Tours & Activities
Local Culture Experience
Komagane Silk Museum (w/ Translator/Guide): Traditional Craft and Sericulture
Learn About Japanese Silk Product and Try Traditional Crafts for Yourself at Komagane Silk Museum
The Ina Valley was once one of the top silk producers in Japan. The warm and sunny weather of the Ina Valley lends itself well to growing kuwa-no-ki (mulberry trees), which feed silkworms. In the Edo Period, farming households would often produce their own silk on the second floor of their country homes. This was very lucrative. The Meiji Restoration ushered in a new wave of industry, and silk production had its own revolution. The Ina Valley’s small producers merged to make a large company called Ryusuisha (龍水社). They were there for the peak and then the eventual decline of Japanese silk production creating beautiful silk items.
Now the Komagane Silk Museum remembers the past with a fascinating museum all about Japanese silk production and silk worms. What’s more, it keeps the skills and knowledge of Japanese silk alive with real natural silkworm production, workshops, and classes on silk reeling, natural dyeing, and more. The facility is also equipped with a delicious, healthy buffet restaurant, and the opportunity to try on a silk kimono with the help of a master. If you time your trip between June and October the workshop facility will be full of live silk-worms chomping on mulberry leaves and spinning their silk cocoons.
In this English language guided trip to the Komagane Silk Museum, you will be given a quick guided tour of the museum facility, then you will go to the workshop area to learn some new skills. There are three options for you to choose from in the workshop area including
① aizome (indigo dyeing)
② hataori (weaving)
③ itokuri (silk reeling).
Check out this page for more information. After finishing the workshop, you will have a healthy buffet lunch of local fresh food in the restaurant connected to the museum. The views of the Central Alps from the restaurant are unbelievable on a clear day. Following lunch, those who have booked a full-day plan, you will head back to the workshop room for your second activity. For those booking a half-day, this is where your tour ends.
① aizome (indigo dyeing)
② hataori (weaving)
③ itokuri (silk reeling).
Check out this page for more information. After finishing the workshop, you will have a healthy buffet lunch of local fresh food in the restaurant connected to the museum. The views of the Central Alps from the restaurant are unbelievable on a clear day. Following lunch, those who have booked a full-day plan, you will head back to the workshop room for your second activity. For those booking a half-day, this is where your tour ends.
Half Day + Lunch Plan:
10:00 – Arrive and enjoy a guided tour of the museum.
10:45 – Go to the workshop facility and learn a new skill from an instructor.
12:00 – Buffet Lunch
13:30 – Finish
Full Day Plan
Photo provided by Komagane Silk Museum/（写真）駒ヶ根シルクミュージアム提供
10:00 – Meet at Komagane Silk Museum Entrance
10:05 – Enjoy a guided tour of the museum
10:45 – Go to the workshop facility and learn a new skill from an instructor
12:00 – Buffet Lunch
13:30 – Go to the workshop facility to enjoy learning a second new skill
14:30 – Finish
Highlights
▶Between June and October, you can see real silk worms at work in the workshop facility.
▶Learn a new skill in workshops that strive to protect Japan’s traditional crafts. These are very rare experiences for you to enjoy.
▶A guided tour of the museum facility with fascinating displays and information about local and national silk production and more.
What’s Included
Photo provided by Komagane Silk Museum/（写真）駒ヶ根シルクミュージアム提供
▶English translator/guide
▶Guided tour of the silk museum
▶Entrance fee to the museum
▶One or two traditional craft workshops
▶Buffet lunch at a healthy restaurant
What’s NOT included
▶Transport to/from meeting point
▶Insurance (please purchase travel insurance in your own country)
▶Anything else not specified (bank transaction fees shall be covered by the customer)
▶Insurance (please purchase travel insurance in your own country)
▶Anything else not specified (bank transaction fees shall be covered by the customer)
Experience facility information
Price
Adult (19yrs and above):6,000JPY＋experience fee
Children (6 to 18yrs):5,800JPY＋experience fee
(experience fees vary depending on what experience, and how many experiences, you choose)
Children (6 to 18yrs):5,800JPY＋experience fee
(experience fees vary depending on what experience, and how many experiences, you choose)
Experience time
Half Day：About 3.5 hours (start/end time:10:00/13:30)
One Day：About 4.5 hours (start/end time:10:00/14:30)
One Day：About 4.5 hours (start/end time:10:00/14:30)
Capacity
Minimum:4
Maximum:10
Maximum:10
Booking
Advanced booking only(at least 14 days prior)
Contact
Nagano Ina Valley Tourism Bureau
EMAIL:k-dmo@union-kamiina.jp
EMAIL:k-dmo@union-kamiina.jp