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Ōtsu
Prefecture capital and Core city in Kansai

Ōtsu

Ōtsu is the capital city of Shiga Prefecture, Japan.

Plan a trip to Ōtsu→From Osaka

As of 1 October 2021, the city had an estimated population of 343,991 in 153,458 households and a population density of 740 persons per km2. The total area of the city is 464.51 square kilometres (179.35 sq mi).

Get in

Getting to Ōtsu

The closest major airports to Ōtsu are Kansai Airport and Itami Airport in Osaka. From Kansai Airport (KIX IATA), take the JR Haruka Limited Express to Kyoto and change to a local train to Ōtsu (approx. 1 hr 45 min, ¥3130 for unreserved seats). From Itami Airport (ITM IATA), take an airport limousine bus to Shin-Osaka (25 min, ¥500) then take a JR train to Ōtsu (35 min, ¥840).

See

Worth seeing

  1. 01
    Enryakuji Temple

    The head temple of Tendai Buddhism and a World Heritage Site located atop Mount Hiei.

  2. 02
    Gichu-ji Temple

    The burial place of famed haiku poet Matsuo Bashō, of Narrow Road to the Deep North fame.

  3. 03
    Ishiyama-dera
  4. 04
    Miidera Temple
  5. 05
    Hiyoshi Taisha
  6. 06
    Takebe Shrine

    This was once the head shrine of Omi Province.

Do

Things to do

Michigan Cruise (ミシガンクルーズ). A cruise of Lake Biwa with on-board entertainment and food. They offer 60 minute, 80 minute and night cruises, each with their own prices. Boat leaves from Otsu Port. The ship's name comes from the American state of Michigan because Otsu has a sister-city relationship with the state's capital, Lansing.

Eat

Where to eat

  1. 01
    Kanekichi
  2. 02
    Matsukiya
How locals move

Getting around Ōtsu the local way

  • Get inFrom Kyoto, the JR Kosei line goes directly to the Hieizan-Sakamoto station which is a 1,200-m walk from the Sakamoto Cable Car or the trailhead to climb Mount Hiei on foot.
  • Get inFrom here the Eizan Cable Car makes the trip to the top of Mount Hiei for ¥850/1080 one-way/return (incl.
  • Get inThe Hiyoshi Taisha shrine and the cable car to Mt.
  • Get aroundFor going between the two, you can use the Sakamoto Cable Car, which costs ¥840/1570 one-way/round-trip and runs daily from 08:00 to 17:00 once every 30 minutes.
  • Get aroundAt over 2 km, this is the longest cable car in Japan and takes about 11 minutes for the journey.
  • Get aroundThis cable car line was built in 1927 and refurbished in 1993.

From Wikivoyage: Mount Hiei, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-07.

Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Benlisquare (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons.