Shonai (SYO): one line to Tsuruoka, another to Sakata
Shonai Kotsu runs two airport lines, Tsuruoka to Shonai Airport and Sakata to Shonai Airport, each about 19 scheduled calls between 06:20 and 16:40.
- Three stop posts named Shonai Airport sit about 420 metres from the runway reference point.
- Shonai Kotsu runs two separate airport lines, one from Tsuruoka and one from Sakata.
- Each has about 19 scheduled calls, running between 06:20 and 16:40.
- The airport sits between the two towns, which is why there are two lines rather than one.
- Tsuruoka is to the south, and is the larger of the two.
- Sakata is to the north, on the Mogami river mouth, and was the old rice port.
- Both towns are on the JR Uetsu main line, which runs up the Sea of Japan coast.
- Check which line you need before boarding. The two go in opposite directions.
Two lines, two towns
- Shonai Kotsu runs the airport buses, and there are two distinct lines: Tsuruoka to Shonai Airport and Sakata to Shonai Airport.
- Each has about 19 scheduled calls, running from around 06:20 to 16:40.
- Three stop posts named Shonai Airport appear in the published data about 420 metres from the runway reference point.
- The lines run in opposite directions. Boarding the wrong one takes you the wrong way along the coast.
The two towns
- Tsuruoka is south of the airport, the larger town, and the base for the Dewa Sanzan mountains, the three sacred peaks of Shugendo pilgrimage.
- Sakata is north, at the mouth of the Mogami river, historically the rice-shipping port for the region.
- Both are on the JR Uetsu main line, and both have Shinkansen connections via Niigata or Shinjo.
The airport
- Shonai Airport opened in 1991, serving the coastal plain of the old Shonai domain.
- It is embanked and lined with pine windbreaks against the winter winds off the Sea of Japan.
- Flights are mostly to Tokyo Haneda, with seasonal additions.
Practical notes
- The last bus is around half past four in the afternoon. Later flights need a taxi.
- The region is famous for its rice and its sake, and for the wooden pilgrim lodgings at Mount Haguro.
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