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Gono Line and Resort Shirakami

Little knownBarely documented in English. This is the kind of place the site exists for.

Researched and written by Hinato

Gono LineResort Shirakamicoastal railwayNoshiroShirakami

Photo: MaedaAkihiko / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · original

Gono Line and Resort Shirakami rewards patience — the view most people describe isn't the one you get by rushing.

The Gono Line runs 147 kilometres from Higashi-Noshiro in Akita to Kawabe in Aomori, and for about eighty of them it is on the shore of the Sea of Japan — often with nothing between the track and the water but a few metres of rock. It is one of the great coastal railways anywhere, and in winter the waves come over the line.

Resort Shirakami is the sightseeing train that runs it: three train sets called Buna, Aoike and Kumagera, with large windows, sideways-facing seats at the sea and a shamisen player on some services. It stops at Juniko for the blue pond in the Shirakami mountains, at Senjojiki where passengers get out onto the rock shelf, and at Wesupa Tsubakiyama. Reserved seats are needed and the sea-side ones go first. It runs most days in the main seasons.

Before you go

Access hours

Up to three round trips a day on operating days | Check the JR East calendar

Closed: Does not operate every day outside the main seasons

Entry fee

Ordinary fare plus a reserved seat charge — book through JR East

Best time to visit

April–November for the most services | Winter for a heavy sea

Time to allow

5 hours end to end | Half a day for a section

Access route

Access notes

The Gono Line runs 147 km between Higashi-Noshiro in Akita and Kawabe in Aomori. Resort Shirakami operates up to three round trips a day between Akita and Aomori or Hirosaki on operating days, using the Buna, Aoike and Kumagera train sets. Reserved seats must be booked through JR East's Ekinet, ticket machines or Midori-no-Madoguchi. Confirm operating days before travelling — services do not run every day outside the main seasons.

What to bring

**Book the sea side.** Seats facing the water go first and the whole point of the line is the Sea of Japan. Reserve as early as you can. **Check the operating calendar.** Resort Shirakami runs most days in the main seasons but not every day. This is not a turn-up-and-ride service. **Get off at Senjojiki.** The train stops long enough for passengers to walk out onto the raised rock shelf. It is a scheduled stop, not a station break to skip. **Juniko for the blue pond.** The stop for Aoike in the Shirakami mountains is on this line, which makes the railway a way to reach a World Heritage area without a car. **Winter is the dramatic version.** Waves break over the track and the train runs slowly. Services are more limited and the sea is the reason to be there.

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