In the print dialog pick “Save as PDF” to keep it on your phone. A5 makes a pocket booklet; A4 suits a desk printer.
Voykit pocket guide · Japan
Maebashi
前橋
Give Maebashi one night as a Gunma base, or skip it: the sights are thin, but it is 90 min from Tokyo and cheaper than Takasaki.
Maebashi is the capital of Gunma and a low-key stop on the JR Ryomo Line, 75–90 minutes from Tokyo via Takasaki. It works as a cheap bed for the Akagi foothills, the prefectural building's free observation floor and the spring cherry road, but most travellers pass through to Kusatsu, Minakami or Takasaki.
- Country
- Japan
- Local name
- 前橋
- Best months
- Mar–May, Oct–Nov
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (hot and humid), Golden Week
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- JPY
- Money
- Cities are increasingly cashless; temples, small restaurants and some lodging taxes still want cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget ¥7,000–11,000 excl. bed · Mid ¥11,000–17,000 excl. bed · High ¥17,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Data-only eSIMs are the easy route: buy before you fly; voice SIMs need a residence card.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Fire and ambulance 119 · Japan Visitor Hotline (24 h, English) 050-3816-2787
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 100 V · 50 Hz east (Tokyo), 60 Hz west (Osaka) · Most sockets are two flat pins without earth; European and UK plugs need an adapter. Phone and laptop chargers handle 100 V.
- Tipping
- Restaurants and bars: No tip; staff will chase you to return money left on the table.; Taxis: No tip; pay the meter.; Ryokan: Optional: ¥1,000–3,000 in an envelope for the room attendant; never loose cash.; Private guide: Not expected; a small gift or a thank-you meal is more usual.; Hotel porter: No tip.
- Water
- Safe from the tap everywhere; stations and parks have fountains.
- Toilets
- Free, clean public toilets in stations, parks and konbini; paper goes in the toilet. Rural and old stations may have squat toilets.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | ¥400–700 |
| Noodle soup (soba or ramen) | ¥800–1,300 |
| Sauce katsudon | ¥900–1,500 |
| Yakimanju skewer | ¥150–300 |
| Beer: draught / can at a convenience store | ¥500–750 / ¥250–350 |
| Local bus ride | ¥190–400 (check) |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | ¥2,000–4,000 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- NRT · Narita
- Azalea limousine bus to Maebashi Station, about 3 h 30 min; or Narita Express to Tokyo, Joetsu Shinkansen to Takasaki, Ryomo Line to Maebashi, about 2 h 30 min
- HND · Haneda
- Limousine bus to Maebashi Station, about 3 h 30 min; by train via Shinagawa, Tokyo and Takasaki, about 2 h
Typical fares
- Shinkansen Tokyo → Takasaki
- about ¥4,800 reserved, about 50 min (check)
- Ryomo Line Takasaki → Maebashi
- about ¥240, about 20 min (check)
- Bus Maebashi Station → Green Dome
- about ¥190, 10 min (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
The centre is walkable and the wide shared pavements and straight back streets suit a bicycle. Local buses radiate from Maebashi Station (about ¥190 to Maebashi Park and the Green Dome, 10 min) but are not frequent; the rail network is too sparse to rely on alone.
See and do
Known for
- Gunma Prefectural Government Building observation floor
- Akagi Nanmen cherry blossoms
- Green Dome Maebashi and keirin racing
- Yakimanju and sauce katsudon
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Takasaki | JR Ryomo Line from Maebashi | About 20 min |
| Kusatsu Onsen | JR to Shibukawa or Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi, then bus | 2–2.5 h |
| Minakami | Joetsu Shinkansen to Jomo-Kogen, then bus or taxi | About 1.5 h |
| Tomioka | JR Ryomo Line to Takasaki, then Joshin Line | About 1.5 h |
| Kiryu | JR Ryomo Line east | About 40 min |
| Ota | Tobu Isesaki Line from Chuo-Maebashi | About 1 h |
Sleep
- Maebashi Station area
- Buses start and end here; Comfort Hotel is a 5-min walk from the station.
- Shin-Maebashi
- One stop west on the Ryomo Line; quieter, with the Terminal Hotel beside the tracks.
- Chuo-dori and Benten-dori
- Central arcade and riverside park; walkable, few hotels.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Excuse me / Sorry | すみませんsumimasen |
| Thank you | ありがとうございますarigatō gozaimasu |
| This one, please | これをくださいkore o kudasai |
| How much is it? | いくらですか？ikura desu ka |
| Can I pay by card? | カードで払えますか？kādo de haraemasu ka |
| Where is the toilet? | トイレはどこですか？toire wa doko desu ka |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A small bow; a handshake if the other person offers; avoid: Hugs, back slaps, loud greetings
- Names: Family name plus -san; avoid: First names unless invited; adding -san to your own name
- Paying: Put money in the tray at the register; avoid: Tipping, or leaving loose cash for staff
- Trains: Queue at the floor marks, phone on silent, ask before reclining on the Shinkansen; avoid: Phone calls, eating on crowded commuter trains, blocking doors with bags
- Escalators: Stand on the side locals use — left in Tokyo, right in Osaka; stations now ask people to stand still on both; avoid: Stopping at the top or bottom
- Shoes: Off at the step-up entrance; toilet slippers only inside the toilet; avoid: Stepping on tatami in shoes or slippers
- Shrines: Rinse hands at the basin; bow twice, clap twice, bow once; avoid: Walking down the centre of the approach, which is for the deity
- Gifts: Offer and receive with both hands; bring a small omiyage for hosts; avoid: Sets of four; cash outside an envelope
Scams and watch-outs
- Buses from the station are infrequent and stop early; check the last run before an evening trip.
- Many smaller museums and the prefectural building close on Mondays and over New Year: check before you go.
- Summer is hot and humid; the cherry road and Akagi area are exposed with little shade.
Maebashi is a quiet, safe prefectural capital. The real risks are summer heat, infrequent last buses and keirin betting halls on race days: watch your wallet in crowds.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Maebashi yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Gunma Prefectural Government Building observation floor
- Akagi Nanmen cherry blossoms
- Green Dome Maebashi and keirin racing
- Yakimanju and sauce katsudon
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Maebashi Convention and Visitors Bureau: www.maebashi-cvb.com/
- Gunma Prefecture tourism: www.visit-gunma.jp/en/
- Green Dome Maebashi: greendome.jp/
- Wikivoyage: Maebashi, revision 5237101 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5237101
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Maebashi前橋
ここまでお願いします
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police110
- Fire and ambulance119
- Japan Visitor Hotline (24 h, English)050-3816-2787
No embassies in Maebashi; most are in Tokyo. The US has a consulate in Nagoya (check the address).
Cash is still useful in small shops and buses; carry some yen.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/maebashi). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.