Miyama Kayabuki no Sato – Kyoto’s Hidden Quaint Village

If you prefer to be guided when you visit Miyama Kayabuki no Sato, consider booking one of the below tours!

• Amanohashidate and Miyama Kayabuki no Sato 1-Day Tour from Osaka
  • Book through Viator
  • Book through Klook
• Miyama Thatched Village, Ine Bay & Amanohashidate Tour from Osaka
• Private Tour: Amanohashidate and Miyama Kayabuki no Sato 1 Day Tour from Osaka or Kyoto

After the country’s modernization, sites like Kayabuki no Sato are now so valuable that in 1993, it was selected as an Important Traditional Building Preservation Area of Japan.

The houses here are mostly 150 to 200 years old, with the oldest built around 220 years ago. Many of them are still owned and occupied by the descendants of the occupants since the Edo period!

So every once in a while, the re-roofing craftsmen are called to re-roof these time capsule houses that have existed since the Edo period (1603 – 1867).

Because the natural materials used for the thatched roof are procured locally from a couple of places close to the village, you would expect it not to be too costly. However, replacing the entire roof isn’t an easy job that can be finished just over a weekend. So apparently, it can cost as much as 200,000 US dollars just to replace a single roof Σ(ﾟДﾟ).

For those who aren’t running a tight schedule, instead of getting off at Kayabuki no Sato, you can choose to get off the bus one stop before the village at Agake (安掛) or Roadside Station Miyama Fureaihiroba (道の駅 美山ふれあい広場) if you are taking Keihan’s bus.

You can source all sorts of sightseeing information about the village and the surrounding areas.

Bicycle rental is common across Japan. At Kyoto Tamba Kōgen Quasi-National Park Visitor Center, they offer electric-assisted bikes that will make your sightseeing a lot easier. And they aren’t expensive to rent!

For more information, please refer to their website HERE.

Tip: You can also book an E-bike Picnic HERE, where a basket of delicious food will be prepared for you!

• The visitor center is open from 9 am to 5 pm daily except Wednesdays and from the end of the year to the beginning of January.
• If you plan to take Nantan Municipal Bus (南丹市営バス), please get off at Agake (安掛).
• If you are taking Keihan Kyoto’s (京阪京都) Bus, please get off at Roadside Station Miyama Fureaihiroba (道の駅 美山ふれあい広場).

One of Miyama’s specialties is the local Miyama Milk and related dairy products. The milk produced by the cows raised in Miyama’s lush environment is just richer and creamier in taste!

Roadside Station Miyama Fureaihiroba, just next to the visitor center, is the perfect place for you to source Miyama’s dairy products as well as processed products such as handmade miso, pickles, and freshly harvested fruits and vegetables, all thanks to the blessings of Miyama’s nature (*´ω｀).

Apart from the cheese sold in the shop, the ice cream and gelato made from Miyama’s milk at Miyama no Megumi Milk Studio (美山のめぐみ 牛乳工房) is a must-try when you come to Miyama (=ﾟωﾟ)ﾉ.

And if you visit the town during colder seasons, get a cup of Cafe au lait to warm you up!

• The local specialty shop – Furatto Miyama (ふらっと美山), is open from
  • 9 am to 5 pm from October to March and on weekdays between April to June
  • 8:30 am to 6 pm from July to September and on weekends between April to June
  • Closes on Wednesdays in January and February and from the 31st of December to the 2nd of January
• Miyama no Megumi Milk Studio is open from 10 am to 4 pm daily except
  • Mondays from December to mid-March. If Monday is a public holiday, it will close on Tuesday instead.
  • The 3rd Monday of the month from mid-March to November
  • From the end of December to the beginning of January

If you visit Kayabuki no Sato in September, as soon as you get off the bus at Kita Kayabuki no Sato (北 かやぶきの里), you will be welcomed by a large field of white buckwheat flowers. The soba flowers that usually reach full bloom in mid-September are another reason why many people choose to visit the village at this time of the year!

And in late October, when the golden buckwheat is ready to be harvested, the color of the natural surroundings will start to change.

Close to the bus stop and at the bank of the river that flows quietly on one side of the village, you will find Kitamura, Kayabuki no Sato’s soba restaurant!

One special thing about their mixed vegetable tempura is the added black beans. The black beans from the neighboring Tamba (丹波) city are famous across the country. So when you come to Miayama, you are on your way to taste the most delicious black beans in Japan (=ﾟωﾟ)ﾉ.

• Kitamura is open from 10 am to 3 pm.
• The restaurant closes on Wednesdays and from the 29th of December to the 3rd of January.

At the right of the bus stop, Kita Kayabuki no Sato (北 かやぶきの里), the Nagayoke Bridge crosses the gorgeous Yura River (由良川).

From the bridge, you can overlook the entire Kayabuki no Sato. No wonder you are likely to find a queue of tourists lined up to take a selfie with the quaint little town (´▽｀*).

Across the bridge, as you pass the magnificent forest, there is a hayfield, another rural landscape uncommon in the country.

When you get a bit tired, come to Cafe & Gallery Saika for a brief rest (=ﾟωﾟ)ﾉ.

The Japanese-style cafe has a really friendly owner who serves delicious homemade traditional sweets and black bean tea. In summer, have a soft-serve ice cream made from Miayama’s high-quality milk on the veranda with seats overlooking the village. It will make your visit an even better experience!

• The cafe is open from 10 am to 5 pm from Wednesday to Monday.
• The last order is at 4:30 pm.
• If you are taking Nantan Municipal Bus (南丹市営バス), please get off at Kita Kayabuki no Sato (北 かやぶきの里).

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To explore the history of Kayabuki no Sato, come to the Miyama Folk Museum. It has more than 200 items on display, such as farm equipment and utensils used by people who lived here years ago.

The current museum was completely rebuilt in late 2002 as the original house suffered from a fire hazard in May 2000.

In the traditional house, you will also find the old stove in the kitchen and the old bathtub in the bathroom. You can almost see how people back then lived without the convenient utilities we take for granted and enjoy today.

Climbing up the steep staircases to the second floor, you can clearly see the structure of the thatched roof. The roof might seem like it doesn’t require much expertise to build from the outside. However, it is only when you see the intricacy from the attic that you realize that is not the case!

• The museum is open from 10 am to 4 pm daily except Mondays.
  • If Monday is a public holiday, it will close on Tuesday.
  • The museum is closed from the 10th to the 17th of August
• The admission fee is 300 yen for senior high school students and older.
• If you are taking Nantan Municipal Bus (南丹市営バス), please get off at Kita Kayabuki no Sato (北 かやぶきの里).

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Very close to the Miyama Folk Museum, you will find another museum of the village – the Little Indigo Museum, which is inside the oldest thatched roof house in Kayabuki no Sato built in 1796.

The first floor is the indigo workshop and the gallery of Shindō Hiroyuki’s (新道 弘之) work, the owner of the museum. On the second floor, there is a range of collections of traditional clothes and costumes on display.

Tip: If Mr Shindō is around, you can check with him to see if he has time to go through the museum with you in English (^_-)-☆.

For more information about the museum, please refer to the official website HERE.

• The museum is open from 10 am to 5 pm daily except for Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays.
• The admission fee is 300 yen.

As you stroll around the village, you might come across several little huts like the one in the photo on the left. If you don’t read Japanese, you might wonder whether it is a dog house or a small portal shrine.

The huts are shelters to store the water cannons (放水銃) that are essential to fire hazard prevention measures. The wooden village is so highly flammable that even a tiny spark could mean total devastation.

Luckily you don’t need to wait until something in the village is on fire to see the power of the water cannons.

Twice a year, the water discharge training takes place from 1:30 pm for around 5 minutes. The training has become one of the big events in the village as it attracts many curious tourists keen to observe!

For the exact dates of the festival, refer to the official website HERE.

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It is around a 5-minute walk from the village bus stop to the staircases leading to the main shrine of the Chii District, where Kayabuki no Sato is located. You can get a panoramic view of the entire village from the top of the stairs at the shrine’s torii gate.

The origin of this shrine is said to be from the legend about the formation of the village. To cut a long story short, the shrine was built by Kōgasaburō Kaneie (甲賀三郎 兼家) after he defeated the eight-headed deer monster with the bow and arrows that had received the blessing from Kyoto’s Hachimangū Shrine (八幡宮) in 713.

The shrine’s main hall, which is renowned for its intricate carvings, is currently a Prefectural Cultural Property.

Chii Hachiman Shrine’s festival, held in October each year, is one of the main events in the village.

For more information, please refer to the official website HERE.

Just one bus stop away from Kayabuki no Sato, Miyamachō Shizenbunka-mura Kajika-sō is another accommodation option for you.

Although you probably won’t be able to stay in their thatched roof house, which needs at least 10 people to book.

Another reason you will want to consider staying here is for the activities and tours they hold. While staying overnight here isn’t a requirement to join, it is just handy that you can head straight to the cozy guest room after the tour/activity ends.

Taking Nantan Municipal Bus (南丹市営バス), please get off at Chimiguchi (知見口). It is then just a 5 to 10-minute walk away.

• The cherry blossom season is usually from early to mid-April each year
• The autumn foliage usually peaks around mid-November each year

• Kayabuki no Sato Snow Lantern Festival:
  • From the last Saturday of January to the 1st Saturday of February
  • At Kayabuki no Sato
  • For more information, please refer to the official website HERE.
• Miyama Snow Festival:
  • On the 11th of February
  • At Miyama Nature & Culture Village Kajikaso Inn, which is a 3-minute drive from Kayabuki no Sato.
  • For more information, please refer to the official website HERE.

If you haven’t been to Amanohashidate for the celebrated view, then you definitely should when coming to Kyoto!

Check out our article on Amanohashidate to find out why people are bending down over the observatory and how the 5,000 pine trees can grow on the 3.6 km sandbar surrounded by seawater!

Tempted to go to Miyama Kayabuki no Sato on your next Japan trip? You might be interested in finding out other stunning spots closeby.

For more information, please refer to our article on Nantan City (=ﾟωﾟ)ﾉ.