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Wakasa Station and Post Town

Published: Aug 11, 2026

Updated: Aug 11, 2026

Wakasa Railwayturntablepost townregistered cultural propertyWakasa

Representative image — not a photograph of this location.

Wakasa is the terminus of a nineteen-kilometre private railway that runs up a valley from Koge, and the whole station — platform, water tower, engine shed, and a fifteen-metre hand-operated turntable built by Kawasaki — was registered as a national cultural property in 2008. The turntable was restored, and on the back of that the railway acquired a C12 steam locomotive from Hyogo and now moves it under its own compressed-air system on event days.

Two minutes from the platform the post town begins: Kura-dori, a lane of temples and storehouses, and Kariya-dori, a street of latticed merchant houses with covered walkways in front of them against the snow. Wakasa gets a great deal of snow. The town is free to walk and the station is the sort of place railway people travel a long way for.

Essential Information

Opening Hours

Station and streets open at all times | Steam locomotive demonstrations on published event days

Closed: Open year-round

Entrance Fee

Free to walk | Railway fares charged separately

Best Season

Year-round | February for the snow that explains the covered walkways

Visit Duration

60–90 minutes

Getting There

Access Information

Wakasa, Wakasa, Yazu District. Wakasa Station is the terminus of the Wakasa Railway from Koge on the JR Inbi Line. The station buildings and the 15 m hand-operated turntable are registered national cultural properties. The post town streets, Kura-dori and Kariya-dori, begin about 2 minutes on foot from the station and are free to walk. Steam locomotive operation runs on published event days only.

Insider Guide

Premium

**The turntable is hand-operated.** Fifteen metres, built by Kawasaki, turned by people pushing. It is the reason the whole station complex is a registered cultural property. **The C12 runs on event days only.** It moves under compressed air rather than steam for most demonstrations. Check the railway's schedule before travelling for it. **Walk both streets.** Kura-dori has the temples and storehouses; Kariya-dori has the latticed shopfronts with covered walkways. They are different in character and both are two minutes from the platform. **Those covered walkways are for snow.** Wakasa is a heavy snow town and the arcades in front of the shops exist so the street stays passable. In February that is obvious. **Ride the line.** The Wakasa Railway itself is nineteen kilometres of single track up a valley and is the pleasant way to arrive.

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