Hakusan is an expansive national park lying to the south of Kanazawa and west of Takayama. The park covers around 47,000 hectares centred around Mount Haku – one of Japan’s three sacred mountains.

The park extends across four prefectures – Ishikawa, Fukui, Gifu and Toyama – and is accessible from Kanazawa in around 60 minutes (by car). One of the highlights of Hakusan National Park is the famous ‘Hakusan White Road’ a winding 33km route that crosses the northern area of the park.

Inaccessible during winter due to heavy snow, the route is open to the public from June until mid-November. Tollgates are positioned at either end of the road and charge JPY1700 one-way or JPY2600 for a round-trip. Without stopping, the road takes around 60 minutes to drive but to enjoy it fully, visitors should allow at least 3 to 4 hours to stop at viewpoints, walking trails, and small cafes. Hakusan National Park is equally well-known for its fantastic hiking and mountaineering through summer and autumn, with trails suitable for visitors of all levels of fitness.