Four tunnels, one coin, a lot of maples
November 28–December 6 | Kasugai, Aichi
The thing about living in Nagoya for three decades is you start thinking you've seen all the good stuff. Then someone mentions walking through abandoned railway tunnels in a maple forest for less than the price of a convenience store onigiri, and you realize you've been missing out.
The Aigi Tunnels open to the public twice a year: a few days in early May and nine days in late autumn. The rest of the year the gates stay locked, apart from occasional special events, including the Forest Beer Hall on August weekends.
This year's autumn opening runs November 28 through December 6, 2026. Entry costs ¥100, less than a coffee, and the JR ride from Nagoya is ¥520 each way. If you've got decent shoes and a morning to spare, you're in.
You take the JR Chuo Line from Nagoya Station, about 30 minutes, watching the city thin out into valley and trees. You get off at Jōkōji, an unmanned station wedged between the wooded hills and the Shonai River. Some rapid trains stop here during the opening, so check the timetable before settling for a local. Buy your round-trip ticket before leaving Nagoya or just tap your IC card, because there's nobody here to sell you one when you panic later.
Walk about 300 meters upstream along the river, following the other people with cameras and hiking boots, and you'll reach the entrance gate. Hand over your ¥100, which even includes insurance, and you're on the old trackbed.
A Railway the Forest Took Back
This is what you're walking: 1.7 kilometers of the original Chuo Line, opened in 1900 and abandoned in 1966 when the railway was rerouted through longer, faster tunnels.
The rails and sleepers were taken away, and for forty years the forest had the place largely to itself.
The rediscovery began with something seemingly unrelated. In 2005, redevelopment work at Kachigawa Station threatened the remains of an old red-brick platform. While residents were discussing ways to preserve the bricks, someone remembered hearing about abandoned railway tunnels near Jōkōji.
Finding them took months. By 2007, local volunteers had begun cutting through the undergrowth, clearing the old railway by hand and building steps into the slopes. Their preservation committee became an NPO in 2009 and still looks after the site, opening it each spring and autumn so people like us can walk through.
Four Tunnels, One Very Different Autumn Walk
Four red-brick tunnels survive along the route, numbers three through six. The kind of Meiji-era engineering that still looks impossibly solid, despite having spent sixty years out of service.
You walk into the first one and the temperature drops. The light from the entrance shrinks behind you. Your phone flashlight catches the curve of old bricks, maybe some moss, the tracks long gone but the shape of them still there in the gravel.
Then the far end opens up and you're back among the maples, reds and oranges hanging over the path, the Shonai River cutting through the rocks below.
Beyond Tunnel 4 stands an enormous maple known as the Miyoi no Ōmomiji, designated a Kasugai City Natural Monument in 2025. It's the sort of tree that attracts photographers with tripods and enough equipment to suggest they're expecting a celebrity appearance.
Tunnel 6 is the longest at 333 meters. In recent years, the committee has even turned it into a yōkai tunnel, projecting Japanese spirits onto the walls. Whether the ghosts will return this autumn hasn't yet been announced.
It's not Korankei. It's narrower and stranger. You're walking inside the bones of something that used to move people and freight between Nagoya and the mountains, and now it just moves you, slowly, on foot, with your jacket zipped up against the cold.
Near the middle of the route there's a small marché area with food vendors and the preservation committee's own shop. Previous openings have included music in the brick plaza and other handmade attractions. The committee hasn't announced the complete 2026 program yet, but food and drink sales are confirmed.
On weekends it can get busy, especially around mid-morning. If you'd rather have fewer people in your photographs, aim for a weekday or arrive when the gates open at 09:30.
The round trip is about 3.4 kilometers and takes around two hours if you're stopping for photos. And you will stop for photos, because the light coming through those tunnel arches with the maples framed inside is the kind of thing that makes you pull out your phone even if you've been trying to be present and mindful or whatever.
A Few Practical Things
It's gravel and dirt, sometimes uneven, with the old railway ballast still underfoot. Not great for strollers or anyone who needs smooth walking surfaces. Wear proper walking shoes and bring a flashlight rather than relying entirely on your phone. Leave the dog at home, because pets aren't allowed.
If it rains, they cancel the opening, so check the latest updates on Facebook and Instagram before leaving Nagoya.
There's no parking at the site or Jōkōji Station. Fortunately, this is one of those excursions where the train really is the easiest option. No rental car, no complicated reservations, and no need to spend half your morning trying to decipher a rural bus timetable.
The volunteers who recovered these tunnels could have left them where they were, slowly disappearing into the forest. Instead, they cut through the brush, cleared the trackbed, and gave the place back to people who might otherwise never have known it existed.
Ask why anyone would go to all that trouble and the answer comes back to a familiar Japanese word: mottainai.
Too good to leave in the bushes.
The Details
Aigi Tunnels Autumn Opening
(愛岐トンネル群 秋の特別公開)
Venue
Former JNR Chuo Line
Tunnels No. 3–6 and old trackbed
Dates
Sat, Nov 28 – Sun, Dec 6, 2026
Time
09:30–15:00
Last entry 14:00
Price
¥100 (insurance included)
Elementary age and under: free
Registration
Not needed
Address
Tamano-cho, Kasugai, Aichi
Website
aigi-tunnel.org
English info and walking map
Facebook
Instagram
Contact
080-9492-5458
Good to know
Canceled on rainy days
No parking
Gravel paths: no wheelchairs
or strollers
Wear walking shoes
Bring a flashlight
No pets
Allow about 2 hours (3.4 km)
Access
By Train:
JR Chuo Line
Nagoya Station (CF00) to Jōkōji Station (CF10)
Travel Time:
Approx. 30–35 minutes
Fare: ¥520 one way
(¥1,040 round trip)
From Jōkōji Station:
Jōkōji is an unmanned station without numbered exits. Take the path below the station and walk approximately 300 meters upstream along the river to the entrance gate, about five minutes on foot.
Some rapid trains make special stops during the opening. Check the JR timetable before traveling.
Purchase a round-trip ticket at Nagoya Station or use a transportation IC card such as manaca or TOICA.
By Car:
There is no parking at the tunnels or Jōkōji Station.
Visitors should use the JR Chuo Line.
Nagoya Buzz
Map
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