海上タクシー)
At Ine, approximately 230 Funayas lined the Ine Bay. They are private residential properties, and most of them are private residential properties. As the town has two main bay areas, if you want to see all of the Funayas in one go, consider taking either the Ine Bay Sightseeing Boat or hiring a Sea Taxi. Seeing this unique township from the sea is another way to enjoy the quaint little town in Kyoto‘s rural area.
For more information, refer to our Ine Bay Sightseeing Boat article!
Roadside Station Funayanosato Ine (道の駅 舟屋の里伊根)
From the Funaya area, if you trek up the hill, you will be at the Roadside Station Funayanosato Ine in 20 minutes. The view of the Ine Bay and the Funaya houses is absolutely stunning from here.
For more information, refer to our article on the Roadside Station Funayanosato Ine!
Miyabi Ine Boathouse (伊根の舟屋 雅)
Miyabi Ine Boathouse is one of the places in town where you can see what the interior of the Funaya looks like.
Renovated from a Funaya, it is now a Japanese-style cafe on the first floor. If the weather is warm, outdoor seats are available to chill as you observe Ine Bay’s astonishing view. The cafe is filled with delicious Japanese desserts that will certainly entertain your taste buds (^_-)-☆.
If you are looking for somewhere to stay overnight in town, you can book a room on their second floor to have a feel of what it would be like living in one of these unique houses. For more information about staying at Miyabi Ine Boathouse, please refer to Ine Town’s website HERE.
Important: Please note that no dinner and breakfast will be served.
Miyabi Ine Boathouse’s Business Hours and Access Information
- The cafe on the first floor is open from 9 am to 5 pm daily but may close on Thursdays.
- The boathouse is a 5-minute walk from the bus stop, Ine (伊根).
Cycling the Ine Town and the Surrounding Coastal Lines
If you are adventurous and love cycling, you can rent one of the e-BIKEs from Ine-chō Information Center and cycle along the coastal line to enjoy the magnificent Sea of Japan sceneries!
For example, the Kamaya Coast (カマヤ海岸) in the Instagram post is one of the most popular spots that attract many people across the country when they visit rural Kyoto.
Please click HERE for more information about the e-bike, including rental costs and payment options.
If you would like to get some guidance around the area, consider booking one of the e-BIKE Cycling Guided Tours, where your guide will share the town’s history and a few fun facts. You will be guided through the Funaya and cycle along the hilly roads for wonderful views from various parts of Ine Bay.
For more information, such as itinerary and cost, please refer to their website HERE.
Important: If you aren’t planning to cycle for the whole day or are happy with the non-electric assisted bicycles, there are free tourism bikes that you can rent at one of the five bicycle ports in Ine. HERE is the map of where those five ports are. Please be aware that you can’t reserve these bikes.
Honjō Beach Sea Kayaking (本庄浜カヤック)
From mid-April until the end of September, when the temperature isn’t freezing cold at Ina, you can sea kayak your way to explore the caves underneath the cliffs along the coastal line while adorning some of the most scenic landscapes in the area.
For more information about the activity and to book, please refer to the official website HERE.
Staying Overnight at Ine
One of the ways that you can explore the interior of the Funaya is by staying overnight at one of the inns. HERE is a list of the accommodations available in town (note not all of them are Funaya). What you need to watch out for is that many of them don’t provide dinner or breakfast. No vegetarian dishes are served in the restaurants in Ine, so it is best to bring your food if you are a vegetarian or vegan.
However, some of the inns, such as Ine Stay Tokiwa (伊根ステイ ときわ), do have microwaves, fridges, and kettles that you can use, making it possible for you to have an instant meal. A few of them, such as WATERFRONT INN Yosasou (与謝荘), may also be able to cater to special dietary requests, but please check with them before you make a booking.
Tip: As many accommodations are hard to book, if you don’t read/speak Japanese, you can contact the Ine Tourist Information Center by submitting a web form HERE. They should be able to make a booking on your behalf.
How to Get to Ine Bay by Public Transport
To get to Ine Bay, there are a couple of places where you can take the Tankai Bus in Amanohashidate. Your boarding stop will differ depending on whether you are heading to Ine Bay first or after exploring Amanohashidate. HERE is the bus timetable for you to plan ahead.
If you plan to visit Ine Bay first, the bus stop is just in front of Amanohashidate Station. You can refer to the photo on the left.
Tip: The bus can be packed when it reaches the Amanohashidate Cable-shita (天橋立ケーブル下). Head to the stop before Amanohashidate Motoise Kono-jinja Shrine (天橋立元伊勢籠神社) for a higher chance of getting a seat. Our experience is there is always seats if you board the bus from Amanohashidate Station (天橋立駅). The bus stop is just in front of the station.
You can also head straight to Ine Bay from Kyoto Tango Railway’s (京都丹後鉄道) Miyazu Station (宮津駅) by taking the Ine Line (伊根線). HERE is the service’s timetable, which is only available in Japanese. Please use the bus stop’s Japanese characters to read it.
- For the weekday timetable, refer to（平日）PDF.
- For weekends and public holiday timetables, refer to （休日）.
Which Bus Stop to Get off at Ine
- If you plan to take the Ine Bay Sightseeing Ferry/Sea Taxi, then get off at Inewanmeguri Hide (伊根湾めぐり ・ 日出).
- If you plan to just stroll around the town, then get off at Ine (伊根).
- If you have more time to spend at Ine, then you can consider getting off at Michinoeki Funayanosato Ine (道の駅 舟屋の里伊根) for a panoramic view of Ine Bay and Funaya houses from a high hill then walk back down to the town center.
Visit Amanohashidate for One of the Three Views of Japan
If you haven’t been to Amanohashidate for the celebrated view, you definitely should when coming to Miyazu!
Check out our article on Amanohashidate to find out why people are bending down on the observatory and how the 5,000 pine trees can grow on the 3.6 km sandbar surrounded by seawater!
