Tomioka

Tourist information site:

The local tourist association has a Japanese-only guide site with machine translation.

By train:

Tomioka is served by the non-JR Jōshin Line, which runs from the nearby railway hub at Takasaki. The line has 8 stations in the city, but the main one is Jōshū-Tomioka. There are usually one or two trains an hour from Takasaki to Jōshū-Tomioka, taking 40 minutes and ¥790.

Jōshin Railway sells a combination ticket, which covers a return journey between Takasaki and Jōshū-Tomioka and admission to the Silk Mill, for ¥2140 (a saving of ¥440). They also sell a one-day free ticket (which allows unlimited travel on the line) for ¥2220.

The Jōshin Line is not covered by the Japan Rail Pass or the JR East Passes, but it is covered by the JR TOKYO Wide Pass, which is available to holders of non-Japanese passports. Note also that the Jōshin Line does not accept IC Cards (Suica, Pasmo, Icoca etc.)

By bus:

Tomioka Interchange on the Jōshin-etsu Expressway (about 2.5km south of the Silk Mill) is served by a fairly frequent direct bus service towards Tokyo:

Seibu Bus and Chikuma Bus run 16 buses a day from Ikebukuro Station East Exit, Shimo-Ochiai Station, Nerima Ward Office, and Kawagoe-Matoba Bus Stop, taking 2 hours 5 minutes (and continuing on to Karuizawa, Komoro or Ueda). Two buses a day start back from Shinjuku.

Chikuma Bus also runs 2 buses a day from Tachikawa Station North Exit and Tamagawa-Jōsui Station, taking 2 hours 10 minutes (and continuing on to Komoro or Ueda).

All of these buses cost ¥2100. You can buy two tickets for ¥3700, or 4 tickets for ¥7200.

Nippon Chūō Bus runs an overnight service named "Silk Liner" from Osaka Namba (OCAT) and Kyoto Station Hachijō Exit to Nippon Chūō Taxi Tomioka Eigyōsho (on the main road 350m south of Nishi-Tomioka Station and 500m northwest of the Silk Mill), taking 8 hours 15 minutes and ¥9200 (¥16,560 return, valid for 10 days). Note that this bus leaves Tomioka for Kansai after 11:45pm, and arrives at Tomioka before 4:45am.