Chubu 2016 中部の旅 - Murakami Station 村上駅

Murakami Station 村上駅 is a train station along Uetsu main line 羽越本線. Uetsu main line runs alongside the Sea of Japan coastline and spans across three prefectures (Niigata, Yamagata and Akita), connecting Niitsu 新津駅 in Niigata Prefecture to Akita 秋田駅 in Akita Prefecture. Once prospered as a castle town, some of the remaining samurai residences and machiya (traditional wooden houses) can still be seen around Ogunimachi 小国町 and Omachi 大町. Murakami is also famous for salmon (called iyoboya イヨボヤ here) and beef (cows bred in Murakami city 村上市, Tainai city 胎内市 and Sekikawa mura 関川村, and meat graded A4 and B4 and above are branded as Murakami-gyu 村上牛). Senami Onsen 瀬波温泉, a hot spring spot discovered in 1904 when people were searching for kerosene in the area, is about 10 minutes bus ride away from the train station. Located near Sea of Japan coastline, Senami Onsen is well known for its abundance of hot spring water and mesmerising sunset scenery.







Trains serving this train station include:
(1) Limited Express Inaho いなほ, commutes between Niigata 新潟駅 to Akita 秋田駅 via Hakushin line 白新線 and Uetsu main line 羽越本線. Train stations served by this train include Niigata 新潟駅, Toyosaka 豊栄駅, Shibata 新発田駅, Murakami 村上駅, Atsumi Onsen あつみ温泉駅, Tsuruoka 鶴岡駅, Sakata 酒田駅, Ugo Honjo 羽後本荘駅, Akita 秋田駅, etc.

(2) Kairi 海里, a special themed train introduced by JR East in Oct 2019, which commutes between Niigata and Sakata (in Yamagata Prefecture), via Hakushin line 白新線 and Uetsu main line 羽越本線. Train stations served by this train include Niigata 新潟駅, Shibata 新発田駅, Murakami 村上駅, Atsumi Onsen あつみ温泉駅, Tsuruoka 鶴岡駅, Sakata 酒田駅, etc
Website: https://www.jreast.co.jp/railway/joyful/kairi.html

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What's nearby?

(1) Bus stop, in front of the train station.
Bus services:
(a) Machinaka Loop Bus "Abessha" まちなか循環バス あべっ車 has two routes, the big loop (anticlockwise direction) and small loop (clockwise direction). Do take note that both bus routes are only in operation from Monday to Saturday, and it cost 100 yen per ride.
- Big loop 大回り: Route covers places such as Shin-machi 新町 and Iyoboya Kaikan イヨボヤ会館. The bus makes five round trips on its day of operation.
- Small loop 小回り: Route covers places such as Shiyakusho (City/Municipal Hall) 市役所 and Minami-machi 南町. The bus makes 10 round trips on its day of operation.
(b) Senami Round Bus せなみ巡回バス makes a round trip from Murakami Station to Senami Onsen 瀬波温泉. Similar to Machinaka Loop Bus, this bus also operates from Monday to Saturday and it cost 100 yen per ride.
http://www.city.murakami.lg.jp/soshiki/13/machinaka-bus.html



(2) Tourist information center 観光案内所, located on the left after exiting from the train station.
Operating hours: 0900 - 1700 hrs



(3) Iyoboya Kaikan イヨボヤ会館, about 20 minutes walk from the train station.

(4) Murakami Castle Site 村上城跡, about 25 minutes walk from the train station.
https://www.city.murakami.lg.jp/site/kanko/oshiroyama.html

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Commemorative stamps: