2 Best Sights in The Japan Alps and the North Chubu Coast, Japan

Although inland buses will get you around faster, the coastal route is recommended for its scenic value. The 16-km (10-mile) stretch between Fuku-ura and Sekinohana, known as the Noto Seacoast, has fantastic wind- and wave-eroded rocks, from craggy towers to partly submerged checkerboard-pattern platforms. Among the best is Gan-mon, a rock cut through the center by water. Gan-mon is about 45 minutes north of Hakui and is a stop on tour-bus routes. The Wajima Tourist Information Center can give you details of boat tours, if you want to see the coast from the water.

The island's most scenic route is the roughly 30-km (19-mile) Osado Skyline Drive, which snakes across the mountains from Ryotsu to Aikawa. If you aren't using a rental car, you must take either a tour bus from Ryotsu or a taxi from Aikawa to Chiguse, where you can catch a bus for the return trip. (You can do the route in reverse as well.) It's particularly beautiful in autumn foliage season.