Chugoku Sanyo, San-in 中国地方山陽、山陰 - Tottori JR Station 鳥取駅

[Nov 2017] West Exit of Tottori JR Station.

Tottori JR Station (鳥取駅) is located on the San’in main line, which runs alongside the Sea of Japan. This is the gateway to the most well known attraction in Tottori Prefecture - the vast sand dunes (鳥取砂丘) spread along the coastline facing Sea of Japan. In the vicinity of the sand dunes, there is a Sand Art Museum (砂の美術館) where gigantic and impressive sand sculptures, created by artists from around the globe, are featured here (typically for a year).

[Apr 2015] Limited Express Super Hakuto.

Limited express trains serving this station include:
(1) Limited Express Super Matsukaze (まつかぜ), commutes between Tottori and Masuda, via Kurayoshi, Yonago, Matsue and Izumo-shi.
(2) Limited Express Super Oki (おき), commutes between Tottori and Shin Yamaguchi, via Kurayoshi, Yonago, Matsue, Izumo-shi, Masuda, Tsuwano, Yamaguchi and Yuda Onsen.
(3) Limited Express Super Hakuto (はくと), commutes between Kurayoshi and Kyoto, via Tottori, Himeji, Osaka and Shin-Osaka. The section between Kamigori and Chizu is owned by Chizu Express and the fare is only covered by JR West Rail Pass (such as Sanyo San'in Area Pass and San'in-Okayama Area Pass). Top up of train fare is required if you are holding on to the nationwide Japan Rail Pass.
(4) Limited Express Super Inaba (いなば), commutes between Okayama and Tottori, via Kamigori and Chizu. Similar to Super Hakuto, a section of the railway line which the train travels on is owned by Chizu Express. Only JR West Rail Pass can cover the train fare along this stretch of travel.

[Nov 2017] Spotted numerous sand sculptures on exhibition outside the train station. Amazed by the fine details shown in every masterpiece. 

[Nov 2017] Statue of Okuninushi and the white rabbit found at the South Exit.

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What’s nearby?

Bus Terminal within walking distance from the train station. 

Platform 0 for Loop Kirinjishi Bus and 100 yen Kururi Bus.

(1) Bus terminal, less than a minute walk from the North Exit of train station.

Platform 0

- Nihonkotsu Bus 日本交通バス or Hinomaru Bus 日ノ丸バス, heading for sand dunes and Sand Art Museum via Sakyu line (砂丘線).
Bus fare = 370 yen
Bus schedule (search for "砂丘線"):
https://www.nihonkotsu.co.jp/bus/limousine_route/route_tottori.html

[Apr 2015] Utilised the Loop Kirinjishi Bus to get to the sand dunes. 

- Nihonkotsu's Loop Kirinjishi Bus ループ麒麟獅子, which operates on weekends and public holidays. This bus covers sightseeing spots such as Warabekan わらべ館, Tottori Castle remains 鳥取城跡, Watanabe Art Museum 渡辺美術館, sand dunes and Sand Art Museum.
Flat fare = 300 yen; One day pass = 600 yen
Bus schedule (search for "ループ麒麟獅子"):
https://www.nihonkotsu.co.jp/bus/limousine_route/route_tottori.html

- 100 yen Kururi Bus くる梨, a mini bus which operates within the town area. There are a total of three routes (green, red and blue) with reasonable interval of 20 minutes between buses. Take the green line if you are heading for places of attraction such as Warabekan わらべ館, Tottori Castle remains 鳥取城跡 and Jinpukaku 仁風閣.
Flat fare = 100 yen
Bus schedule: http://www.moon.sannet.ne.jp/kururi/timetable/pdf_index.html

Platform 5 for Hakuto Shrine 白兎神社 and Michi no eki Shinwan no sato Shiro Usagi 道の駅 神話の里 白うさぎ:
-  by Ninomaru Bus 日ノ丸バス via Shikano line 鹿野線. Alight at Hakuto Jinja mae 白兎神社前.
Bus fare = 600 yen
Bus schedule (search for "鹿野線"): http://www.hinomarubus.co.jp/kousoku_rosen/rosen.html

(2) Tottori Tourist Information Center 鳥取市国際観光客サポートセンター
There is a smaller booth within the train station itself. There is this other tourist information center which is set up specially for foreigners and is located just outside the train station (upon exiting from the North Exit, turn right). There are English and even Mandarin speaking staffs stationed here to assist tourists. When I visited here on two separate occasions (once in 2015 and more recently in 2017), I was extremely grateful for the help rendered by approachable Chinese staff who provided me with clear directions and recommendations on various sightseeing spots.
Tottori tourism guide: https://www.tottori-tour.jp/en/

[Nov 2017] Spotted the sand sculptures of Toripi トリピー, the official mascot of Tottori Prefecture, on the left and Posukuma ぽすくま, the mascot of Japan Post, on the right, at the entrance of the post office. The adorable Toripi is actually a flying pear! This character is made up of 20th Century pear (二十世紀梨), which is cultivated in Tottori, and the wings depicts the first kanji character of Tottori (鳥), which means bird.  

(3) Tottori Ekimae Post Office 鳥取駅前郵便局, about two minutes from the North Exit of train station.
Postacollect again! A place I had to drop by to get my favourite Postacollect regional postcards. During my most recent trip to Japan (end 2017), I noticed that for the latest series of regional postcards (2017/2018), they can be found outside the prefectures which they represent. For example, I saw other postcards from the Chugoku region (Okayama, Hiroshima, Shimane, Yamaguchi and Tottori) available for sale in this post office. This is good news for collectors like myself. Reason being most post offices are closed for business on weekends; if I happen to be visiting a prefecture over a weekend, I will not be able to purchase these exclusive postcards from the post offices. With this change, I will still be able to buy the postcards from any prefecture which falls within the same region/area.
Tottori Prefecture’s Postacollect postcards: https://www.postacollect.com/gotochi/area32/
Tottori Ekimae Post Office: https://map.japanpost.jp/p/search/dtl/300152002000/ 

What a familiar logo! 

(4) Daimaru departmental store 大丸, about two minutes walk from the North Exit of train station.

Daimaru was once a household brand which the older generation of Singaporeans (including myself) are familiar with. Even though it pulls its shutters on all their branches in Singapore and overseas in 2003, Daimaru still operates several branches domestically. This is one of the two branches they owned in Chugoku region (the other one in Shimonoseki).
Opening hrs: 1000 - 1900 hrs
Website: http://www.daimaru-tottori.co.jp/

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Commemorative stamp: