Kintetsu Railway Monthly News in May 2025

Jun 11, 2025

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Kintetsu Railway Monthly News in May 2025

Welcome back to Kintetsu Railway Monthly News in May 2025 ❤️🌸 This time, we bring you to many interesting places as always! Such as Muroji Temple, Mount Yamato Katsuragi, and Kintetsu Station Cafe!

1. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom in the deep valley of Nara at Muroji Temple🌸 [ 1 May 2025 ]

Muroji Temple is located in the northeastern part of Nara Prefecture. The temple grounds have preserved the beautiful scenery of the past. At this time of year, cherry blossoms are in full bloom, making it a sight to behold.

🌿Although it is far from the capital, Muroji Temple is where Buddhism flourishes. It is considered a treasure trove of Buddhist art, and many valuable Buddhist statues have been passed down from the past to the present.

Therefore, everyone should visit Muroji Temple to see the beautiful cherry blossoms and pay homage to the prominent Buddha statues from the early Heian period. 🩵

※The photo is from last year.

More about Muroji Temple

Address:

78 Murou, Uda, Nara 633-0421, Japan

How to get there:

Get off at Kintetsu Muroguchi-Ono Station and take the Nara Bus for about 14 minutes to the Muroji Temple stop. Then, walk for about 5 minutes from the stop.

※From Osaka Namba, it is about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Map:

2. Mount Katsuragi is beautifully adorned in bright red flowers [ 6 May 2025 ]

Located between Nara and Osaka Prefectures, Mount Yamato Katsuragi (葛城山) is renowned for its stunning display of these flowers yearly in mid-May. At this time, the summit is carpeted with red and pink blossoms, creating a breathtaking sight that is often described as “a million flowers in an instant.”

🚠 Visitors can take the Katsuragi Ropeway to enjoy the magnificent natural scenery during the ascent to the summit. The ropeway ride lasts about six minutes, offering a wonderful opportunity to experience the beauty of the area.

From the summit, you can take in a 360-degree panoramic view of both Osaka and Nara Prefectures. The beauty of nature can be appreciated year-round, from the Susuki grasslands in autumn to the pristine white snow in winter. ❄

※Note: The photo is from last year

More about Mount Yamato Katsuragi

Address:

Kujira, Gose, Nara 639-2312, Japan

How to get there:

Take a train to Kintetsu Gose Station and then board Nara Bus for about 20 minutes, getting off at the Katsuragi Ropeway stop. From there, take the ropeway from Katsuragi Tousan guchi to Katsuragi Sanjou, which takes approximately six minutes.
If starting from Osaka Abenobashi, the entire journey will take about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Map:

3. ☕ Kintetsu Sightseeing Railway transforms into a “Station Cafe” 🍰 [ 9 May 2025 ]

Kintetsu is holding a limited-time special event to help visitors to Osaka learn more about the charms of the “Kintetsu Limited Express Sightseeing”, in connection with the “World Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai” currently being held.

“Limited Express Sightseeing Train Pavilion” (観光特急パビリオン) is an event where trains are displayed at Kintetsu stations, allowing passengers to get a close-up look at the sightseeing trains. In addition, there is a “Limited Express Sightseeing Railway Café” where customers who use the café can sit inside the train. While enjoying the special menu in the café, everyone can fully enjoy the luxurious sightseeing train atmosphere that Kintetsu is proud to offer!

This event has been held twice in April, with the “Aoniyoshi” train appearing at Osaka Uehommachi Station and the “Blue Symphony” train being displayed at Osaka Abenobashi Station.

If you have the chance to visit World Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai, don’t forget to choose the Kintetsu Railway, which covers the largest route in the Kansai region to Tokai, and come to experience the sightseeing train up close at the “Limited Express Sightseeing Train Pavilion” and the “Limited Express Sightseeing Train Cafe”!

Next Event Schedule 📆

📍Osaka Uehommachi Station: Shimakaze train display on June 17, 2025 & Aoniyoshi train display on June 26, 2025
📍Osaka Abenobashi Station: Blue Symphony train display on June 11, 2025

⏱ Hours:

11:00 – 15:00 (Last order at 14:30)

＊Because the venue is inside the station, you must purchase a ticket to enter.
＊Only customers who use the cafe can enter the exhibition train.

4.Enjoy the Narashika Train 🦌 [ 16 May 2025 ]

“Narashika Train” is a popular train adorned with cute deer patterns! It features bright illustrations by famous illustrator Gemi, who beautifully captures the charm of Nara Prefecture.

When you board the train, you will be greeted with unique designs, such as deer antler-shaped handgrips, adorable seats resembling the backs of little deer, and creative decorations on the floor and doors.🦌 It’s an experience that makes you feel as if you’re truly encountering a deer and will surely inspire you to meet a real one as well!

However, since the train schedule changes daily, you might consider yourself extremely lucky if you happen to catch this train, as it can be harder to find than meeting an actual deer. 😅

Let’s embark on our journey to meet the Nara deer on the Kintetsu Railway! 🚆✨

5. “Ise”, the sacred city of the sea – Wedded Rocks [ 21 May 2025 ]

In the middle of the sea of Futamiura, two rocks stand side by side like a married couple, which is why they are called Wedded Rocks (夫婦岩 / Meoto Iwa)

In the past, it was believed that the eastern coast beyond the pair of rocks was the land of the gods (常世の国), and the sacred straw rope that tied the two rocks was like the boundary between the human world and the land of the gods. It is said that when the gods returned to the human world, they would first stop at this sacred place.

Futamiura Beach is also home to the sacred shrine “Futami Okitama Shrine”, which is traditionally visited before going to Ise Shrine. You have to cleanse your body and mind of impurities and prepare for visiting the gods at Ise Shrine. In addition, this shrine is well-known for praying for love, marriage, and a smooth married life.

Around the shrine, there are statues of the gods’ servants, the “Futami Frog”, and of course, there are various lucky charms such as “returning home safely”, “returning the lent item”, or “returning to youth”, which are all popular lucky charms for those who believe. ♪

From May to July, especially in the middle of the year, the sun rises exactly in the middle of the two rocks, creating a beautiful and sacred sunrise view that attracts many believers. On some days during the above period, if the weather is clear, you may see “Mt. Fuji” overlapping the sun, creating a rare phenomenon called “Diamond Fuji”!

More about Wedded Rocks

Address:

575 Futamichoe, Ise, Mie 519-0602, Japan

How to get there:

Get off at Kintetsu “Iseshi station” or “Ujiyamada station”, then take the Mie Kotsu CAN Bus and get off at “Meoto-iwa Higashiguchi” bus stop. The journey takes about 45 minutes.

*It takes about 2 hours and 30 minutes from Osaka and about 2 hours and 10 minutes from Nagoya.