Toyama Has Amazingly Delicious Spring Water: Part 1 - ”Water of Tamadono” at Murodo on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route

When I decided to move from Yokohama to Toyama in 2019, I stayed in a hotel for a few days to search for a place to live. At that time, I noticed a label on the bathroom faucet in the hotel that said:

"Toyama’s tap water has won the Monde Selection Grand Gold Award."

I thought, "What does it mean for tap water to win the Grand Gold Award from Monde Selection?" But when I actually tried the tap water in Toyama, it was much tastier than the tap water in Yokohama.

Find Famous Drinking Water Locations

After moving to Toyama, I learned that there are many places in the　Toyama prefecture where you can collect natural spring water for free, so I decided to visit various locations.

Out of these, I would like to write about three in this series: Part 1 is about the water of Tamadono at Murodo on Mount Tateyama, Part 2 will cover the water in Oiwa (Shiroyama spring water and Fuji water at Nisseki Temple), and Part 3 will be about the natural spring water in Ikuji, Kurobe City.

So, let's start with Part 1.

Water of Tamodono at Mount Tateyama

(Image of water of Tamadono in winter)

This is my favorite spring water, which is located at an altitude of 2,450 meters in Murodo on the Tateyama Mountain Range. The Murodo Terminal Station, which you can reach by taking a cable car and bus from Dentetsu Toyama Station while enjoying breathtaking views, is right nearby. Upon arriving at Murodo, my routine is to fill my water bottle with this water and then head out for a hike around Murodo.

No matter the season—spring, summer, autumn, or winter (although the area is closed from November 30 and reopens in late April)—you can always enjoy the magnificent and beautiful scenery that makes you wonder if there could be a place as stunning as this in the world. Since I moved to Toyama in 2019, I’ve visited this place at least once a year, totaling nine visits so far. Each time, the deliciousness of this spring water makes me feel like I’m absorbing the beauty of the entire Tateyama Mountain Range into my body. It’s a soft water with a slight sweetness that makes it very easy to drink.

The Murodo Terminal has a luxurious hotel, Hotel Tateyama (https://h-tateyama.alpen-route.co.jp/), where I have stayed three times. The water throughout the hotel, including the water from the taps in the guest rooms, the bath water, and even the water used for drip coffee in the lounge, all comes from the water of Tamadono. (However, during the early and late parts of the season, when the snow is deep and water of Tamadono is inaccessible, the hotel uses water from another source, which is equally delicious.)

Since water of Tamadono is also sold in bottles, I once bought a bottle of this water during my stay at Hotel Tateyama to compare it with the tap water in the guest rooms. The tap water won hands down. It makes sense because it comes directly from the source, but it’s still interesting that the water from the tap, which is free, tastes better than the bottled mineral water sold for 140 yen.

Both the private baths in the guest rooms and the public baths in the hotel use water of Tamadono. It’s such a luxury. The soft water helps soothe tired muscles after hiking.

By the way, while many people use Murodo as a starting point for climbing Mount Oyama, which is the peak of the Tateyama mountain range. (Actually there are two peaks in Tateyama mountin range, and the peak of Mount Oyama is one of them.) I prefer hiking, so I haven’t attempted to climb Mount Oyama yet. I plan to try it someday after building up my stamina. Hiking in Murodo offers a series of encounters with scenery you can’t find anywhere else. You might even come across a rock ptarmigan, a natural monument. I plan to write more about hiking in Murodo on another occasion, so I’ll end here for today.

A rock ptarmigan. They are unafraid of humans, allowing you to take photos up close without them running away.