Crater of Yamagata, Mount Zao

Yamagata (山形県, Yamagata-ken) is a large prefecture along the Sea of Japan coast in the southern Tohoku Region. Known for its agricultural products, especially cherries, hot springs, rural flair and natural beauty, it is one of the underrated areas in Japan that has a plenty to offer. 

The prefectural capital for Yamagata is Yamagata City, it is located about 3 hours north of Tokyo (by Shinkansen). Not to be confused with the prefecture, the city is actually very much inland and surrounded by a range of mountains and amongst these mountains, Mount Zao (蔵王山) is one of the more visited areas because of it's numerous hot springs and ski resorts.

Okama, Mt Zao

From Tokyo to Yamagata City

Transportation: Overnight bus

(Day bus, Shinkansen, flight also available)

Time: 6 hours

From Yamagata City to Zao Onsen Town

Transportation: Bus from Yamagata train station (Not Yamagata Bus Terminal) 

Time: 1 hour

From Zao Onsen Town to Okama

Transportation: Bus from Yamagata train station (Only 1 bus a day on weekend at 0930)

(Ropeway is available until 1630) 

Time: 30 minute

Our trip

While not many people would think of going Yamagata City or Mount Zao during early summer, but that's exactly what we did last weekend and we had plenty of fun!

There are a number of ways to travel from Tokyo to Yamagata, but we chose to take an overnight bus. The bus is comfy, save us the cost a night at the hotel, and cost only half the price of Shinkansen. We departed from Asakusa at 2345 and reached Yamagata at 0630 the next day. The pace at Yamagata is slower than that of Tokyo, convenient shops are not as many and breakfast places are open only from 0730 onward.

We decided to take 0930 bus, which is the only one in a day from Yamagata to our destination Okama (御釜), an active volcano that features a beautiful crater with a lake. The bus journey cost 2000yen/pax and takes about 90 minutes, it was a comfortable ride and we managed to get more rest before arriving at Okama at around 1100. 

We immediately felt the temperature difference after we got off the bus, but it was a comfortable chill at 1800m, and while there were some tourists, it was not crowded at all.  From the bus terminal, it was a very short distance to the viewing point of the crater, and it was absolutely stunning - a huge crater surrounded by the shrubs of mountain grass and snow leftover from winter. 

We had lunch at the bus terminal restaurant after taking our shares of photos, and we had planned to take a ropeway down to the hot spring area. The same bus that brought us up can also bring us down at 1300, but we decided to stick to our plan and hike to the ropeway which is about 40 minutes away - bad idea!

On the way to the ropeway, we realised there were lesser and lesser people as we go, probably because there is no proper road and we had to make our way up the loose volcanic rocks which can be quite tedious without proper shoes.  Although not exactly an easy climb, the route provided many wonderful photo opportunities of the crater and views along the way. 

Why I said it was a bad idea wasn't because of the climb, but the part towards reaching the ropeway; as we followed a nicely paved road with signs pointing us to our destination, we were led to a huge slop covered with snow. Although we have the ropeway in sight, it was impossible to get through and so we had to backtrack to go around the snowfield. Even after we backtracked, there is still a stretch of path that was covered in snow, but somehow still manageable. (Just a note to be sure to wear hiking shoes whenever going to the mountain, you never know what it will throw at you.)

After managing to cross all the obstacles, we finally reached the ropeway and made our way down to Zao Onsen Town. Onsen in Summer seems like a crazy idea, but considering the weather there and the long hike we made, it is actually a very soothing treat for our body. Another plus point is that it is only during summer that there are so few people in the hotel that we got the whole pool to ourselves.

The next time you are planning a trip out of Tokyo in early summer, give Mount Zao some thoughts, we really do feel it is worth the trip. And if you are having trouble planning, feel free to reach out to us, we can help!