Ainokura, Toyama, Japan in the remote Gokayama Region.

Hokuriku, consisting of Ishikawa, Toyama, and Fukui prefectures in Central Japan, remains one of the country’s lesser-visited regions, despite only being located around two hours away by train from the bustling metropolis of Tokyo. Here, dramatic landscapes meet centuries of craftsmanship. During the Edo period (1603–1868), Ishikawa and Toyama prefectures formed part of the wealthy Kaga Domain ruled by the Maeda clan, whose patronage helped cultivate a flourishing craft culture. With long, snowy winters spent indoors, artisans had ample opportunities to refine their techniques, producing objects prized for both their practical use and visual appeal.

Weaving together artisanal encounters and beautifully restored accommodations, a three-day journey gives visitors a inside look at how these traditions continue to thrive.

Exterior of Hanamurasaki ryokan in Yamanaka Onsen, featuring traditional Japanese balconies overlooking the Kakusenkei Gorge river and lush green forest in the Hokuriku region. — The elegant facade of Hanamurasaki perched above the scenic Kakusenkei Gorge in Yamanaka Onsen, Ishikawa Prefecture. (Photo: JNTO)

A tranquil outdoor hot spring bath (rotenburo) at Kagari Kisshotei ryokan, featuring turquoise tiled water, natural rock borders, and a wooden pavilion roof overlooking a lush green forest in Yamanaka Onsen. — The open-air rotenburo at Kagari Kisshotei allows guests to soak in thermal mineral waters while surrounded by the forest canopy of the Hokuriku region. (Photo: JNTO)

A private outdoor Japanese cypress (hinoki) wood hot spring bath on a dark timber deck, featuring traditional wooden buckets and a view of a lush cedar forest in Yamanaka Onsen. — This private outdoor bath in Yamanaka Onsen promises the ultimate forest-bathing experience. (Photo: JNTO)

Day 1: A Ryokan Stay in Yamanaka Onsen

My journey begins in Tokyo aboard the Hokuriku Shinkansen, and in less than three hours I arrive at Kaga Onsen Station in Ishikawa Prefecture. From there, I head to Hanamurasaki, a ryokan that sits above the forested Kakusenkei Gorge in Yamanaka Onsen, a hot-spring retreat with more than 1,300 years of history. Celebrated poet Matsuo Basho (1644–1694) fell in love with this nature-rich setting, and it’s easy to see why.

When Hanamurasaki’s sixth-generation owners Kohei and Manami Yamada took over, they ushered the property into a new chapter. The stunning result blends time-honored aesthetics with the comforts expected by modern travelers, incorporating natural materials throughout.

I begin with one of Hanamurasaki’s signature experiences: Japanese-style afternoon tea served as lunch. Presented on an elegant three-tiered stand, the tea features colorful vegetable sushi and traditional sweets with seasonal motifs.

“One of our goals with Hanamurasaki is to serve as a ‘cultural salon’ that brings fresh insights to Japanese heritage,” Manami tells me. The inn has launched an initiative connecting guests with local crafts, and after taking tea I join Kohei for his Owner’s Tour to meet some artisans.

Our first stop is Urushi Art Hariya, where a family of four—parents and their two sons—produce Yamanaka lacquerware. Using layers of lacquer and shimmering gold powder in a process known as maki-e, the Hariya family creates refined designs on tea ceremony utensils and contemporary accessories. At the studio of Yuka Mafune, the namesake artisan demonstrates her skill at the lathe as she shapes wooden tableware, later accentuating the grain and natural textures with lacquer. Yuka imbues each piece with the hope that it will bring a smile to those gathering for meals.

Back at Hanamurasaki, I follow the path along the nearby Kakusenkei Gorge, where bridges crisscross the Daishoji River and waterfalls tumble over the rocks. The stroll builds an appetite for dinner—one of the high points of a ryokan stay—served as either a multicourse kaiseki or an à la carte menu, with curated beverage pairings. I dine in a space with beautiful washi paper dividers that gently blur the line between art and privacy.

Following my relaxing soak in the private bath from a mineral-rich spring that has nourished the inn for centuries, I drift off to sleep, cocooned in nature.

A wide panoramic view of Kenroku-en Garden in Kanazawa, featuring ancient pine trees with traditional Yukitsuri rope supports, a stone Kotoji-toro lantern by the pond, and a blue sky over the Ishikawa landscape. — The Yukitsuri rope structures at Kenroku-en Garden are designed to protect Kanazawa’s ancient pines from the weight of Hokuriku’s legendary snowfall. (Photo: istock)

A scenic view of Kenroku-en Garden in Kanazawa featuring manicured pine trees, moss-covered ground, a traditional stone pagoda, and a small wooden torii gate reflecting in a peaceful pond. — The meticulously manicured landscapes of Kenroku-en in Kanazawa, widely considered one of Japan’s most beautiful traditional gardens. (Photo: istock)

A panoramic autumn view of the Ogimachi village in Shirakawa-go, showcasing traditional thatched-roof gassho-zukuri farmhouses nestled against a backdrop of dense pine forests and early fall foliage. — The gassho-zukuri farmhouses of Shirakawa-go are built to withstand the region’s heavy winter snow, creating one of Japan’s most picturesque cultural landscapes.

Day 2: Kanazawa’s Golden Heritage and a Secluded Village

As I check out the next morning, Kohei and Manami are the epitome of omotenashi (Japanese-style hospitality), standing outside and waving me off until I turn the corner and they disappear from view.

Still in Ishikawa, I make my way to the prefectural capital of Kanazawa. The name means “marsh of gold,” a fitting moniker for Japan’s largest producer of gold leaf, where tissue-thin layers are applied to a wide range of decorative and everyday objects. Gold is also used in traditional repair techniques, where delicate lines highlight cracks in pottery and tableware, turning damage into part of an object’s beauty—as I am about to discover for myself at a kintsugi workshop.

The daughter of a potter, Momo Omukai grew up watching her mother work with ceramics. After losing her mother about 10 years ago, she went on to become an art teacher and start her own family. When one of her mother’s treasured pieces was accidentally broken, Momo decided to learn kintsugi as a way to repair it. She found her calling while training under a kintsugi master, and started teaching the craft two years ago.

“Now, even if one of my daughters breaks something, I don’t get angry, because it can be repaired,” she says with a smile.

Each stage of the process is carefully laid out before me, as I practice joining fragments of pottery, applying layers of natural lacquer and sanding the surfaces smooth. Some pieces will be completed by future participants, quietly linking one guest to the next. Finally, I try the finishing stage, brushing gold powder along the seams.

As Momo explains, “Kintsugi isn’t about hiding cracks; it’s about illuminating them.” At the end of the session, each participant takes home a finished piece and leaves a note in the guestbook for the next visitor. “Trust the process, and you’ll do fine,” I write.

My choice for lunch is Japanese restaurant Barrier, which combines carefully balanced flavors of Japanese soup stock and seasonal ingredients with a touch of performance. I also take some time to visit the beautiful Kenrokuen Garden, the emerald in Kanazawa’s golden crown. This “garden of six elements” combines spaciousness and seclusion, artifice and antiquity, water features and panoramas.

Then I bid farewell to Ishikawa and move on to neighboring Toyama Prefecture. My next stop is Ainokura Gassho-zukuri Village, a small mountain settlement tucked into the remote Gokayama region of Nanto City. The village is known for traditional gassho-zukuri farmhouses, whose steep thatched roofs resemble hands pressed together in prayer, designed to withstand heavy winter snowfall.

Part of the UNESCO-listed Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama, Ainokura offers a far more intimate atmosphere than popular Shirakawa-go in neighboring Gifu. Around twenty gassho-zukuri houses remain here, many still lived in by families while others have become museums, guesthouses, or craft studios.

The Woodcarving Legacy of Inami

Also part of Nanto, the town of Inami is regarded as one of Japan’s leading woodcarving centers. It developed around Zuisenji Temple, whose repeated reconstructions nurtured generations of master craftsmen. Today, this culture is continued at scores of local workshops, with tonight’s accommodation also helping to support the heritage.

Bed and Craft, the brainchild of architect Tomotsugu Yamakawa, is based on the albergo diffuso (decentralized accommodation) concept whereby the town becomes part of the guest experience. Restored historic homes now serve as self-contained villas, each created in tandem with an artisan who receives a portion of the accommodation fee.

Upon checking in at the central concierge, I’m guided to Tae, the former home of a prosperous family involved in the silkworm trade. The interior, designed by lacquer artist Sanae Tanaka, showcases a vivid red installation that immediately catches my eye.

Though each villa has a fully equipped kitchen, I’ve chosen the dinner plan. At dusk, I head over to Nomi beside the reception center, where the set meal of smoked specialties and locally sourced meat and fish makes for a memorable evening.

Day 3: Toyama’s Artistry in Wood and Glass

The next morning, breakfast is delivered directly to my room, with freshly baked bread and colorful produce. I take my meal out to the wooden deck to enjoy a peaceful start to the day amid nature.

Tae is very close to Zuisenji Temple, so I stroll over to explore the magnificent wooden complex after breakfast. When the temple burned down in the mid-18th century, the craftsmen sent from Kyoto to rebuild it passed their woodcarving techniques on to residents, shaping the town’s identity. I am equally awed by the towering 17-meter-tall main gate and the intricate decorations on the Taishido Hall. Inami’s artists went on to carve out a reputation for decorative sculpture for temples, as well as transoms and woodwork for ordinary homes.

Having learned about Inami’s woodcarving legacy, it’s time to try it for myself. Bed and Craft guests have the exclusive opportunity to join a workshop with an artisan, and I am meeting Komei Tanaka, a woodcarver and the designer behind Tategu-ya, one of their other accommodations.

I am going to make a wooden spoon. After sketching the shape on a block of cherry wood and learning how to use the chisels, I begin to carve. When I hit a seam in the wood, Komei explains how to adjust the chisel to work with the natural grain rather than against it. Watching my progress, Tanaka smiles encouragingly. “It’s going well—you’ve got the knack!”

We take a short tea break, then return to work and the spoon’s final form emerges. Komei shows me how to apply a coat of beeswax to protect the wood and I am finally holding my one-of-a-kind spoon in my hand.

We are joined for tea by his wife—none other than lacquer artist Sanae Tanaka, who decorated Tae, my accommodation the previous night. Together the couple run Tomoru Studio, where Komei creates graceful sculptures and other wooden pieces, while Sanae works primarily with dry lacquer techniques inspired by everyday scenery. Their artists’ hearts have found a home here in Inami.

Later, I take some time to try and spot the roughly 30 wooden carved cats scattered around the historic town center. While I don’t manage to find them all, I do “discover” Law, a bakery café serving homemade bread and hearty lunch plates—perfect fuel for the next leg of my trip.

Modern interior of the Toyama Glass Art Museum featuring an exhibition of colorful glass sculptures on white pedestals, large cubic pendant lights, and visitors exploring the gallery in Toyama City. — The Toyama Glass Art Museum showcases the city’s rich history of glassmaking within a modern space in the heart of the Hokuriku region.

Where Fire Shapes Art

My final stop is Toyama City, the prefectural capital and one of Japan’s leading pharmaceutical manufacturing hubs. As traditional remedies made way for liquid medicines amid technological advances about a century ago, demand for glass containers grew. Local glassblowers developed the skills to produce high-quality bottles for these medicines, shaping Toyama’s glassmaking industry.

Designed by Kengo Kuma, the striking Toyama Glass Art Museum occupies several floors of the Toyama Kirari building. The interior is lined with warm cedar panels, filtering natural light and enhancing the interplay between wood and glass as I peruse the gallery spaces. A highlight is the beautiful Glass Art Garden, a permanent installation by American master Dale Chihuly.

I head next to the Toyama Institute of Glass Art, established in 1991 as Japan’s first public educational institution specializing in glass. Many graduates have gone on to open studios in the region, further strengthening the city’s glass culture. At the adjacent Toyama Glass Studio, I watch with wonder as molten glass is deftly molded before my eyes.

I’m keen to try my hand at glassmaking, and I sketch out a small paperweight resembling my beloved orange cat. Glassmaking is a challenging process, and even with my instructor’s expert guidance, we have a mishap when the tail breaks off. One advantage of glass, however, is that it can be reheated and reshaped, and eventually a little feline emerges. My piece is placed in an annealer to cool slowly, before being shipped to me.

From Toyama, I catch the Shinkansen back to Tokyo, carrying not only my handcrafted treasures, but also a deep appreciation for the enduring artistry of Hokuriku.

Three Days in Hokuriku: A Deep Dive into Craft, Heritage, and Nature