Blueberry Picking - Shiga, Japan


Fruit picking is the popular activity in summer. Normally, the tourists would like to join the fruit picking especially strawberry, cherry and apple. I ever joined the strawberry picking in South Korea but not in Japan. Therefore, I chose blueberry fruit picking. There are several blueberry farms in Japan. I visited Kansai during that period so I looked for the blueberry near the sightseeing place and easy for access. 

I searched the information on many websites but I found the same problem which was the location. I did not rent the car so the easiest way for traveling was public transportation e.g. Bus, train. One day, I read the the old magazine and found the name of one farm in Shiga so I searched the information on website. Finally, I chose this farm "Green Farm Yamamoto グリーンファームやまもと"



I did see any reviews in English and personally not familiar with Shiga prefecture especially the transportation by bus so I also looked for the information in Japanese as well. In fact, I was not sure about the bus route but tried to keep the information as much as I could.

Green Farm Yamamoto is located in Shiga prefecture. You can travel by train and the bus. 
The weather is hot in summer and avoid the rush hour so I departed from the hotel in Osaka before 8 a.m. 




Green Farm Yamamoto グリーンファームやまもと


Access

Take JR from Osaka Station to Kyoto Station, then change to JR Special Rapid to Moriyama Station (Shiga).

Arrive Moriyama station, go to the bus stop. Bus Stop is in front of JR Moriyama Station. I was not sure about the bus stop number even I checked it online. The bus stop was in Japanese and I found the bus stop named Sumoto on the board at bus stop no.2, then I asked the chauffeur if the bus pass Sumoto. He pointed to the front and said that please go to the bus stop no.1 so go to the bus stop no.1 (as yellow sign).

If you come with your family or in group of friends, you may take the taxi.



Bus fare is 350 yen (one way). Don't forget to pick the ticket at the entrance door. The bus stop name in English is available on the bus. Ring the bell when you want to get off. It takes 12 minutes from Moriyama Station to Sumoto. I arrived the farm around 10 a.m. Don't forget to check bus timetable otherwise you may wait for the bus for an hour.

Bus Timetable Website
https://ohmitetudo-bus.jorudan.biz/en/

Moriyama Sta.{OHMI RAILWAY KOKOKU BUS}
Sumoto{OHMI RAILWAY KOKOKU BUS}

Moriyama Station 守山駅

Sumoto 洲本

One Day Pass 1,000 yen
http://www.ohmitetudo.co.jp/bus/pass/biwakoticket/index.html/

The bus stop is opposite with Family Mart. 


Sumoto Bus Stop (Shiga)
Cross the road (to Family Mart) and go straight. Keep going until see the Giant melon on your right side. 



Follow the giant melon. You will see the supermarket first. At the back of the supermarket is the blueberry farm. Here is the map.


Green Farm Yamamoto Map

Look for the entrance gate.



I bought the ticket at the counter. You will get one blueberry box for souvenir and all you can eat for an hour so you pick and eat them in the farm and pick them for souvenir. The staff was so kind. I said that I want to buy the ticket for 1,200 yen. She asked me to keep my bag while I was in the farm, bring one small basket and one small plastic box. 


Green Farm Yamamoto Blueberry Farm 
グリーンファームやまもと

Operation Date: 14 July - Late August 2018 (depends on weather of each year, normally starts from mid July).

Opening Hours: 09:30-17:00

Admission Fee:

Adult 1,200 yen
Child (4 years old - Elementary School) 700 yen
Child (Under 3 years) Free

All you can eat 1 hour. No need for advance reservation.



A small basket is for picking and eating blueberry in farm. You can pick the fruit and eat them at the seat provided (in front of ticket counter) or picking and eating together in the farm. Another plastic box is for souvenir. The farm does not weight the fruit so you can put them in the box as much as you could. The farm also sells fruit juice 200 yen and kakigori (Japanese shaved ice dessert) 200 yen.



The staff told me that please be careful because the weather was hot and windy. One day before I visited the farm was windy so the blueberries were dropped a lot. 



I brought camera, mobile phone, hat, sunglasses and the small basket inside the farm. It was sunshine day. If you visit the farm around noon, it will be hot so I recommend you to come before noon or in the evening. The blue color of blueberry is good for picking. Do not pick the pink one.





After 1 hour, I walked back to the Sumoto bus stop. The bus stop is in front of Nissan Showroom. The bus comes on time so please arrive prior 5-10 minutes. Please notice 守山駅 (Moriyama Station) in front of the bus to make sure that you take the right bus.


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