Getting your bearings
Toyokawa sits in the eastern part of Aichi Prefecture, with the Toyogawa River to the east, the Otoha River to the west, and the Sana River running through the centre of town. One thing worth knowing before you plan any journey: the city grew out of the merger of several once-independent communities, so its urban functions are spread across several station areas rather than concentrated in a single downtown. Toyokawa Station, despite the name, is not the city's central station. Expect to move between a few different hubs rather than treating one as your base for everything.
The city's layout is shaped by its main roads — National Route 1 to the west, National Route 23 to the southwest, and National Route 151 from the east to the south — with the Hime Kaido (Hon-Zaka Street) running east to west through the city. Four railway lines run roughly parallel to those roads, which makes the train a sensible default for longer hops across town.
Rail: your main way around
Toyokawa is served by two railway operators, and understanding the split is the key to using the network well.
- JR Central (Japan Railways) operates two conventional lines through the city. The Tōkaidō Main Line passes through the west of the city, and the Iida Line runs through the centre and on toward the north. Stations on the Iida Line include Kozakai, Ushikubo, Toyokawa, Mikawa-Ichinomiya, Nagayama, Ejima and Tōjō.
- Meitetsu (Nagoya Railroad) also serves the city with two lines. The Nagoya Main Line runs through the western part of Toyokawa, and the Toyokawa Line branches off to serve the city centre and Toyokawa Inari.
Practically speaking, this means JR is the better bet for journeys toward Toyohashi, Nagoya and beyond, while Meitetsu is useful for reaching Toyokawa Inari and for connections into the wider Meitetsu network toward Nagoya. The two operators are separate companies with separate tickets, so if your trip involves both, buy a ticket for each leg rather than expecting one fare to cover the whole journey.
For visitors, the simplest approach is to buy a rechargeable IC card (such as manaca, which is the local Nagoya-area card, or a nationwide card like Suica or ICOCA) and tap in and out. IC cards work across both JR and Meitetsu in this area and save you from working out fares at the machine each time. If you prefer paper tickets, the fare charts above the ticket machines at each station show the price to your destination — pay that amount and take the printed ticket.
Buses and long-distance coaches
Local bus services fill in the gaps between the rail lines and the more dispersed parts of the city, but the most useful bus for a visitor is likely to be the long-distance highway coach.
- A night highway bus connects Tokyo with Toyokawa and Toyohashi. In the Tokyo-to-Toyohashi direction it picks up at Nerima Station North Exit, Nakano Station, and the Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal on the 4th floor of JR Shinjuku Station's New South Gate, then runs overnight to Toyokawa. In the reverse direction it leaves from Toyohashi and Toyokawa in the late evening and arrives in Tokyo early the following morning, terminating at Shibuya Mark City, Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal, Nakano Station and Nerima Station North Exit.
- Within Toyokawa, the coach makes two stops: Toyokawa Station and Toyokawa City Hall. That makes it a convenient arrival point if your accommodation is near either.
- There is one service per direction per day, so book ahead rather than turning up on spec. Fares fall in a mid-range band depending on your boarding point, and seats can be reserved online through the operator's booking site.
For shorter local trips, city and community buses cover routes that the trains don't, but services are less frequent than the rail lines. Check the timetable at your nearest stop or at the station before relying on a bus for a time-sensitive connection.
Taxis and ride-hailing
Taxis are available, and are most useful for the situations the trains and buses handle poorly: reaching a temple or golf course away from a station, or getting home late after an evening out. You'll find taxi ranks at the main stations, and hotels can usually call one for you. Ride-hailing apps have less coverage in regional Japanese cities than in major metros, so don't assume an app will work here — plan on taxis being hailed at a rank or booked by phone rather than summoned instantly from your smartphone.
Walking
Walkability in Toyokawa depends heavily on where you are. The central business area is divided into three districts — the Suwa District, where public institutions and commercial facilities cluster; the Toyogawa District, which grew up as the gateway to Toyokawa Inari Shrine; and the Chuo-dori District, which links the two. Within and between these districts, walking is pleasant and practical, and the area around Toyokawa Inari is particularly well suited to exploring on foot.
Outside the centre, though, the city is expansive and its functions are scattered across several station areas, so walking between districts is often impractical. The city has a relatively mild climate with little to no snowfall even in winter, which makes walking comfortable for much of the year — but summers are hot and humid, so plan longer walks for the cooler parts of the day. In spring, the cherry blossoms along the Sana and Otoha rivers and the Sakura Tunnel near the city hall make a walk worthwhile in their own right.
Getting in from the airport
Toyokawa has no airport of its own. Visitors flying in use the airports serving the wider region — principally Chubu Centrair International Airport, south of Nagoya — and then continue by rail. The usual pattern is to take a train from the airport into Nagoya and transfer to a JR or Meitetsu service heading east toward Toyokawa and Toyohashi. Because JR and Meitetsu are separate operators, you may need to buy a new ticket at the transfer point; an IC card makes this seamless.
If you're arriving from Tokyo rather than by air, the overnight highway coach described above is a straightforward alternative to the train, dropping you directly at Toyokawa Station or Toyokawa City Hall.
Practical tips
- Get an IC card early — it works on both JR and Meitetsu and removes the need to calculate fares.
- Remember that Toyokawa Station is not the city's central station; check which station is closest to your destination before setting out.
- Book the Tokyo overnight coach in advance, as there is only one departure per direction per day.
- Allow extra time for buses, which run less frequently than trains.
- Don't count on ride-hailing apps; use station taxi ranks or ask your hotel to book a taxi.
- In summer, do your walking in the morning or evening — the heat and humidity are significant.