Tomioka

World Heritage silk mill town in Gunma

Tomioka is in southwestern Gunma Prefecture and was chosen in 1872 for Japan's first full-scale machine silk reeling factory. The Tomioka Silk Mill still stands as timber-framed brick buildings across a large site and became a UNESCO World Heritage site in June 2014. Visitors can walk through the preserved reeling factory and cocoon storehouses, see the colonial-style home of Frenchman Paul Brunat from outside and take a short walk to a free visitor centre. Mt. Myogi rises to the west of town. A half day trip from Tokyo by train covers the mill while a full day lets you add Myogi.

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Town in Japan

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$$	Medium
$$$	Expensive, upscale
$$$+	Very expensive, luxury

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Safety: 8.2

General Safety:	9
Health & medical:	7
Accessibility:	6
Tap water:	9

Read details

2/5

English is spoken at major tourist sites and some hotels, but less so in small shops and restaurants. Signage is improving, but a translation app is helpful for smooth travel.

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Last update: 20 Oct 2026

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Tomioka Summary

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Known for industrial heritage and history. Visit the historic silk mill, explore museums, walk traditional streets and learn about Japan’s early modernisation.

Place score

6.8

Best at:

Spotless

Historic sites

Mountains

Walkable

Less touristy

Personal score

Suited for

👶 6

Families

🧓 7

Seniors

👩 7

Solo

🛡️ 6

Travel Beginners

Japan – Quick facts

Guide Etiquette Holidays Other

Power Grid:	100 V, 50 Hz Plug: Type A Type A: Read about power adapters
Currency:	Japanese Yen (JPY) £1 ≈ JP¥210
Cashless info:	Rating 4/5 Cashless payments are becoming more common, especially in cities, with some shops still preferring cash. Be prepared for occasional cash-only situations in rural areas. Save with a travel credit card
eSIM providers:	Best value: Saily Flexibility: Airalo Read our in-depth comparison

Tipping:	Tipping is not customary in Japan and can be considered rude. Excellent service is the norm, and tipping is unnecessary in most places.
Public drinking:	Public drinking is legal and commonly accepted, particularly during festivals and events.
Public smoking:	Smoking is prohibited in indoor public places but allowed in designated outdoor areas. Some restaurants may have smoking sections.

New Year (January)	One of the most important holidays, expect crowded temples and high prices. Plan ahead.
Golden Week (April-May)	The busiest travel time, expect high demand for accommodation and transport.
Obon (August)	A time to honour ancestors, many businesses close, and transport can be crowded.

Emergency contact:	Emergency Number: 110 (Police), 119 (Fire & Ambulance)
Taxi apps:	Uber, JapanTaxi, DiDi
Other:	Japan is a country of respect, so understanding local customs and etiquette is important. Public transport is efficient, but can be crowded during peak hours.

Best times to travel

The best times to travel section shows how the months compare for a visit, so you can find the time of year that fits what you want to do.

Background colours of the months:
The colour shows the typical temperature: yellow (hot), green (mild) and blue (cold). How strong the colour is shows the travel season: full colour means high season, soft colour means shoulder season and soft-striped means off season.

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Each month has one symbol showing what the weather is typically like, such as hot and sunny, freezing or a rainy or snowy season. Use them to quickly spot months that match the weather you want, or to avoid the ones that don't.

Crowdedness:
The people icon shows how busy the place usually is. The more people, the more crowded it gets.

Additional notes:
The grey info boxes point out special things worth knowing, like recurring weather issues or seasonal events.

for Tomioka, Japan

❄️

Jan

❄️

Feb

☀️

Mar

☀️

Apr

☀️

May

🌦️

Jun

🌦️

Jul

🌦️

Aug

🌤️

Sep

🌦️

Oct

☀️

Nov

☀️

Dec

High season:	April - May, Oct. - Nov.
Shoulder season:	March, Sep.
Crowdedness:	4 (Moderate tourist numbers)

Tap on a month for more info Hover over a month for more info

Climate details

Tomioka Silk Mill is closed over New Year, check opening days before visiting

Strong dry winter winds (karakkaze) December to February, little snow but very cold

Autumn leaves at nearby Mt. Myogi peak late October to mid November

Don't miss

🏭 Visit the historic Tomioka Silk Mill, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
🧵 Explore the preserved red-brick factory buildings and weaving machines
📜 Learn about Japan’s Meiji-era silk industry development
🏘️ Walk through the charming old streets lined with merchant houses
🍡 Try local confectionery made with silk-inspired themes

You've been here?

Why travel to Tomioka?

Tomioka is known for the Tomioka Silk Mill, built in 1872 with French advisors as a model of Japan's industrial push. It ran for 115 years until it closed in 1987, which is why so much of it survives. The timber-framed brick reeling factory and cocoon storehouses are among the few large buildings of their kind left in Japan. Workers got eight-hour days and Sunday holidays along with on-site housing and a medical centre, which was unusual for the time. The Sekaito Visitor Centre is a short walk away in a former cocoon warehouse restored by Kengo Kuma. Its two floors of exhibits explain the silk process from cocoon to thread and give the mill buildings more meaning when you walk through them. Outside the mill the town is quiet. Mt. Myogi, 1,104 m high, rises west of the centre and Myogi Shrine at its foot has a red gate about 12 m high. Mt. Myogi Panorama Park has views of the mountain along with cosmos fields and autumn colour. Sakurayama Park is another short stop. Tomioka is one of four sites listed together as the Tomioka Silk Mill and Related Sites, so silk fans can add the others nearby. Most visitors spend half a day here and treat it as a day trip from Tokyo.

🏯Places worth seeing

1 Tomioka Silk Mill

🎡Places for activities

1 Nanjai

🏞️Natural landmarks

1 Gunma Safari Park
2 Mt Myogi

🍽️Eat & Drink

1 Hayami
Okkirikomi, wide flat noodles simmered with vegetables in a hot broth, a Gunma regional dish. The restaurant is in front of the main gate of the Tomioka Silk Mill and serves lunch only.
2 Teuchi Soba Omura Branch
Hand-made soba, noodles from 100 percent Japanese buckwheat flour ground in a stone mill, at a shop with a vegetable sommelier. It is a 5-minute walk from the Tomioka Silk Mill.
3 Kawaraya
Kappo, Japanese cuisine in courses, plus Gunma regional dishes, at a restaurant 3 minutes on foot from the Tomioka Silk Mill. The restaurant takes lunch and dinner by reservation only.
4 Yoshoku Zendokoro Ma Mezon
Yoshoku, Western-style Japanese dishes, as a set meal eaten with chopsticks, in an old-house-style restaurant. It is a 6-minute walk from the Tomioka Silk Mill and closes one day a week.

🎈Events

Tomioka Silk Festival
Nukisaki Shrine Grand Festival (every 12 years)
Momiji-daira Autumn Leaves Festival
Strawberry Picking Season
Spring cherry blossom viewing
Art exhibitions at Myogi Furusato Museum

Explore on map

Open map view

Knowledge before you go

Start at the Sekaito Visitor Centre, which is free to enter.
Allow a few hours for the mill buildings, since the complex is spread over a large site.
Local buses are infrequent and may not run on Sundays, so plan to walk or take a taxi.
The mill closes for a few days at New Year, so check dates before a winter visit.

How to travel to Tomioka

Trains from Tokyo are the easiest way to reach Tomioka. Take the Joetsu or Hokuriku Shinkansen from Tokyo Station to Takasaki in under an hour and then change to the Joshin Dentetsu line toward Shimonita. The ride to Joshu-Tomioka Station takes about 40 minutes and the whole trip from Tokyo is under two hours. From Nagano or Karuizawa the Hokuriku Shinkansen also reaches Takasaki. Tokyo's two airports, Haneda (HND) and Narita (NRT), are the nearest major ones and you continue by train via Tokyo Station. Driving is possible via the Joshin-etsu Expressway and takes roughly two hours from central Tokyo, depending on traffic.

Access summary

From Fukushima Airport: Airport bus to Koriyama, trains via Iwaki, around 3–4 hours.
From Tokyo: JR Joban Line limited express to Tomioka, typically about 2–2.5 hours.
From Fukushima City: Shinkansen or JR lines via Iwaki–Haranomachi, roughly 3 hours total.

Check your route from anywhere

Where to stay in Tomioka

Takasaki is the practical base for the area. It has plentiful business hotels around the station and shinkansen links to Tokyo, Nagano and Niigata. From there the Joshin Dentetsu line reaches Tomioka in about 40 minutes. Staying there also leaves the evening free for Takasaki's restaurants, since the mill visit takes only half a day. Tomioka itself has only a small number of places to stay and is quiet in the evening. If you want a hot spring stay, Ikaho Onsen is about an hour north of Tomioka and Mt. Haruna is beyond it. Rooms in all of these places fill up on autumn weekends and holidays, so book ahead for those dates.

Hotel recommendations

*by rating and popularity. Commissions have no influence on the rankings.

HOTEL R9 The Yard Tomioka

8.3

MYOGI GREEN HOTEL&TERRACE

8.7

HOTEL R9 The Yard Kanra

8.2

Hotel Route Inn Annaka

8.2

HOTEL R9 The Yard Tomiokananokaichi

8.7

MUST WIN Hotel

7.3

Takasaki Business Hotel

6.6

Gunma Fujioka Mori no Onsen Hotel

10.0

Hotel Isobe Garden

Guest Inn Yashiro no Mori

Explore more accommodations

How to get around Tomioka

Central Tomioka is small enough to walk. The silk mill is about a 10 minute walk from Joshu-Tomioka Station through town.

Taxis and buses:
Taxis wait at the stand outside the station. Sights farther out, such as Myogi Shrine, Mt. Myogi and the panorama park, are spread along hilly roads and are easier by taxi or hire car than on foot. Local buses exist but run infrequently.

Joshin Dentetsu line:
Beyond Tomioka the Joshin Dentetsu line is the main public link. It runs between Takasaki and Shimonita and stops at several small stations along the way.

Car:
A car helps only if you want to see more than one sight outside the town centre in a day.

Food in Tomioka

Food in Tomioka is simple and local with a few regional dishes. Okkirikomi is a local dish of flat noodles boiled with plenty of vegetables. Horumon-age is a skewer of fried fish paste coated in breadcrumbs. Gunma is also known for konnyaku, which you'll see in many local meals and shops.

Restaurants cluster around Joshu-Tomioka Station and the road toward the silk mill. Choices are limited compared with a big city, so plan your meal times around the mill visit. Convenience stores and shops near the station cover snacks and drinks. Takasaki has a much wider range if you return there for dinner.

Budget snapshot

Costs compared to home

We calculate the average costs when travelling to destinations and compare those with the living costs at your home. With this you can get an estimate of how expensive or cheap the destination is for you.

To customise this, you can set up which location and price level are used for the calculations in your account settings.

-43 %

Daily expenses in Tomioka are around 43% lower than the average across United States. That means you'll spend a lot less on meals and getting around.

Exchange rate trend

The exchange rate price factor shows how expensive or cheap a currency currently is compared to its historical average. It's a quick way to see if a country is currently more or less affordable due to exchange rate changes.

-20 %

Your exchange rate (GBP to JPY) is 20% better than in recent years. That means travelling now is considerably cheaper compared to the past.

Travel costs

To help you plan your trip, we provide estimated daily costs per person (when travelling as a pair) for different travel styles. These numbers give you an idea of what you might spend each day at this destination, including accommodation, food, transport and activities.

Additionally, we also provide average hotel costs for different travel styles to give you an estimate for the accommodation only.

Please note that these are only estimates. The real costs depend on booking times, season and other factors.

Daily cost summary

Travel style categories explained:

Backpacker:
Staying in hostels or budget hotels, cooking your own meals or eating cheap and choosing low-cost activities.

Mid-range:
Staying in mid-range hotels, eating at a mix of restaurants and casual spots and enjoying a variety of activities.

Luxury:
Staying in luxury hotels, dining out at high-end restaurants and enjoying premium experiences without worrying about the price.

	Backpacker	Mid-range	Luxury
💵 Total costs per day, including accommodation	£46	£94	£231
🏨 Accommodation per night, per person	£23	£53	£90
🍝 Food per day	£17	£33	£104
🚕 Transportation per day	£6	£8	£37

Food & Drink

🍽️ Restaurant Dinner, per person	£11.50
🍛 Lunch Set, per person	£4.10
🍟 Fast food combo	£3.80
🍝 Preparing your own food, per day	£6.50
☕ Cappuccino	£4.20
🍺 Beer in a restaurant, 0.5 l	£2.40

Transportation

🚌 Public transport ticket	£1.60
🚕 Taxi Ride, 10 km / 6 mi	£22
⛽ Petrol, 1 l	£0.80

Other

🎞️ Cinema ticket	£9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's consult	£28
🤧 Cold medication	£4
💇 Basic haircut	£13

Safety information overview

General safety

Tomioka is a quiet small city with very low crime and no particular tourist scams. Traffic on narrow streets is the main everyday concern. The hills have steep rocky ground and possible bears, so stick to marked paths.

Health & Medical

Basic clinics and pharmacies serve the town, but larger hospitals are in Takasaki, about 40 minutes away by train. English support is limited, so carry your insurance details and a translation app. Summer heat can be strong on the exposed mill grounds.

Accessibility

The town centre is flat and the mill is a walk from the station. Historic brick buildings can have steps and uneven floors in places. The paths up Mt. Myogi are steep and rocky. Taxis wait at the station if the walk is too far.

Tap water

Tap water in Tomioka is safe to drink, like elsewhere in Japan. Restaurants usually serve free water or tea with meals. Shops and vending machines near the station sell cold drinks, but the mill grounds and mountain trails have few so carry a bottle.