Matsudai Station まつだい駅 is a train station located along Hokuhoku line ほくほく線, a railway located in Niigata Prefecture and operated by Hokuetsu Express 北越急行.
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What's nearby?
(1) Bus stop, in front of the train station.
- Tokei Bus 東頸バス Tokamachi line 十日町線 heading for Matsunoyama Onsen 松之山温泉.
(2) Michi no eki Matsudai Furusato Kaikan 道の駅まつだいふるさと会館, a roadside station connected seamlessly to the train station. This roadside station, located along Japan National Route 253, houses a Family Mart (opened in May 2017), souvenir shop, restaurant and tourist information center.
(3) Matsudai Nobutai まつだい「農舞台」, about 2 mins walk from the train station.
This unique looking building, designed by a group of architect from Netherlands, and its surroundings is one of the venue of Echigo Tsumari Art Field 越後妻有大地の芸術の里 and Echigo Tsumari Art Triennale 越後妻有大地の芸術祭, an international art festival held every three years. Permanent and seasonal art works are displayed in the galleries of Nobutai and dotted in the outfield for enthusiasts to explore on foot.
Echigo Yuzawa Station 越後湯沢駅 is a train station on the Joetsu line 上越線 and Joetsu Shinkansen line 上越新幹線. Echigo Yuzawa is a train station away from Gala Yuzawa ガーラ湯沢, a snow resort which has it own Shinkansen station (only operational during winter season) and popular place to enjoy winter sports such as skiing and snowboarding. Right at the doorstep of the train station is Yuzawa Onsen 湯沢温泉, a well known hot spring spot in Niigata Prefecture, which is frequent by many tourists and skiers especially during the peak winter season. We came here during autumn - stayed in one of the ryokan in Yuzawa Onsen for a night and visited Yuzawa Kogen 湯沢高原 on the following day.
First time seeing lockers dedicated for ski!
Trains serving this train station include:
(1) Shinkansen Toki / Max Toki とき via Joetsu Shinkansen line 上越新幹線:
- travels northwards to Urasa 浦佐駅, Nagaoka 長岡駅, Tsubame Sanjo 燕三条駅 and Niigata 新潟駅.
- travels southwards to Takasaki 高崎駅 and Tokyo 東京駅.
(2) Genbi Shinkansen 現美新幹線, a special themed Shinkansen which commutes between Echigo Yuzawa 越後湯沢駅 and Niigata 新潟駅 via Joetsu Shinkansen line 上越新幹線.
(3) Local trains via Joetsu line 上越線:
- travels northwards to Miyauchi 宮内駅.
- travels southwards to Takasaki 高崎駅.
(4) Local trains operated by Hokuetsu Express 北越急行 via Joetsu line 上越線, Hokuhoku line ほくほく線 and Shin Etsu main line 信越本線.
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What’s nearby?
(1) Echigo Yuzawa Onsen Tourist Association 越後湯沢温泉観光協会, turn right after exiting the train station from West Exit.
(2) CoCoLo Yuzawa Gangidoori / CoCoLo 湯沢．がんぎどおり, within the train station building. http://www.cocolo-station.jp/pc?sc_name=yuzawa - Ponshukan ぽんしゅ館 - Sake tasting
Operating hours: 0900 - 1900 hrs (last order at 1830 hrs) - Sake spa Yunosawa 酒風呂湯の沢
Operating hours: 1030 - 1830 hrs (last entry at 1800 hrs)
Fee = 800 yen (Adult); 400 yen (Child) https://www.ponshukan.com/
CoCoLo Yuzawa Gangidoori is a plaza comprised of shops and restaurants. Here, one can make last minute purchase of souvenirs before catching the train and/or try out local cuisine such as Hegi Soba へぎそば (a type of soba made by adding funori 布海苔, a type of seaweed, into buckwheat flour) and Tare Katsu don タレかつ丼 (instead of coating the fried pork cutlet with egg, Niigata's version is to dip the fried pork cutlet in a soy based sauce) without having to venture too far away from the train station. Fans of sake will be in for a treat at Ponshukan ぽんしゅ館, part of CoCoLo Yuzawa Gangidoori. In Ponshukan, there is a sake tasting corner where one can try up to five different types of sake from an extensive collection of sake, sourced from all the breweries in Niigata Prefecture, for just 500 yen. In addition to that, Ponshukan also operates a communal hot spring bathhouse (Sake spa Yunosawa 酒風呂湯の沢) here. What makes the hot spring here different from other is sake with 15% alcohol content (which is used in sake bath) is added into the hot spring water pool and its therapeutic effects include making the skin more smooth and improving blood circulation.
(3) Echigo Yuzawa Onsen Street 越後湯沢温泉通り, exit the train station from West Exit.
Many shops, restaurants, inns and hotels are situated along the 1.5 km long hot spring street. Keep a lookout for Kannakkuri かんなっくり, a complimentary footbath facility located just beside Yuzawa Museum of History and Folklore Yukiguni-kan 雪国館, to enjoy a quick foot spa.
(4) Yuzawa Kogen Ropeway 湯沢高原ロープウェイ, 8 minutes walk from train station West Exit.
Pride. On this trip to explore Nagano and Niigata Prefecture, I managed to insert two special themed trains into my itinerary - Koshino Shu*Kura (from Joetsu Myoko 上越妙高駅 to Tokamachi 十日町駅) and Genbi Shinkansen 現美新幹線 (from Echigo Yuzawa 越後湯沢駅 to Niigata 新潟駅). Introduced by JR East in 2014, the concept of Koshino Shu*Kura was inspired by Japanese wine or sake, the pride of Niigata Prefecture. Fifth largest prefecture by geographical size, Niigata Prefecture is home to the highest number of sake breweries in Japan - as many as 89 sake breweries. Its name, Shu*Kura means sake storehouse (shu 酒 = sake, kura 蔵 = storehouse) and the asterisk symbol (*) represents rice (Niigata is famous for producing top quality rice which is also the main ingredient in brewing sake) and snow (Niigata is also a popular skiing destination).
Cruise. Koshino Shu*Kura covers several railway lines during its journey between Joetsu Myoko to Tokamachi. The train departs from Joetsu Myoko and travels along Myoko Haneuma Line 妙高はねうまライン to Naoetsu 直江津駅. Next, the train continues its journey along Shin Etsu main line 信越本線 until it reaches Nagaoka 長岡駅. As the section of Shin Etsu Main line between Naoetsu to Kashiwazaki runs alongside the Sea of Japan coastline, passengers can enjoy a panoramic sea view from the comfort of their seats while on board this train. From Nagaoka, the train moves further inland along Joetsu line 上越線 to Echigo Kawaguchi 越後川口駅. Lastly, it completes its final lap along Iiyama line 飯山線 and ends at Tokamachi 十日町駅.
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Highlights
Apart from the route between Joetsu Myoko to Tokamachi, the train also covers two other routes. The name is changed to Yuzawa Shu*Kura [ゆざわ Shu*Kura] when the train commutes between Joetsu Myoko to Echigo Yuzawa, and to Ryuto Shu*Kura [柳都 Shu*Kura] when the train commutes between Joetsu Myoko to Niigata. The train usually operates on weekends and public holidays; and makes a round trip on its day of operation. For passengers holding on to nationwide JR Pass, JR East Pass (Nagano, Niigata area), JR East-South Hokkaido Rail Pass or JR Tohoku-South Hokkaido Rail Pass, you can make a seat reservation at no additional cost.
Sneaked into Car 1, dedicated for passengers who have purchased travel packages with View Travel.
Seats. The three carriage train is donned in contrasting navy blue and white colours. The entire train is made up of reserved seats in Car 1 and 3 and a event space in Car 2. Car 1 is reserved for passengers who have purchased travel packages with View Travel びゅう旅行. The package includes a meal (menu specially designed for this train and changes with season), served together with Koshino Shu*Kura's original Daiginjoshu 大吟醸酒. There are three types of seats in Car 1 - box seats catering to groups of four, observation pair seats and kutsurogi (relaxing) pair seats, both oriented to face the wide windows for a better view. We were assigned to seats in Car 3 which has conventional train seating plan and a free space with sofa seats for up to 8 people.
Our seats were in Car 3.
Sofa seats in the free space of Car 3.
Sake tasting corner of Kuramori. There are five different types of sake to try and the selection of sake is changed every two months.
Sake. The main highlight of the entire train ride awaits in Car 2. Kuramori 蔵守 is a service counter where both alcoholic and soft drinks, snacks, bento and train exclusive merchandise (sake cup, beer cup, key ring, towel, etc) are sold. There is a sake tasting corner where passengers can try up to five different types of sake, all manufactured in Niigata Prefecture. Though none of us are sake connoisseurs, we decided to give it a try in support of their effort to promote locally brewed sake. Chose three out of the five sake and bought grilled scallops to go along with the drinks. One of them was Daiginjoshu, high quality sake brewed from rice grains milled to 50% of weight or less and the other two were Junmaiginjoshu 純米吟醸酒, sake brewed from rice grains milled to at least 60% of weight and without addition of distilled alcohol.
Sea. About 40 minutes after departing from Joetsu Myoko Station, the train pulled into Omigawa Station 青海川駅 and made a brief stop here. Passengers were allowed to alight the train to explore this unmanned station along Shin Etsu main line. Said to be the train station closest to the Sea of Japan in Japan, the relaxing sounds of waves crashing onto the shore could be heard immediately when the train doors opened. From the platform closest to the shore, I could feel the cooling sea breeze sweeping towards me and see the whitewash waves hitting the rocky coastline just beneath my feet.
Music. What pairs well with alcohol? Music, of course! The atmosphere in the event space (in Car 2) is completely liven up during two jazz band performance sessions held during the train cruise. Passengers gathered around the band, with drinks in their hands and swaying gently to the rhythm of the songs. One other event which took place on board the train was a complimentary sake tasting session organised by one of the sake breweries from Niigata Prefecture. On the day of our train ride, we had the opportunity to try four different types of sake (Daiginjoshu, Junmai Ginjoshu and Junmaishu 純米酒) brewed by Echigo Sakura Brewery 越後桜酒造 located in Agano city 阿賀野市. The entire session was pretty engaging, as the representative from the brewery did a brief introduction of their sake and welcomed everyone to taste their signature sake; while the audience responded with queries, followed by sake sampling. This is the first time I was exposed to so many different types of sake. After this experience, I have become slightly more receptive to Japanese wine and I like Daiginjoshu the most out of all, for its light and refined taste.
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Commemorative stamps:
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Video: Ryuto Shu*Kura was previously featured in NHK's Train Cruise programme.
