Cat Spotting in Gotanjouji 御誕生寺
Gotanjouji is located in the peaceful countryside of Fukui (福井県), making it a destination that requires a full day’s journey from nearby larger cities.
from Kanazawa, Ishigawa, Japan
石川県金沢
En Route to Gotanjouji
Takefu Station 武生駅
For foreign visitors, the best way to reach Takefu is to take Shinkansen to Fukui Station 福井駅 and then transfer to Takefu. At the time we visited in 2023, express trains were more convenient and there was no need to transfer.
Bicycle Ride
Gotanjouji was not winthin our eye sights upon arrival at Takefu Station. Instead of taking a taxi for approximately 20 minutes, we enjoyed a leisurely bicycle ride that took about 1.5 hours.
Takefu is primarily a residential town, and we seemed to be the only tourists at the train station. Even though there were only two rental bicycles available at the tourist information center, we were still able to rent them without a reservation around noon.
We only rented the bicycles for 4 hours, thinking it would be enough for this rural trip. However, it took us almost 1.5 hours to find our way. If we had the chance to go there again, we would choose to rent them for 8 hours.
Gotanjouji 御誕生寺
Gotanjouji has adopted up to 20 cats for years. They were healthy and clean overall.
We asked the Reverend where we should park our bicycles, and he guided us to park them next to the restroom.
The feeding time should be in early morining or late evening. Unfortunately, during our visit, which was between 11:00 and 14:00, we were not lucky enough to watch the cats enjoying the meal.