Getting There
The easiest way to get to Koyasan is from Osaka. Ordinary express (kyuko) trains of the Nankai Line depart from Osaka's Namba Station every half-hour or hour bound for Gokurakubashi, and the trip south takes about 1 hour and 40 minutes. If you want to ride in luxury, use one of the limited-express cars with reserved seats that takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes. After arriving at the last stop, Gokurakubashi, you continue your trip to the top of Mount Koya via a 5-minute ride in a cable car. The entire journey from Namba Station to Mount Koya costs ¥1,230 ($10/£5) one-way, including the cable car; if you take the faster limited express, it'll cost ¥760 ($6.35/£3.20) extra. You'll save money, however, with Nankai's discount ticket called Koyasan Free Servic for ¥2,780 ($23/£12), which includes round-trip travel by ordinary express train from Osaka's Namba Station and the cable car, plus unlimited rides on Koya's buses for 24 hours and slight discounts to the attractions listed below. For more information on travel to and around Koyasan, go to www.nankai.co.jp/koyasan.
Visitor Information
At the top of Mount Koya is Koyasan Station, where you'll find a booth of the local tourist office, the main office of which is located approximately in the center of Koyasan village near Kongobuji Temple. You can pick up a map of Koyasan and book a room in a temple at either office, but it is recommended that you fax ahead for a reservation. Both offices are open daily from 8:30am to 4:30pm in winter (Nov-Feb), to 5pm the rest of the year. The main office has a computer with Internet access you can use for free, as well as a 90-minute rental audio guide for ¥500 ($4.15/£2.10) that's highly useful for learning more about what you're seeing throughout Koyasan, including the location of famous mausoleums and tombstones in Okunoin. For more information, contact the Koyasan Tourist Association (tel. 0736/56-2616) or check the websites www.koya.org/eng and www.shukubo.jp/eng.
Getting Around
Outside the cable car station, you must board a bus that travels 2km (1 1/4 miles) along a narrow, winding road to the village of Koyasan and then continues along the main street all the way through town to the Okunoin-mae and Ichinohashi bus stops, the location of Kobo Daishi's mausoleum. The bus passes almost all the sights along the way, as well as most temples accommodating visitors and the Koyasan Tourist Association's main office. Buses depart every 30 or 40 minutes between 6:29am and 7pm; the trip to Okunoin-mae takes 20 minutes and costs ¥400 ($3.35/£1.70). Otherwise, once you're settled in at your temple accommodations, you can probably walk to Okunoin and other locations mentioned below.
