Japanese hotel offering sports car 'touge' tours, no Japanese-language ability required
A pretty clear indication that some aspect of Japanese culture has started captivating people overseas is when the Japanese-language term for it starts getting used by fans and aficionados in other parts of the world too. We've seen it happen in entertainment media with words such as anime and cosplay, in culinary circles with concepts like umami and omakase, and among automotive enthusiasts with the term touge.
Touge translates as 'mountain pass,' and as such is a word that's been part of the Japanese language for centuries. In the modern era, though, touge is strongly associated with winding mountain roads in Japan that attract sports car drivers, not so much as a way to get to the other side of the mountain, but for the fun and excitement of driving the road and admiring the views.
With touge gaining traction as a word used among the international Japanese sports car fan community, it's probably a safe bet that a lot of foreign travelers staying at Japan's Fuji Speedway Hotel in the tow of Oyama, Shizuoka Prefecture, have heard the word and have dreamt of one day doing a touge drive in Japan, so that's exactly what the hotel is offering with a special driving tour, and they'll even provide a suitable JDM car.
The four-hour experience offers drivers two routes, each approximately 130 kilometers in length. The first takes you over to border to Kanagawa Prefecture's Hakone Turnpike, regarded as one of the premier touge holy grounds.
In addition to the Hakone Turnpike, the Lake Yamanakako and Anest Iwata Turnpike Hakone route takes you through the Myojin Pass, past the Mount Taikanzan Observatory, and around Mount Mikuni. You'll also have a chance to see stunning views of nearby Mount Fuji and Lake Yamanakako.
The other route, Fuji Five Lakes and Oshino Hakkai, takes you from the hotel around the north side of Mount Fuji and into the lake region, plus makes a stop to stretch your legs at either the Fugaku Wind Cave or Narusawa Ice Cave.
For the drive, you'll be provided with a Toyota GRMN Yaris. A high-tuned limited-production variant of the already high-tuned limited-production GR Yaris hot hatch, only 500 GRMN Yarises were built, and none of them were sold in the U.S. Though it may not have muscle car-level torque, the GRMN Yaris is a light, nimble, rev-happy rally-style car for the street, which should make it extremely fun for a touge run.
Of course, it can be confusing and unnerving to drive in a country where you haven't spent much time behind the wheel before, to say nothing of the unpleasant possibility of getting lost in the Japanese countryside. But the Fuji Speedway Hotel's touge tours address these concerns with an experienced guide who's trilingual in Japanese, English, and French who drives in a lead car, with tour participants caravanning behind him. The guide also provides information about local sights when the group stops at scenic lookout points along the route.
▼ Fuji Speedway Hotel
Naturally, you will need a valid driver's license (either a Japanese or international license) in order to participate in the tour, and must also be 21 years old or older. Eligibility is further limited to Fuji Speedway Hotel guests who have booked a stay in a suite or villa or who are staying in another type of room but have booked a spa treatment of 90 minutes or more. The touge tours carry a cost of 65,000 yen, which includes all highway tolls and parking/facility usage fees. Reservations for the tours can be made online here.
Related: Fuji Speedway Hotel
Source, images: PR Times
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