THE GUIDE
Nagoya and Takayama are about 2 hours 20 minutes apart on the JR Limited Express Hida, so one trip can take in both: the city for the Shinkansen and the airport, the old town in the Hida mountains for the second half. On this route the catalogue has hotels in Sakae, central Nagoya, and a ryokan in Ichinomiya, south of Takayama, each with one MICHELIN Key. This guide compares them and sets out how they fit an itinerary.
On this page
The short answer
For the Takayama end: Wanosato, seven rooms in Ichinomiya with a hot-spring large bath, about 25 minutes by car from JR Takayama Station and reached by the inn’s free shuttle. For a small hotel in Nagoya: THE TOWER HOTEL NAGOYA, fifteen rooms inside the 1954 TV tower, adults-oriented. For a full-service Nagoya hotel: TIAD, Autograph Collection, 150 rooms with a heated indoor pool, a minute from Yaba-cho subway station.
The stays compared
| Stay | Type / area | Rooms | Baths / children | Award / price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| THE TOWER HOTEL NAGOYA | Small hotel / Sakae, Nagoya | 15 | Not recorded / no children aged 10 or under | One Key / not recorded |
| TIAD, Autograph Collection | Hotel / Sakae, Nagoya | 150 | Japanese-style thermal baths and indoor pool / pool terrace 16+, SHUHARI counter 12+ | One Key / not recorded |
| Wanosato | Ryokan / Ichinomiya, Takayama | 7 | Hot-spring large bath; in-room baths heated groundwater / detached rooms only, elementary-school age and up | One Key + Ryokan Collection / ¥41,800 |
Choose by itinerary
Arriving by Shinkansen or at Centrair: stay in Nagoya first. Nagoya Station is about 1 hour 40 minutes from Tokyo and 50 minutes from Osaka by Shinkansen; the Sakae hotels are about 15 minutes from the station by subway. Going on to Takayama: the Limited Express Hida takes about 2 hours 20 minutes; the Nohi Bus highway bus about 2 hours 45 minutes and must be booked. Staying at Wanosato: check in between 15:00 and 17:00 — the shuttle leaves Takayama Station’s west exit at 14:20, 15:20 and 16:20 and must be booked at least 7 days ahead. Sightseeing in the old town can fit on the arrival afternoon or after the 11:00 check-out. In winter: Wanosato says studless tyres are needed on its road and suggests its shuttle from Takayama Station.
Nagoya hotels
Rated stays in Sakae, Nagoya
Nagoya, Aichi
THE TOWER HOTEL NAGOYA
ザ タワーホテル ナゴヤ
No two-meal rate published · check live prices
Nagoya, Aichi
TIAD, Autograph Collection
TIAD, オートグラフ コレクション
Priced by the room · check live prices
Check rates — TIAD, Autograph CollectionPrices in your currency (≈ US$…) are converted at the Oct 7, 2026 reference rate and are indicative only.
A yen price marked ≈ is itself an estimate: halved from a published two-person total, or rounded from an earlier figure. Totals for 2 assume two guests sharing one room.
Ryokan near Takayama
Rated stay in Ichinomiya, Takayama
Prices in your currency (≈ US$…) are converted at the Oct 7, 2026 reference rate and are indicative only.
A yen price marked ≈ is itself an estimate: halved from a published two-person total, or rounded from an earlier figure. Totals for 2 assume two guests sharing one room.
Who each stay suits
THE TOWER HOTEL NAGOYA suits couples and solo travellers: every room is for one or two guests, children aged 10 and under are not accepted, and breakfast is included in every plan. TIAD suits a longer city stay in a larger hotel: all rooms are over 50 m², with a heated indoor pool and an omakase counter in the building. Wanosato suits a ryokan night with both meals in the dining area; it has no open-air bath, and only its large bath is hot spring. Read The Ryokan Collection in Japan for the group Wanosato belongs to, and small rated ryokans for other stays of under ten rooms.
One stay from this guide: Wanosato
Compare current rates for Wanosato
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How do I get from Nagoya to Takayama?
The JR Limited Express Hida runs from Nagoya Station to Takayama in about 2 hours 20 minutes. The Nohi Bus highway bus from the Meitetsu Bus Center takes about 2 hours 45 minutes and requires a reservation.
Is Wanosato in Takayama’s old town?
No. It is in Ichinomiya-machi, about 25 minutes by car from JR Takayama Station. The old town itself is a 12-minute walk from the station.
Can children stay?
THE TOWER HOTEL NAGOYA does not accept children aged 10 or under. Wanosato accepts children of elementary-school age and older in its detached rooms only. At TIAD the pool terrace is for guests aged 16 and over and the SHUHARI counter does not seat children under 12; no hotel-wide age limit is recorded.