When i first went to Amanohashidate 天橋立, the famous pine-covered sandbank in northern Kyôto prefecture, it was, well, pretty rainy. But since Kyôto University spent a lot of money to get us in a pretty nice Ryôkan 旅館 and arranged some pretty interesting meetings with people protecting the pines and the sandbank from general erosion, there was nothing to complain and a lot to learn.
This time we were more lucky. Since for the first time I traveled with the Japan Rail Pass, we took the Limited Express Hashidate from Kyôto. It does not cover the part between Fukuchiyama and Amanohashidate, but you can obtain a supplementary ticket in the train. We opted for the Amanohashidate Pass. It was 1600 Yen per person and offers some interesting features beside the train ticket: 2 hours bycicle renting, a boat tour across the bay and a free ride on the lift. All in all it is a really great deal.
There are also some shrines and temples among the way that are worth a visit. And of course the famous matanozoki 股のぞき, looking through your own feet upside down to make the sandbank look like a bridge to heaven. You need a surprising amount of imagination to see it, however.
