Untitled

On weekends, a free tourist bus (the Flower Go) connects Kanzanji Temple, Hanasaki no Yu public baths, Pal Pal Amusement Park, Hamamatsu Flower Park and Okusayama's upper ropeway station, running hourly. 

It operates every day during peak tourist season.

Attractions slightly further afield include:

• Maisaka Shukuwaki-honjin, an inn that accommodated samurai and commoners, the only such facility left on the Tokaido.

• The Nakamura Residence, a preserved samurai house north of Bentenjima over the Ufumi Bridge.

• Makayaji Temple, dating back to the Kamakura Period with Heian-style garden and historic wooden statues. It's a short walk or taxi ride from Mikkabi Station on the Tenryu Hamanako Line, which runs from along the north coast of the lake between Kakegawa and Shinjohara.

• The Sakichi Toyoda Memorial House, the birthplace of the founder of the Toyota company with a museum that includes Toyoda's shed, where he worked on his inventions.

© Ian Hughes 2017